FINAL EXAM

  

Define and explain the importance of –

Salon

Tenebrism

Rubeniste

Poussiniste

Essay questions: Do three of the following five questions. I’ve included thumbnails of the works, but please refer to illustrations in your textbook and/or online to get a better view of the work.

1.  David, Oath of the Horatii and Goya, Third of May, 1808 

David’s painting of the Oath of the Horatii has been viewed as the epitome of a neo-Classical painting – in its heroic subject, in its clear composition and execution (brushwork, color, etc). In contrast, Goya’s Third of May, 1808 is often viewed as the epitome of a Romantic painting, in its treatment of the subject of war, in its execution, in its heightened drama.

Write an essay in which you explain in detail how each of these works differ from each other in their treatment of the subject of war, and in their execution. How does each one reflect its time period and style?

2.  Rubens, Elevation of the Cross and Courbet, Burial at Ornans

Death is a subject found throughout art, and each of these works deals with that subject. But each artist had a different agenda in what they wanted to viewer to take from these. How does Rubens heighten the drama of Christ’s death? In contrast, what is Courbet’s painting about? What do you think he intended with his choice of what about this death to represent? Think about the scale of the works, and also how each work came about (ie – was this a commissioned painting? Who was the intended audience for the work?)

3. Jacob van Ruisdael, View of Haarlem from the Dunes at Overveen and Bunsei, Landscape

Nature has played a large role in art for many cultures and throughout time. Western artists have generally taken a very different approach to the representation of nature that artists in the Far East. In this comparison, talk about the differences in appearance between these works, but also consider how each one conveys the relationship of man to nature. What do these differences tell us abohow each artist stood before nature and what ideas they wanted to convey.

4. Manet, Olympia and Picasso, Demoiselles d’Avignon

Female nudes – a perennial subject in Western art, yet treated in multiple ways and reflecting different interests of the artists. Each of these paintings portrays not only nudes, but prostitute(s). Compare the works both for style and content. How did each artist treat the female form? The setting? The attitude of the women? Be precise in describing the works.

5. Watteau, Voyage to Cythera and Renoir, Moulin de la Galette

One of the considerations artists had to deal with in executing their works is patronage. Who had ordered their work, who was likely to buy it, and did they care? By the nineteenth century, the nature of the profession had dramatically changed, and how artists regarded their careers had as well. With that in mind, compare these two paintings by Watteau and Renoir. How did their attitudes toward their job play a role in their choice of subject? How did Watteau’s “I paint for the aristocracy” and Renoir’s “I paint what I want” influence their choice of subject and how they handled it?