The Dancers
The Golden age of art is during the reign of Queen Victoria. Because of the industrial revolution, people were able to rise from poverty and this led to people with self-confidence to acquire fame.
Edward Poynter was a painter in the Golden age. In his painting ‘Horae Serenae, detail’ the figures in the middle are of classical maidens, who appear to be dancing. It is a very happy and peaceful painting that has a great attention to detail. Poynter gave a lot of importance to detail and correct geometry, which is why you can see the background and the garden sculptures perfectly positioned and complete. The composition is well portrayed and well balanced. It has to equal sides distributing an even weight, were on the right, there are the musicians and on the left whom appears to be the landlord and his wife. Also a balance with color effects, where the maidens are dressed in warm colors, which stand out in front of the green grass and flowers. Also the musicians are dressed in some cool colors as to balance out the shadow on the left side. There is also physical balance as they are dancing, some of them are on one foot and one of them is not even touching the grass. The sense of balance in this picture is varied.
Edward John Poynter, Horae Serenae (detail), 1894, oil on canvas
Several new approaches to art were being discovered through that time and one remarkable and most influential artist of the 20th century is Henri Matisse. There were realists, who started portraying ordinary life, livestock and other ordinary activities, and also Impressionists, who depicted their paintings in a blur, featuring a fleeting moment in time, and then Matisse and Fauvism. Matisse was very diverse in his work, with his first work showing influence from Edouard Manet and Paul Cezanne, but as time goes by, his paintings become less detailed and more colorful. He became more interested in the form, and color.
Henri Matisse, Bonheur de Vivre (The Joy of Life) 1905-1906,
Barnes Foundation, oil on canvas
One of his greatest paintings is of an Arcadian landscape, which is in a very primitive style filled with bright colors, is ‘Bonheur de Vivre’ (The Joy of Life). The forest is in shades of yellow, red and green, and bold, dark, blue-ish, green tree trunks. The flesh is also in varied colors, which are rather unrealistic. There’s a visual balance of colors throughout the picture. Like Poynter’s painting, there’s also a group of people dancing around in a circle, giving the same feeling of joy, and also a sense of physical balance. Unlike Poynter’s, Matisse portrayed this circle far more distant and far less detailed. This is the kind of approach that artists were beginning to follow, breaking away from academic traditions and portraying work more momentary and spontaneous.
Henri Matisse, Dance 1910, oil on canvas,
Hermitage Museum (since 1948), Museum of Modern Art
A few years later, Matisse works had already started to show less detail and more attention to form and color. In 1909 he created a work called ‘Dance’ commissioned by an industrialist. He used the same dancers from ‘Bonheur de Vivre’, which brings the same joy, but less brightness, less color and a less dancer. There is flatness in the picture, even lightness. They are all in a balancing pose and there surely is a sense of movement. The flatness makes you think that it is simple and there’s not much to interpret from it but, Matisse had done this intentionally, and without thinking you might say that the background is the sky rising up from the hill, but what if it was water? Here, Matisse “use spatial ambiguity to explore one of the key issues in modern painting, the conflict between the illusion of depth and an acknowledgement of the flatness of the canvas.”
Henri Matisse, Dance 1910, oil on canvas,
Hermitage Museum (since 1948), Museum of Modern Art
Henri Matisse (1869–1954) | Thematic Essay | Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History | The Metropolitan Museum of Art. 2014. Henri Matisse (1869–1954) | Thematic Essay | Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History | The Metropolitan Museum of Art. [ONLINE] Available at:http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/mati/hd_mati.htm. [Accessed 24 November 2014].
WebMuseum: Matisse, Henri (-�mile-Beno�t). 2014. WebMuseum: Matisse, Henri (-�mile-Beno�t). [ONLINE] Available at:http://www.ibiblio.org/wm/paint/auth/matisse/. [Accessed 24 November 2014].
Realism to change Art
Gustave Courbet, 1851-1852, Young Ladies of the Village,
Oil painting, 1.95m x 2.61m
Realism has its roots way back in the mid-19th century, were at the time, the French society overturned the monarchy of Louis-Philippe in the Revolution fighting for democratic reform. At the time, academies like the Royal academies of Art in France and England, taught art to be organized and well planned. They had standards, which were classical art themes like Romanticism, a European tradition and historical subjects. A movement emerged during that time going against the academic standards. Artists started portraying the truth of contemporary lives of working class people who were poor and living a very hard life. These artists formed a movement known as the Avant-garde, because they started seeking change. In England there were the Pre-Raphaelites and in France, Realists, which Gustav Courbet led.
In Courbet’s, “Young Ladies of the Village”, you can see Courbet’s sisters wondering in the countryside. It is set against the Ornan hills, just like in “The Stone Breakers”, which are very common in that area, therefore he made several studies of the scene. The figures have a triangular form, slightly off the center in the foreground appearing to be handing something to a little girl. The tonal balance between the dark and light cliffs split the background vertically. The ladies stand out in front of the dark background, which has a lot of depth. On the other hand, the cattle are set below a bright cliff and are further away so, by their heavy bodies, they balance out the ladies whom feel heavier as they are closer in the foreground. Nonetheless Courbet still got criticized for being ‘clumsy’ and ‘tasteless’.
Jean Francois Millet is another Realist painter, whose favorite subjects were also peasants, hard labor and landscapes. In his work “The Gleaners”, the woman portrayed had to go during the sunset to pick up the remainder of the corn’s husks, which were missed by the harvesters. Just like “The Stone Breakers”, these women are within a boundary, which is represented by the horizon. They have to have an unpleasant duty, which breaks their back, and a man on a horse way back in the farm constantly supervises them. You can almost feel the pain they must have been going through, constantly bent down like that. The setting sun leaves darkness in the foreground, which gives a balance to the whole picture. It gives them depth, makes the foreground look heavy, with sunlight hitting their backs and arms, giving the attention on them, so to emphasize which parts their pain is most. The background though is much brighter. This is what balances the whole painting as the further out and brighter feels lighter.
Jean-Francois Millet, The Gleaners, 1857, Musee d’Orsay, oil painting, 84cm x 1.12m
Jean-Francois Millet, The Winnower, 1848, Musee d’Orsay,
oil on canvas, 58.5 x 79.5cm
Portraits and landscapes of working people can be seen throughout Millet’s works, and he covered many traits. Another one is winnowing, in ‘The Winnower’. This figure gives a sense of stability, with the positioning of his feet close together from the knees and apart from the ankles. This is because he is holding the winnowing fan so he has to keep balance. Also, a contrast of cool and warm by the winnower’s red cap and the piece of blue fabric tied to his feet.
As you go further in time, impressionist movements started emerging, influenced by the Realists, art gets a huge other meaning and new concepts.
Nineteenth-Century French Realism | Thematic Essay | Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History | The Metropolitan Museum of Art. 2014. Nineteenth-Century French Realism | Thematic Essay | Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History | The Metropolitan Museum of Art. [ONLINE] Available at:http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/rlsm/hd_rlsm.htm. [Accessed 24 November 2014].
Gustave Courbet (1819–1877) | Thematic Essay | Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History | The Metropolitan Museum of Art. 2014. Gustave Courbet (1819–1877) | Thematic Essay | Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History | The Metropolitan Museum of Art. [ONLINE] Available at:http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/gust/hd_gust.htm. [Accessed 24 November 2014].
Jean-Francois Millet - The complete works. 2014. Jean-Francois Millet - The complete works. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.jeanmillet.org/. [Accessed 24 November 2014].
The effect of Light
Claude Monet, 1840-1926, Arrival of the Normandy Train, Gare Saint-Lazare
1877, Oil on canvas, 60.3 x 80.2 cm (23 3/4 x 31 1/2 in.)
This painting on the right is one of a series of paintings by Claude Monet called, ‘The Arrival of the Normandy Train’. He made a series of paintings portraying the St. Lazare railway station in different times of the day. This allowed him to study different color during different times of day, and changes of light effects reflecting on glass panes and the steam of the trains. This was a characteristic of the Impressionist movement.
In this study, there is a balance between calm, and confusion, where on the left side of the painting, there seems to be calmness, less sense of movement and a light load. On the other hand, the other side is more chaotic and has a lot of movement.
Claude Monet, 1875, La Promenade, Oil on canvas,
Natoinal Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., 100 x 81cm
Another characteristic of the Impressionists was the way they left visible brushstrokes. Unlike anything the academies would have taught. That was a new approach at the time. This gave that feeling of an impression, a single moment. It’s what makes Impressionist paintings stand out. Another study that shows this technique is another of Monet’s work called ‘Le Promenade’. Here, Monet portray a moment, a simple stroll with his wife and son. His wife is holding a parasol, leaned a little to the left, which balances the whole composition of his wife. The sunlight is coming from behind her, leaving her front in shadow. As the light hits the bright flowers, it is reflected on her dress leaving shades of yellow. Also her gaze, that appears to be a quick look, gives it the impression of the fleeting moment of time, which Courbet was mostly after.
The Dancers
The Golden age of art is during the reign of Queen Victoria. Because of the industrial revolution, people were able to rise from poverty and this led to people with self-confidence to acquire fame.
Edward Poynter was a painter in the Golden age. In his painting ‘Horae Serenae, detail’ the figures in the middle are of classical maidens, who appear to be dancing. It is a very happy and peaceful painting that has a great attention to detail. Poynter gave a lot of importance to detail and correct geometry, which is why you can see the background and the garden sculptures perfectly positioned and complete. The composition is well portrayed and well balanced. It has to equal sides distributing an even weight, were on the right, there are the musicians and on the left whom appears to be the landlord and his wife. Also a balance with color effects, where the maidens are dressed in warm colors, which stand out in front of the green grass and flowers. Also the musicians are dressed in some cool colors as to balance out the shadow on the left side. There is also physical balance as they are dancing, some of them are on one foot and one of them is not even touching the grass. The sense of balance in this picture is varied.
|
Edward John Poynter, Horae Serenae (detail), 1894, oil on canvas
|
Several new approaches to art were being discovered through that time and one remarkable and most influential artist of the 20th century is Henri Matisse. There were realists, who started portraying ordinary life, livestock and other ordinary activities, and also Impressionists, who depicted their paintings in a blur, featuring a fleeting moment in time, and then Matisse and Fauvism. Matisse was very diverse in his work, with his first work showing influence from Edouard Manet and Paul Cezanne, but as time goes by, his paintings become less detailed and more colorful. He became more interested in the form, and color.
|
Henri Matisse, Bonheur de Vivre (The Joy of Life) 1905-1906,
Barnes Foundation, oil on canvas
|
|
Henri Matisse, Dance 1910, oil on canvas,
Hermitage Museum (since 1948), Museum of Modern Art
2.6m x 3.9m
|
A few years later, Matisse works had already started to show less detail and more attention to form and color. In 1909 he created a work called ‘Dance’ commissioned by an industrialist. He used the same dancers from ‘Bonheur de Vivre’, which brings the same joy, but less brightness, less color and a less dancer. There is flatness in the picture, even lightness. They are all in a balancing pose and there surely is a sense of movement. The flatness makes you think that it is simple and there’s not much to interpret from it but, Matisse had done this intentionally, and without thinking you might say that the background is the sky rising up from the hill, but what if it was water? Here, Matisse “use spatial ambiguity to explore one of the key issues in modern painting, the conflict between the illusion of depth and an acknowledgement of the flatness of the canvas.”
|
Henri Matisse, Dance 1910, oil on canvas,
Hermitage Museum (since 1948), Museum of Modern Art
2.6m x 3.9m
|
Henri Matisse (1869–1954) | Thematic Essay | Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History | The Metropolitan Museum of Art. 2014. Henri Matisse (1869–1954) | Thematic Essay | Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History | The Metropolitan Museum of Art. [ONLINE] Available at:http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/mati/hd_mati.htm. [Accessed 24 November 2014].
WebMuseum: Matisse, Henri (-�mile-Beno�t). 2014. WebMuseum: Matisse, Henri (-�mile-Beno�t). [ONLINE] Available at:http://www.ibiblio.org/wm/paint/auth/matisse/. [Accessed 24 November 2014].
WebMuseum: Matisse, Henri (-�mile-Beno�t). 2014. WebMuseum: Matisse, Henri (-�mile-Beno�t). [ONLINE] Available at:http://www.ibiblio.org/wm/paint/auth/matisse/. [Accessed 24 November 2014].
Realism to change Art
|
Gustave Courbet, 1851-1852, Young Ladies of the Village,
Oil painting, 1.95m x 2.61m
|
In Courbet’s, “Young Ladies of the Village”, you can see Courbet’s sisters wondering in the countryside. It is set against the Ornan hills, just like in “The Stone Breakers”, which are very common in that area, therefore he made several studies of the scene. The figures have a triangular form, slightly off the center in the foreground appearing to be handing something to a little girl. The tonal balance between the dark and light cliffs split the background vertically. The ladies stand out in front of the dark background, which has a lot of depth. On the other hand, the cattle are set below a bright cliff and are further away so, by their heavy bodies, they balance out the ladies whom feel heavier as they are closer in the foreground. Nonetheless Courbet still got criticized for being ‘clumsy’ and ‘tasteless’.
Jean Francois Millet is another Realist painter, whose favorite subjects were also peasants, hard labor and landscapes. In his work “The Gleaners”, the woman portrayed had to go during the sunset to pick up the remainder of the corn’s husks, which were missed by the harvesters. Just like “The Stone Breakers”, these women are within a boundary, which is represented by the horizon. They have to have an unpleasant duty, which breaks their back, and a man on a horse way back in the farm constantly supervises them. You can almost feel the pain they must have been going through, constantly bent down like that. The setting sun leaves darkness in the foreground, which gives a balance to the whole picture. It gives them depth, makes the foreground look heavy, with sunlight hitting their backs and arms, giving the attention on them, so to emphasize which parts their pain is most. The background though is much brighter. This is what balances the whole painting as the further out and brighter feels lighter.
|
Jean-Francois Millet, The Gleaners, 1857, Musee d’Orsay, oil painting, 84cm x 1.12m
|
|
Jean-Francois Millet, The Winnower, 1848, Musee d’Orsay,
oil on canvas, 58.5 x 79.5cm
|
Portraits and landscapes of working people can be seen throughout Millet’s works, and he covered many traits. Another one is winnowing, in ‘The Winnower’. This figure gives a sense of stability, with the positioning of his feet close together from the knees and apart from the ankles. This is because he is holding the winnowing fan so he has to keep balance. Also, a contrast of cool and warm by the winnower’s red cap and the piece of blue fabric tied to his feet.
As you go further in time, impressionist movements started emerging, influenced by the Realists, art gets a huge other meaning and new concepts.
Nineteenth-Century French Realism | Thematic Essay | Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History | The Metropolitan Museum of Art. 2014. Nineteenth-Century French Realism | Thematic Essay | Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History | The Metropolitan Museum of Art. [ONLINE] Available at:http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/rlsm/hd_rlsm.htm. [Accessed 24 November 2014].
Gustave Courbet (1819–1877) | Thematic Essay | Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History | The Metropolitan Museum of Art. 2014. Gustave Courbet (1819–1877) | Thematic Essay | Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History | The Metropolitan Museum of Art. [ONLINE] Available at:http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/gust/hd_gust.htm. [Accessed 24 November 2014].
Jean-Francois Millet - The complete works. 2014. Jean-Francois Millet - The complete works. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.jeanmillet.org/. [Accessed 24 November 2014].
The effect of Light
|
Claude Monet, 1840-1926, Arrival of the Normandy Train, Gare Saint-Lazare
1877, Oil on canvas, 60.3 x 80.2 cm (23 3/4 x 31 1/2 in.)
|
In this study, there is a balance between calm, and confusion, where on the left side of the painting, there seems to be calmness, less sense of movement and a light load. On the other hand, the other side is more chaotic and has a lot of movement.
The people are all gathered to climb on the train and the train is getting ready to leave.
|
Claude Monet, 1875, La Promenade, Oil on canvas,
Natoinal Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., 100 x 81cm
|
Camille Pissarro, 1897, Boulevard Montmartre (Night), oil on canvas, 74 x 92.8 cm
Camille Pissarro, 1897, Boulevard Montmartre (Night), oil on canvas, 74 x 92.8 cm
As much as color is affected during daytime, during night the color range is a whole other palette. This is what Pissarro did during his stays in hotels and apartments, by painting from the windows. In 1897, he presented a series of paintings through a window of a street in Paris France, ‘Boulevard Montmartre’, during day and during night. These have the characteristics of Impressionism, with small, thick brushstrokes, and vibrant colors. Also the scatter of people going by, the carriages and during night, the street lamps which are lit. During the night, the darkness is destroyed by the warm, bright colors of shops and houses. This gives a visual balance to the viewer having a mixed palette and everything blends together, even the dark sky has shades of yellow. Also the trees opposite each other bring out a balance between nature and the busy life of humankind.
Camille Pissarro, 1897, Boulevard Montmartre (Morning),
oil on canvas, 74 x 92.8 cm
_1897.jpg)
Camille Pissarro, 1897, Boulevard Montmartre (Midday),
oil on canvas, 74 x 92.8 cm
Camille Pissarro | The Boulevard Montmartre at Night | NG4119 | The National Gallery, London. 2014. Camille Pissarro | The Boulevard Montmartre at Night | NG4119 | The National Gallery, London. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/paintings/camille-pissarro-the-boulevard-montmartre-at-night. [Accessed 24 November 2014].
Interpretive Resource | The Art Institute of Chicago. 2014. Interpretive Resource | The Art Institute of Chicago. [ONLINE] Available at:http://www.artic.edu/aic/resources/resource/70. [Accessed 24 November 2014].
As much as color is affected during daytime, during night the color range is a whole other palette. This is what Pissarro did during his stays in hotels and apartments, by painting from the windows. In 1897, he presented a series of paintings through a window of a street in Paris France, ‘Boulevard Montmartre’, during day and during night. These have the characteristics of Impressionism, with small, thick brushstrokes, and vibrant colors. Also the scatter of people going by, the carriages and during night, the street lamps which are lit. During the night, the darkness is destroyed by the warm, bright colors of shops and houses. This gives a visual balance to the viewer having a mixed palette and everything blends together, even the dark sky has shades of yellow. Also the trees opposite each other bring out a balance between nature and the busy life of humankind.
|
Camille Pissarro, 1897, Boulevard Montmartre (Morning),
oil on canvas, 74 x 92.8 cm
|
|
Camille Pissarro, 1897, Boulevard Montmartre (Midday),
oil on canvas, 74 x 92.8 cm
|
Camille Pissarro | The Boulevard Montmartre at Night | NG4119 | The National Gallery, London. 2014. Camille Pissarro | The Boulevard Montmartre at Night | NG4119 | The National Gallery, London. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/paintings/camille-pissarro-the-boulevard-montmartre-at-night. [Accessed 24 November 2014].
Work & Stability
 |
| Gustave Courbet "The Stone Breakers" 1849 |
Gustav Courbet, “Proudest and most arrogant man in France.” He exhibited a series of paintings (1850-51) at the Paris Salon. As the leader of Realists, Courbet portrayed scenes from daily life showing the hardship of lower class workers. His aims were to bring to realisation, that people were leading a very difficult life, while others had a lot of riches and comfort. This was ridiculed as large canvases at the time were preserved for paintings that were more iconic, heroic and holy. “Through his powerful Realism, Courbet became a pioneering figure in the history of modernism.” Although at the time, he was seen as a scandalous figure.
He makes sure to show his concern for the poor. In “The Stone Breakers”, the two figures tower the whole painting, giving them full attention showing their everyday hard work and suffering. Their posture gives balance to the picture. The tallest man is on one knee breaking the stones while the younger one is shorter, but carrying what seems to be a heavy rock making an even distribution of the whole weight. Their clothes are all worn realistically. They work with heavy and rough material, which makes it easier for their clothes to be thorn here and there. Even the work atmosphere makes it harder for them as sunlight hits directly with a hat and the clothes as protection. As you may notice, their faces aren’t showing, meaning that he isn’t depicting just the two persons but two persons who represent many. He didn’t mean for the picture to be heroic but to be an accurate depiction of the abuse and deprivation that at the time was very common.
 |
| Pieter Bruegel "Wheat Harvest" 1565 |
We can see that the paintings both have a horizontal composition and they are tonally balanced. The upper side of both of them is a monochromatic background while the bottom side is full of green and yellow hues of nature. In "Wheat Harvest", the tree also gives a vertical balance to the scenario and giving more attention to the people under it. Both has a sense of stability and it is reflected mostly in "The Stone Breakers". Notice how the young man is lifting a huge rock and seems to be balancing well because his feet are apart giving him a wide base, appearing stable. They are both a good example of asymmetry but still gives a feeling of stability, balance both in hard work and also life.
The Stonebreakers (destroyed) - Smarthistory. 2014. The Stonebreakers - Smarthistory. [ONLINE] Available at: http://smarthistory.khanacademy.org/the-stonebreakers.html. [Accessed 16 November 2014].
Pieter Bruegel, Wheat Harvest, 1565. Oil on panel, 46-1/2 x 63-1/4 in. (118 x 160.7 cm). Metropolitan Museum, New York. Oil on panel, 46-1/2 x 63-1/4 in. (118 x 160.7 cm). [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.abbeville.com/interiors.asp?ISBN=1558596054&CaptionNumber=03. [Accessed 16 November 2014].
Pieter Bruegel, Wheat Harvest, 1565. Oil on panel, 46-1/2 x 63-1/4 in. (118 x 160.7 cm). Metropolitan Museum, New York. Oil on panel, 46-1/2 x 63-1/4 in. (118 x 160.7 cm). [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.abbeville.com/interiors.asp?ISBN=1558596054&CaptionNumber=03. [Accessed 16 November 2014].
Disequilibrium
When someone hears balance, mostly the
first thought in mind would be something
in a state of equilibrium. That is called a
formal equilibrium, where the image is in
symmetry and and the objects, lines or forms
are mirroring each other.
 |
| L S Lowry, A Market Place, Berwick upon Tweed (1935) |
This is a visual example of a formal equilibrium. Lowry depicts the town of Berwick upon Tweed and is a classic street scene. This picture shows a sense of formal balance. You can almost say that you are seeing some kind of mirror image from the middle of the composition. A perfect example of symmetry.
But that would be a mistake to always
think of balance as symmetrical, a perfect
equilibrium! You can also make informal
equilibrium. It is more of a naturalistic way.
This way the artwork will have more movement
and flow. Although Lowry's painting contains
a lot of movement I don't think it has a kind of flow.
think of balance as symmetrical, a perfect
equilibrium! You can also make informal
equilibrium. It is more of a naturalistic way.
This way the artwork will have more movement
and flow. Although Lowry's painting contains
a lot of movement I don't think it has a kind of flow.
 |
| Van Gogh, Starry Night |
This painting by Van Gogh has well balanced content. Although one might say it is in-equilibrium (not balanced), I disagree with that. It is not a mirror image but it is well balanced. You can see a huge dark tower in one corner and in the other is a huge bright moon. The small dark houses are then opposite the blue sky and bright stars. Unlike Lowry's this painting has more flowing movement.
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| Cezanne - Apples |
An other interesting aspect when it comes to balance is also colour. The contrast of the colour, hue and brightness. In this particular painting of Cezanne's Apples you can see the coloured apples and lemon in the middle with the apples having a bright warm reddish orange hue while the lemon have a cool green colour. You might think that the small can in the side of the painting is ruining the balance in the picture but as you might notice it is dark almost as if it was part of the table. And as we see that the balance is mostly portrayed with colours the can doesn't effect the balance in the picture.
There are many ways in which you can
achieve an art piece that contains equilibrium
although it may feel out of order. That way
when a person is seeing an artwork he or she
can have a feeling of disequilibrium.
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