Simarpreet Sidhu Professor Trent ARTH 300 Online 28 April 2017
Landscape Paintings: An Analysis of the Works of Claude Lorraine and Dong Qichang
Landscape paintings have been created throughout the history of art, especially being honored in the Western and Chinese art traditions. Within both cultures, landscapes have been viewed as sites of beauty, sanctuaries for nature’s treasures, …show more content…
Particularly, the influence of their time period and their culture can be observed in two works: ‘Landscape in the Style of Mi Fu’ by Dong Qichang and ‘Landscape with Dancing Figures’ by Claude Lorrain. In ‘Landscape with Dancing Figures’, Claude heavily utilizes contrasting colors to depict depth and add a unique place for each figure. In Claude’s piece, every color has its purpose - either it stands out in a way to highlight a certain figure or it blends in to keep the attention on the focal point of the painting. In contrast, Dong Qichang’s piece ‘Landscape in the Style of Mi Fu’ has a very opposite approach to using color. In fact, Dong only applies one color, the black paint on top of the beige background. Instead Dong’s approach to depicting depth and manipulating light is a loose yet proper use of chiaroscuro. This difference in their approach is something that is very obvious when looking at each artist’s background and considering his school of art. For Claude, coming from the baroque era in France, it was common and accepted, even encouraged, to use bright and vivid colors and precise details to amplify motion and depict deep and grand ideas. In contrast, Dong Qichang comes from an artistic background that seeks to convey a subject in a simple and minimalist way rather than one that is centered on its likeability or the appearance of the piece first. Meaning, Dong’s painting is a much more unfiltered depiction of what he was conveying, rather than a curated piece such as Claude’s. Despite this difference in approach, both Claude and Dong seem to depict a sense of civilization in their respective pieces. In Claude’s piece this is done by depicting animated characters on the foreground of painting in front of the river. They are sitting and watching others dance. In Dong’s piece, however, his approach is a bit different yet still has the essence of civilization.
Landscape Paintings: An Analysis of the Works of Claude Lorraine and Dong Qichang
Landscape paintings have been created throughout the history of art, especially being honored in the Western and Chinese art traditions. Within both cultures, landscapes have been viewed as sites of beauty, sanctuaries for nature’s treasures, …show more content…
Particularly, the influence of their time period and their culture can be observed in two works: ‘Landscape in the Style of Mi Fu’ by Dong Qichang and ‘Landscape with Dancing Figures’ by Claude Lorrain. In ‘Landscape with Dancing Figures’, Claude heavily utilizes contrasting colors to depict depth and add a unique place for each figure. In Claude’s piece, every color has its purpose - either it stands out in a way to highlight a certain figure or it blends in to keep the attention on the focal point of the painting. In contrast, Dong Qichang’s piece ‘Landscape in the Style of Mi Fu’ has a very opposite approach to using color. In fact, Dong only applies one color, the black paint on top of the beige background. Instead Dong’s approach to depicting depth and manipulating light is a loose yet proper use of chiaroscuro. This difference in their approach is something that is very obvious when looking at each artist’s background and considering his school of art. For Claude, coming from the baroque era in France, it was common and accepted, even encouraged, to use bright and vivid colors and precise details to amplify motion and depict deep and grand ideas. In contrast, Dong Qichang comes from an artistic background that seeks to convey a subject in a simple and minimalist way rather than one that is centered on its likeability or the appearance of the piece first. Meaning, Dong’s painting is a much more unfiltered depiction of what he was conveying, rather than a curated piece such as Claude’s. Despite this difference in approach, both Claude and Dong seem to depict a sense of civilization in their respective pieces. In Claude’s piece this is done by depicting animated characters on the foreground of painting in front of the river. They are sitting and watching others dance. In Dong’s piece, however, his approach is a bit different yet still has the essence of civilization.