The Rococo artistic style of the 18th century greatly reflected the leisure and extravagance of the reigning aristocracy of France, so much as to where many Rococo paintings exhibited the excess of such wealthy lifestyles. The advent of the Enlightenment, however, challenged the existence of the ruling class through its focus on the sovereignty of the individual. The philosophy of the Enlightenment eventually led to the French Revolution, which ousted the ruling aristocracy and in return created a democratic republic. This new way of thought called for an end to the excessive and vulgar artwork of the Rococo period, and the beginnings of an artistic philosophy based on human moral righteousness, as is seen in the periods of Neoclassicism and
…show more content…
This spread of Enlightenment thought also brought with it the spread of the Neoclassical artistic style, which emphasized a focus on human virtue and morality through scenes of classical Greek and Roman culture (Wikipedia, 2015). In fact, many works of French art during the Revolution can be seen exhibiting the Greek and Roman styles of the Neoclassical period. For example, in Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres’ painting Napoleon I on his Imperial Throne (1806), Napoleon I is seen wearing coronary garb reminiscent of Caesar Augustus of the Roman …show more content…
The art of the Romantic period was characterized by a focus on the emotional nature of human existence, with scenes offering aesthetic viewpoints on the divine beauty of the natural world (Wikipedia, 2015). The new style of Romantic art directly challenged the classical scenes of Neoclassicism, introducing realistic and present-day representations of the human experience. Romantic works of art such Eugene Delacroix’s Liberty Leading the People (1830) portrays the goddess of Liberty without the use of the divine qualities expressed through Classical Roman and Greek art. Instead, Liberty is shown as a woman of more humanistic character, her dress torn from the barbarism of the extensive French Revolution, yet still leading the French people forward, with flag and musket in hand, towards the realization of
This spread of Enlightenment thought also brought with it the spread of the Neoclassical artistic style, which emphasized a focus on human virtue and morality through scenes of classical Greek and Roman culture (Wikipedia, 2015). In fact, many works of French art during the Revolution can be seen exhibiting the Greek and Roman styles of the Neoclassical period. For example, in Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres’ painting Napoleon I on his Imperial Throne (1806), Napoleon I is seen wearing coronary garb reminiscent of Caesar Augustus of the Roman …show more content…
The art of the Romantic period was characterized by a focus on the emotional nature of human existence, with scenes offering aesthetic viewpoints on the divine beauty of the natural world (Wikipedia, 2015). The new style of Romantic art directly challenged the classical scenes of Neoclassicism, introducing realistic and present-day representations of the human experience. Romantic works of art such Eugene Delacroix’s Liberty Leading the People (1830) portrays the goddess of Liberty without the use of the divine qualities expressed through Classical Roman and Greek art. Instead, Liberty is shown as a woman of more humanistic character, her dress torn from the barbarism of the extensive French Revolution, yet still leading the French people forward, with flag and musket in hand, towards the realization of