Marian Wagschal And Lucian Freud

Register to read the introduction… The human figure in their works strives to capture raw, unpleasant features of the body. Wagschal puts a strong emphasizes on depicting the wrinkles, aged, and tired characteristics of her models as seen in one of her most notable works “Portariat of Judy Garfin” (1982). In this piece, she emphasizes the not so flattering features of her elderly model, a very different approach from idealized depictions found in traditional portraits. The Greek or Renaissance ideas of beauty and perfection are not an interest in her works; instead she uses the human figures to explore the complexities of human psychology. For Wagschal and Freud, the human figure is never idealized or romanticized. Freud uses a muted palette emphasizing the simplicity of the human figure. The focus in his works is on the optical aspects of the human figure, as oppose to the expressive or interpretative attributes the human body conveys. This can be noted in his work entitled, “Girl with a Kitten” (1947). In this piece, the proportions are not that of a typical female and the shapes used are simplified. There are no creases in the models face, wrinkles, freckles or hair that would be normally present in that of a female. Despite the lack of emotion expressed by the figure, the unflinching realism depicted can make the viewer feel uncomfortable. The focus in both these artists’ works is simplicity drawn from human figure. The measure to which both artists express the human figure shows that beauty can be captured by straying away from the stereotypical definition of beauty, and breaking into the realm of simple, raw …show more content…
In the 1870’s Impressionism painters violated all the rules of academic painting, the established style of the time period. Freely painted brush strokes took over from the clear line definitions that were commonly found in academic paintings. Impressionism is based on painting the overall visual effects of that being captured as oppose to individual details. Mary Cassatt and Auguste Renoir shared much in their artistic styles. Both artists had a strong interest in capturing feminine beauty, chose everyday life as their subject matter and unlike many of the other Impressionists depicted the human figure more often than landscapes. The use of color and value were also important to both artists in making their works come to life. As harsh lines are not used in impressionism, value shifts and color shifts served as creating the outlines for the composition of the painting. Renoir’s, “Dance at Le Moulin de la Galette” is typical of his work; his loose brushstrokes depicts a bright, light filled contemporary scene with average people and not the idealized depiction of important people favoured by the academic painters. “Mother and Child (The Oval Mirror)” is typical of Mary Cassett’s style both in the choice of subject matter and use of soft colours. Here the treatment of the human figure allows the viewer to share an intimate, everyday moment captured by the