350 CHAPTER 13 Western Traditions in Art - Glencoe · Museum of Art, New York, New York. Gift of J. Pierpont Morgan, 1917. (17.190.103). 354 CHAPTER 13 Western Traditions in Art The

350 CHAPTER 13 Western Traditions in Art

� FIGURE 13.1 This painting is a genre (zhan-ruh) scene. It focuses on an activity that was part of everyday life.Notice how the artist has focused as much on the surroundings as on the human subjects. How would you describethe mood of this scene?

Jan Vermeer. The Concert. c. 1658–60. Oil on canvas. 72.4 � 64.8 cm (281�2 � 251�2�). Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, Boston,Massachusetts.

Figure 13.1 is a paintingby the Dutch artist Jan

Vermeer (1632–1675).Vermeer was born in Delft, Holland. During hislife he traveled little, and his paintings were largely unknown.Vermeeris now considered one of the greatest Dutch painters. In seventeenthcentury Holland, painters mainly created their artworks for the work-ing class.Vermeer and his contemporaries chose everyday subjects asthey were recognizable and appreciated by this class. As in Figure 13.1,the style of these works is very precise and realistic, and the mood ishushed and serious.

Compare and Contrast. Compare and contrast Vermeer’s use ofcolor and value to create an area of emphasis. Where is the focal point inthis artwork?

The term Western art refers to art of the western hemi-

sphere, specifically western Europe and North America.

Western art includes the rich traditions of Ancient Greek and

Roman architecture up through the groundbreaking move-

ments and styles of Modern art.

In this chapter, you will:

Identify historical and cultural events that have

shaped Western art.

Describe general characteristics in artworks from

a variety of Western cultures.

Compare and contrast historical and contemporary

styles of Western art, identifying trends and themes.

CHAPTER 13Western Traditions in Art

351

LESSON 1

The Beginnings ofWestern Art Traditions

Greece was the birthplace of Western civilization. The influence ofancient Greek culture can still be seen today. Almost every city in our

country has at least one building with features that resemble the architectureof the classic Greek temple.

The Art of Greece and RomeThe Greeks built temples in honor of their gods. The most outstanding

example is the Parthenon in Athens (Figure 13.2). The columns slantslightly inward to prevent a top-heavy look. Inside was a huge statue of thegoddess Athena created of ivory and gold. The relief sculpture that coveredthe area under the roof is missing. Many of the missing pieces are in foreignmuseums. The Greeks worked to create a logical, harmonious world. Theysought perfect proportions in buildings, sculpture, and music by followingthe guidelines of mathematical proportion. Their artists produced statuesthat represented the Greek ideal of the perfect body. According to one story,athletes used these statues, like the one shown in Figure 13.3, as inspirationfor developing their own muscle strength and tone.

Vocabulary

Byzantine artRomanesqueGothic


� FIGURE 13.2 Although partially destroyed, you can see that the Parthenon was designed to look harmonious.Architects used mathematical formulas to make the temple look balanced and beautiful.

Parthenon. Temple of Athena. Fifth century B.C. Acropolis, Athens, Greece.

LESSON 1 The Beginnings of Western Art Traditions 353

When they were new, Greek templesand statues were not the pure white wesee today. The Greeks loved color, andthey painted their buildings and sculp-tures various hues. Time has since wornthe paint away.

Even though the Romans conqueredGreece in 146 B.C., they did not conquerGreek culture. Instead, the Romansadopted Greek culture, modifying it tosuit their own needs. Greek sculptors,painters, architects, philosophers, andteachers exerted a great influence on theculture of the Roman Empire.

Earlier, the Romans had absorbed theculture of the Etruscans in Italy. Two out-standing Etruscan developments that theRomans adopted included a system ofdrainage and an improved use of the archin the construction of buildings. What wecall Roman art is a blend of the idealGreek and the practical Etruscan arts.

The Romans added much to whatthey adopted. They used the arch andconcrete to build large-scale structures,including huge vaulted and domedinner spaces. Engineers constructed anetwork of roads to connect all parts ofthe Roman Empire. The Romans alsodeveloped beautiful interior decorationand created realistic rather than ideal-ized portrait sculpture (Figure 13.4).

� FIGURE 13.3 Look atthe proportions and detailof this athlete. Notice theidealized muscles and facialfeatures. What does sucha sculpture reveal aboutGreek culture? Whatfeatures of the humanbody were admired bythem and important tothem?

Myron. Discobolus (DiscusThrower). c. 450 B.C. Romancopy of a bronze original. Life-size. Italy. Palazzo Vecchio,Florence, Italy.

� FIGURE 13.4 Unlikethe Greeks, the Romansdid not seek to depictidealized human forms.The expression on theboy’s face seems haughtyor proud, but notice howhis features have beenshown realistically. Forexample, his ears stick out from his head.

Roman. Portrait Statue of Boy.Late first century B.C.–early firstcentury A.D. Julio-Claudian.Bronze. Height: 123.2 cm(481�2�). The MetropolitanMuseum of Art, New York,New York. Rogers fund, 1914(14.130.1).

AnalyzingArchitecture

Illustrating Ideas for Artworks UsingDirect Observation. Find a building inyour community in the Greek or Romanstyle.Write the location, the culture fromwhich the style was adopted, the purposeof the building, and anything else you canfind out about it. Using direct observation,make a sketch of the building in yoursketchbook. Name the ancient culture anddescribe the features that match the styleof the ancient culture.

� FIGURE 13.5 Byzantine artexpressed a solemn, devotional mood.Notice how the infant Christ in this ivorysculpture is presented as a miniatureman. He holds a scroll in one hand andblesses the viewer with the other.

Byzantine, Constantinople. Virgin and Child. Mid-tenth to eleventh century. Ivory. 23.4 � 7 �1.3 cm (93�16 � 23�4 � 1�2� ). The MetropolitanMuseum of Art, New York, New York. Gift of J. Pierpont Morgan, 1917. (17.190.103).


The Art of the Middle Ages

The Middle Ages began with the con-quest of Rome in A.D. 476 by invadersfrom the north and lasted about 1,000years. This period of time was also calledthe Age of Faith because the Christianreligion exerted such an importantinfluence. Monasteries, or buildings thathoused people who had made religiousvows, grew in number. The monks wholived in them created finely decoratedreligious manuscripts. Churches grew insize, number, and political importance,reflecting the status of the Christian religion during this period.

Byzantine ArtIn the eastern part of the former

Roman Empire, a new style of artdeveloped during the Middle Ages. This style thrived around the city ofConstantinople (now Istanbul, Turkey)and spread to towns such as Ravennain Italy. Constantinople, built on thesite of the ancient city of Byzantium,served as the capital of the ByzantineEmpire. Byzantine art featured veryrich colors and heavily outlined figures that appeared flat and stiff. Constanti-nople was close to Asia as well as toGreece, and because of this proximity,Greek, Roman, and Asian art and cul-ture all influenced Byzantine artists(Figure 13.5).

Romanesque StyleAt the beginning of the Middle Ages,

many new churches were built in western Europe in a style of architecturesimilar to ancient Roman buildings. Itwas called Romanesque and featuredbuildings of massive size; solid, heavy walls;wide use of the rounded Roman arch; andmany sculptural decorations.

Churches, castles, and monasterieswere all built in the Romanesque style(Figure 13.6). Architects buildingRomanesque structures could not

� FIGURE 13.6This church was builtin the Romanesquestyle. Identify therounded arches.

Church of San Clemente.Tahull, Spain. Twelfthcentury.

LESSON 1 The Beginnings of Western Art Traditions 355

� FIGURE 13.7 This cathedral was built in the Gothic style. Notice the pointed arches andstained-glass windows. Compare this to Figure 13.6.Describe the similarities and differences betweenthe two churches.

Chartres Cathedral, Chartres, France. Twelfth to sixteenth century.

include many windows because theyweakened the structure of the walls andcould cause the heavy stone roofs tocollapse. As a result, Romanesque build-ings were dark and somber inside.

Gothic StyleIn Europe in the twelfth century,

increasing numbers of people movedfrom the countryside into towns. Work-ers such as stone carvers and carpentersorganized into craft guilds (or unions),and apprentices learned their craftsfrom the masters in these guilds. Awealthy new merchant class, pride inthe growing cities, and religious faith ledto the building of huge cathedrals. Twodevelopments in architecture—thepointed arch and the flying buttress—brought about changes in how buildingswere built, and how they looked. Theflying buttress removed the weight ofthe roof from the walls, allowing forhigher walls and many more windowsthan had been possible in Romanesquestructures. This new style, calledGothic, featured churches that seemed tosoar upward, used pointed arches, andincluded stained-glass windows, like thecathedral shown in Figure 13.7.

By using stained-glass windows,Gothic builders changed the light thatentered the churches into rich, glowingcolor. Gothic sculptors and painterssought more realistic ways to depictsubject matter. Religious scenes werepainted on church altarpieces with eggtempera paint and gold leaf.

The Gothic Style

Applying Your Skills. Research cathedrals built in the Gothic style. List the names of and sketch three of thecathedrals in your sketchbook.Writedown where and when they were built.

Check Your Understanding

1. How did the Greeks represent thehuman form?

2. Describe general characteristics ofGreek, Roman, and Byzantine art.

3. Identify two features of Romanesquebuildings.

4. What two developments of theGothic period allowed builders toplace many openings in walls and tobuild churches taller?

LESSON 2

The Beginnings ofModern Art TraditionsAt the beginning of the fifteenth century, the Middle Ages began drawing

to a close. The invention of the printing press and the European explo-ration of the Americas and the Pacific Ocean expanded knowledge and contributed to the dawn of a new era. As the culture changed, so did the art.During the Middle Ages, most art had been made for religious reasons. Evenartworks made for wealthy people, such as illuminated books, most oftendepicted religious subject matter. During the next period, artists continued topaint religious subjects but also expanded their repertoire to include mytho-logical and secular, or nonreligious, themes.

RenaissanceRenaissance (ren-uh-sahns) is a French word for “rebirth.” Renaissance

is the name given to the period at the end of the Middle Ages when artists, writers, and philosophers were “re-awakened” to art forms and ideas from ancient Greece and Rome. The Renaissance did not happen all at once, nor did it spread to allparts of Europe at the same time. Rather, it dawned gradually, first in Italy,then spreading through northern Europe, finally reaching France and England. Along with a new appreciation of classical antiquity, social struc-tures also changed. Kings and popes, who had always been extremely power-ful, had competition from bankers and merchants, whose wealth alsoequaled political power. The authority of the Catholic Church was challengedby Renaissance scholars and artists who sought to understand the naturalworld through science and reason.

Italian RenaissanceAn architect named Filippo Brunelleschi (fee-leep-poh brew-nell-less-

key) developed linear perspective, a graphic system that creates the illusionof depth and volume on a flat surface. Linear perspective provided a set ofguidelines that allowed artists to depict figures and objects in space on a two-dimensional surface. This system made the placement of objects, and the depiction of their volume or form, measurable and exact, which gave anexciting illusion of reality to works of art. Italian artists sought to create real-istic and lifelike works. They studied the classical art of Greece and Rome andmeticulously observed and recorded the world around them.

Michelangelo Buonarroti (my-kel-an-jay-loh bwon-nar-roh-tee), an Italian artist, was a master of poetry, painting, sculpture, and architecture.However, he always thought of himself primarily as a sculptor. One of hismost famous works is Figure 13.8, Pietà. A pietà is a work showing Marymourning over the body of Christ.

Vocabulary

RenaissanceMannerismBaroqueRococo


LESSON 2 The Beginnings of Modern Art Traditions 357

Born in a small village near Florence, Italy in 1475, Michelangelo was

apprenticed to a painter when he was 13. While still a teen, he joined the Medici

household, a powerful ruling family. There he met many prominent Florentine

citizens, artists, and philosophers. In 1494, the Medici family was overthrown

and Michelangelo was forced to flee. He traveled to Rome, where many classical

statues and buildings were being discovered. He eagerly studied their formal

qualities and proportions.

Michelangelo created many masterpieces, mostly on a grand scale. When

Pope Julius II asked Michelangelo to design a tomb for him, Michelangelo

devised a design calling for 40 sculptures, only a few of which were completed

before Pope Julius decided not to spend any more money. Instead, he asked

Michelangelo to paint the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican. The chapel

had a rounded ceiling high above the floor. Michelangelo was insulted at being

asked to paint a ceiling, which was not considered a very prestigious assignment.

He also did not know how he could paint a ceiling so far off the ground. How-

ever, the pope insisted and Michelangelo gave in. He built a high scaffold and lay

on it to paint the wet ceiling plaster. He created nine different sections on the

ceiling, each telling a Biblical story, including the creation of the world.

MEET THE ARTIST

MICHELANGELOBUONARROTI

Italian, 1475–1564

Marcello Venusti. Portrait ofMichelangelo. Casa Buonarroti,Florence, Italy.

� FIGURE 13.8 Noticethe proportions of the twofigures in this sculpture. Maryis much larger than her son.Michelangelo did this onpurpose so that she wouldnot seem overwhelmed byher son’s body. What feelingdoes this proportion convey?

Michelangelo. Pietà. c. 1500.Marble. 174 cm (5�81�2�) high;base 195 cm (6�44�5�) high.Vatican, St. Peter’s Basilica,Rome, Italy.


Like Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci(lay-oh-nar-doh da vin-chee) studiedand mastered a broad range of disciplines,including mathematics, physics, geogra-phy, and painting. Although he hadmany ideas, Leonardo often left paintingsand sculptures unfinished because he wasnot happy with them. A page from one ofhis sketchbooks is shown in Figure 3.2 onpage 42.

Women first achieved fame as artistsduring the Renaissance. They had toovercome political, social, and economicobstacles to achieve artistic success. Oneof them, Sofonisba Anguissola, was thefirst Italian woman to gain wide recog-nition as an artist. The oldest of sevenchildren, her father encouraged her topursue art and allowed her to studywith local artists. He even wrote toMichelangelo to tell him about Sofon-isba’s skills. Michelangelo respondedwith kind words of encouragement and

a drawing for her to copy and study aspart of her training. Much of her earlywork consisted of portraits of her familyand herself (Figure 13.9). She alsopainted religious subjects. As her famespread, the king of Spain asked her tojoin his court, where she painted manyportraits and enjoyed respect and admi-ration as a court painter.

Northern RenaissanceThe changes that took place during

the Renaissance in Italy later filteredinto northern European countries suchas Flanders (a region in Belgium) andGermany. Flemish artists (those fromFlanders) began to use oil rather thanegg to bind their pigments. This newmedium allowed artists more versatilitythan ever before.

Northern artists had little interest inrecreating the classical art of Greece andRome. They placed greater emphasis on

� FIGURE 13.9 Notice the dramatic use of color in this painting. Observe the detail of thedresses the sisters are wearing. What does this tell you about them and their social status?

Sofonisba Anguissola. A game of chess, involving the painter’s three sisters and a servant. 1555. Oil on canvas. 72 � 97 cm(281�2 � 381�5�). Muzeum Narodove, Poznan, Poland.

barefoot to symbolize that they arestanding on holy ground. The burningcandle indicates the presence of God.The little dog stands for loyalty.

The work of Jan van Eyck influencedanother important Northern Renaissancepainter, Rogier van der Weyden (roh-jehr van duhr vy-duhn). Like van Eyck,he paid meticulous attention to detail.Look at Figure 13.10. Notice the pins inthe subject’s veil and the intricate designon her belt buckle.

As is often the case, changes in societybrought about changes in artistic expres-sion. In the mid-sixteenth century, reli-gious reformers challenged the authorityof the Catholic Church, causing conflict


depicting the accurate and precisedetails such as an intricate design onclothing or the details of the environ-ment. Symbolism became even moreimportant. Images in art conveyed morethan just one meaning.

The art of Jan van Eyck (yahn vaneyek) and his successors made Flandersthe center of the Northern art world.Like other Northern painters, Jan vanEyck emphasized precision and accu-racy. Look at Figure 9.8 on page 231.Notice the attention to detail, such asthe lace on the woman’s headcoveringand the carpet under the bed. The picture includes many symbols. Forexample, the wedding couple is shown

� FIGURE 13.10 At first, this portraitof a well-to-do woman appears to be arealistic portrayal. If you look closely,however, you will see that her waist, asindicated by the red band, is about thesame size as her head. Her head iselongated, which is emphasized by theseverely pulled back hair. Do you thinkthese odd proportions are natural? Why would the artist paint her this way if she did not look like this?

Rogier van der Weyden. Portrait of a Lady. c. 1460.Oil on panel, painted surface. 34 � 25.5 cm (133�8 � 101�16�). National Gallery of Art,Washington, D.C. © 1998 Board of Trustees.Andrew W. Mellon Collection.


and turmoil. Great artists like Leonardoand Michelangelo had died, leavingbehind a vacuum in artistic inspirationand innovation. Artists began showingthe tension and struggle they experi-enced during this period of crisis in theirart. The result was an artistic style calledMannerism, which featured highly emo-tional scenes and elongated figures. The stylewas developed by certain artists to be adeliberate shift away from the ideals andperfect forms of Renaissance art. IfRenaissance artists preferred balance andharmony, Mannerists preferred imbal-ance and dynamic movement.

One of the most famous Manneristartists was El Greco (el greh-koh). Hisname means “the Greek,” for his birth-place on the Greek island of Crete.Because of his unusual style, El Grecofound it difficult to secure patronage. In 1577, he traveled to Toledo, Spain,where he spent the rest of his life.There he gained a reputation as a superior artist. Figure 13.11 shows theintense emotionalism and strong senseof movement characteristic of ElGreco’s work.

The Seventeenth andEighteenth Centuries

A reform movement known as theProtestant Reformation, which began inthe sixteenth century, caused manypeople to depart from the teachings ofthe Catholic Church. In order to gainthem back, the Church started its ownreform movement, known as theCounter-Reformation, in the seven-teenth century. Art was an importantpart of this movement. Catholic Churchauthorities called upon artists to createworks that would inspire renewed reli-gious feelings in viewers.

� FIGURE 13.11 Notice the dreamlike quality of the background. Itcauses the viewer to focus on the two figures in the foreground. Whatappears to be happening in this painting?

El Greco. Saint Martin and the Beggar. 1597/1599. Oil on canvas; wooden strip addedat bottom. 193.5 � 103 cm (761�8 � 401�2�). National Gallery of Art, Washington,D.C. © 1998 Board of Trustees. Widener Collection.

canvas. Nothing distracts the viewerfrom the scene. Although the religiousmeaning may not be apparent at first,Caravaggio’s mysterious use of light dra-matizes the scene. This dramatic use oflight and dark is also evident in the art ofone of his followers, Artemisia Gen-tileschi (see Figure 5.17 on page 111).

Dutch ArtDutch Protestants did not want reli-

gious paintings and sculptures in theirchurches. Dutch artists had to turn to


Baroque Art in ItalyA new art style developed as a result

of the Counter-Reformation. Baroque(buh-rohk) is an art style emphasizing dra-matic lighting, movement, and emotionalintensity. The leader of the Baroque style in Italy, a young painter namedMichelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio (my-kel-an-jay-loh mah-ree-see dah kar-uh-vah-jyoh), depicted light in a daring newway. The Conversion of St. Paul (Figure13.12), shows only St. Paul, his horse,and an attendant. The figures fill the

� FIGURE 13.12 Noticethe use of light in this picture.It is not a natural light. Wheredoes it come from? Whatmood is created by it?

Caravaggio. The Conversion of St. Paul. c. 1601. Oil on canvas.Approx. 228.6 � 175.3 cm (90 �69�). Santa Maria del Popolo,Rome, Italy.


ordinary people and places for their sub-ject matter. The demand for landscapes,portraits, and still lifes grew as wealthymerchants surrounded themselves withart that depicted scenes of everyday life.The greatest Dutch artist of this periodwas Rembrandt van Rijn (rem-brantvan reyn). Like other Dutch artists, hepainted ordinary people and everydayevents. He was somewhat unusual,however, in that he also continuedpainting religious subjects. He was espe-cially interested in the psychologicalcharacter of the people he portrayed,suggested by his use of light and shadowto create atmosphere. Aristotle with a Bust

of Homer (Figure 5.36, page 124) is con-sidered one of the grandest Rembrandtsbecause of its rich use of color and tex-ture. The texture of the gold chain isdepicted in three-dimensional reliefbecause of the thickness of the paint.

Jan Vermeer (yahn vair-meer) isanother important Dutch artist. For several hundred years, his artworkremained unappreciated, but in the second half of the nineteenth centurycritics recognized his artistic genius. Vermeer is best known for his use oflight and texture. Figure 13.13 showshis talent in using dark and light valuesto express a feeling or evoke a mood.

� FIGURE 13.13This portrait depicts anordinary woman engagedin an everyday activity.How does Vermeer addinterest to the painting?What mood or feelingdoes it evoke?

Jan Vermeer. Girl with the RedHat. c. 1665/1666. Oil onpanel. 23.1 � 18.1 cm (91�8 �71�8�). National Gallery of Art,Washington, D.C. © 1998Board of Trustees. Andrew W.Mellon Collection.

(an-twahn wah-toh). His paintingsdepict an idealized world filled withhappy, carefree people (Figure 13.14).

In England, artists modified theRococo style. They used its delicate,light-washed techniques but rejectedartificial subject matter. One of the mostfamous English painters of this period,Thomas Gainsborough (gainz-bur-roh),began his artistic career as a landscapepainter but later became a famous por-trait painter for members of Englishhigh society.


Rococo StyleAs the seventeenth century ended and

the eighteenth century began, Franceemerged as the strongest, wealthiestnation in Europe. Paris, its capital,became the center of the art world. Whenpleasure-loving King Louis XIV assumedthe throne, a new style of art influencedby his lighthearted personality arose.Called Rococo (ruh-koh-koh), it is anart style that expresses free, graceful movement,playful use of line, and delicate colors.

One of the first painters working inthe Rococo style was Antoine Watteau

� FIGURE 13.14 Describe the dress and manners of these people. Notice how the colors and shapesblend together for a dreamlike, misty quality. Is this a happy occasion? How do you know?

Antoine Watteau. Embarkation for Cythera. 1717–19. Oil on canvas. 1.3 � 1.9 m (4� 3� � 6� 41�2�). The Louvre, Paris, France.


Figure 13.15, Gainsborough’s mostfamous painting, resulted from a profes-sional rivalry. A rival painter gave a lec-ture at the Royal Academy of Art andstated that blue, a cool color, shouldalways be used in the background,never in the main part of a picture.When Gainsborough heard this, he con-sidered it a challenge and painted a por-trait of a boy dressed entirely in blue.

In Spain, Francisco Goya (frahn-seese-koh goh-ya) transformed Rococoart. Early in his career, Goya achieved

considerable fame and fortune painting inthe Rococo style. However, this changedafter he suffered a serious illness and,later, a grave accident. He lost his hearingand endured other physical setbacks. A war in Spain made him aware of thesuffering of others. He found he was no longer comfortable painting in thedecorative Rococo fashion.

Goya’s art reflected his bitterness anddisillusionment. One of his most famouspaintings shows the ugliness and brutal-ity of war (Figure 13.16).

� FIGURE 13.15 The moststriking element of this painting isthe use of color. What does thebackground depict? Do you thinkit is important to the painting?

Thomas Gainsborough. The Blue Boy.c. 1770. Oil on canvas. 177.8 � 121.9cm (70 � 48�). The Huntington Library,Art Collections, and Botanical Gardens,San Marino, California.


� FIGURE 13.16 The figures are arranged in this painting so that they seem in opposition to each other.Which is the most important figure in this composition? How has the figure been made to stand out? Whatis the feeling or mood of the piece?

Francisco Goya. The Third of May, 1808. 1814. Oil on canvas. Approx. 2.64 � 3.43 m (8�8� � 11�3�). Museo del Prado, Madrid,Spain.


1. What is linear perspective?2. What medium used by Flemish

artists revolutionized painting in theRenaissance?

3. Compare and contrast the historicalstyles in Figure 13.10 on page 359and Figure 13.11 on page 360. Identify the general trends in art.

4. What style of painting is character-ized by contrast and variety?

5. List the characteristics of Rococo art.

Analyzing an Artwork

Selecting and Analyzing Artworks for Historical and Cultural Contexts.Select one work of art from the Renais-sance or Baroque periods. Use the foursteps of the art history method discussedin Chapter 2 to form conclusions aboutthe historical or cultural context of thework.You may need to research the workor art and the artist in an encyclopedia,art history books, or online resources.Write your analysis in your sketchbook.

LESSON 3

The Nineteenth Century

In the late eighteenth century, disruption in European society, including theFrench Revolution, caused artists to abandon the Rococo and Baroque styles,

which mirrored the life of the aristocracy. In the nineteenth century, many artists wanted to create art that reflected the world they saw.

NeoclassicismAt the end of the eighteenth century, some European artists developed

a new kind of art called Neoclassicism (“new classicism”), an approach to art that borrowed subject matter and formal design qualities from the art ofGreece and Rome. Neoclassicism emphasized realism, minimized emotional-ism, and featured epic or heroic events. The French artist Jacques-LouisDavid (zjahk loo-ee dah-veed) was the major artist working in this style.His work The Death of Socrates (Figure 13.17) depicts the last moments ofthe life of the great philosopher, who was tried for religious heresy and

Vocabulary

NeoclassicismRomanticismImpressionismPost-Impressionism


� FIGURE 13.17 This painting has a formal, dignified feeling to it. Even if you did not know the title, youwould realize that the artist has depicted a serious and solemn occasion. What in the artwork tells you this?What do the different figures appear to be doing?

Jacques-Louis David. The Death of Socrates. 1787. Oil on canvas. 129.5 � 196.2 cm (51 � 771�4�). The Metropolitan Museum ofArt, New York, New York. Catharine Lorillard Wolfe Collection, Wolfe Fund, 1931. (31.45)

LESSON 3 The Nineteenth Century 367

be reminded of the events surroundingthem, but instead wanted to be dis-tracted. A new art style evolved as areaction to contemporary events.Romanticism, as it was called, is a styleof art that found its subjects in the world ofthe dramatic and in cultures foreign toEurope. It emphasized rich color and highemotion. Romantic artists disliked thecool colors, stiffness, and subdued emo-tion in Neoclassicism.

Eugéne Delacroix (oo-zhen del-uh-kwah) demonstrated a mastery for cap-turing action in foreign locales. Figure13.18 shows one of his famous works.

sentenced to death. Although hisfriends and students appealed to theauthorities to prevent the sentencefrom being carried out, Socrates will-ingly drank the cup of poison hemlockgiven to him.

RomanticismAt the dawn of the nineteenth

century, the struggle to impose a newdemocratic political and social ordercontinued. People grew anxious inresponse to ongoing political turmoiland uncertainty. Many did not want to

� FIGURE 13.18 Thispainting is a romanticdepiction of action andadventure in a distant land.Although the paintingshows a battle scene,the battle seems moredreamlike than realistic.What gives the work thisquality? Why is it calledRomantic rather thanRealistic?

Eugéne Delacroix. ArabsSkirmishing in the Mountains.1863. Oil on linen. 92.5 � 74.6cm (363�8 � 293�8�). NationalGallery of Art, Washington, D.C.© 1998 Board of Trustees.Chester Dale Fund.


Joseph M. W. Turner emerged asEngland’s most dramatic Romanticpainter. Turner expected his viewers touse their imaginations. For him, thedepiction of light and atmosphere wasthe most important part of a painting.In Figure 13.19, he portrayed natureat its most violent. Instead of usingprecise detail, he suggests this violenceby using loose brushwork to applybright color and light values in swirlingpatterns.

RealismOne group of artists grew dissatisfied

with both Neoclassicism and Romanti-cism. They felt that artists should por-tray political, social, and moral issues,

but without glorifying the past or pre-senting romantic views of the present.Their art movement, called Realism,presented familiar scenes as they actually appeared. Édouard Manet (ay-doo-ahr mah-nay), an artist whoparticipated in the Realist movement,discovered that the new style of artrequired new techniques. Therefore, hebecame more interested in how to paintrather than what to paint.

In The Railway (Figure 13.20), Manetpainted a simple, common scene. Awoman sits with a puppy in her lap. Sheis reading and has glanced up. A younggirl faces away, watching the steamfrom a train. Manet avoided paintingprecise detail because he wanted to cap-ture what a person would see with a

� FIGURE 13.19 This painting is very different from traditional pictures of ships at sea. Describethe mood created by the swirling colors. What feeling do you experience when viewing this artwork?

Joseph M.W. Turner. Snowstorm: Steamboat off a Harbours Mouth. 1842. Oil on canvas. 92 � 122 cm (361�4 � 48�). CloreCollection, Tate Gallery, London, Great Britain.


process were very expensive and time-consuming, but by the 1850s, severalnew methods were introduced thatmade the process easier and less expen-sive. Because of this, artists could recordnews events in the second half of thenineteenth century. A famous Civil Warphotographer, Mathew Brady, docu-mented a battle that took place around1865 (Figure 13.21). Photographyintroduced a new kind of realism to art.

quick glance. Rosa Bonheur, a very suc-cessful artist of the time, combined thedrama of Romanticism with the accuracyof Realism (see Figure 8.3, page 201).

Photography In the mid-nineteenth century, pho-

tography was invented as a method forrecording people and events on film. Itwas exciting for artists interested in real-ism. Early versions of the photographic

� FIGURE 13.20 Theartist uses line to unifythis composition. Identifythe different lines in thework and describe them.Do other elements orprinciples work to unifythis painting? What arethey?

Édouard Manet. The Railway.1873. Oil on canvas. 93.3 � 111.5 cm (363�4 � 437�8�).National Gallery of Art,Washington D.C. © 1998Board of Trustees. Gift ofHorace Havemeyer inmemory of his mother,Louisine W. Havemeyer.

� FIGURE 13.21 This photodepicts a civil war battle. Thephotographer was a journalistwho reported on the war. Do youthink this photograph is art? Whyor why not? On what criteria doyou base your judgment?

Mathew Brady. Civil War. c. 1865.Photograph. National Archives,Washington, D.C.


Photographs were more realistic thandrawings could be. They preserved avisual record of an event in a singlemoment in time with more detail andprecision than a painter ever could. Pho-tography influenced the development ofpainting for many years to come.

ImpressionismThe Realists had taken a hard look at

the real world. This interest in the worldoutside the studio influenced anothergroup of artists who did much of theirpainting outdoors. Their style, whichcame to be known as Impressionism,featured everyday subjects and emphasizedthe momentary effects of light on color.Impressionist painters concentrated onthe play of light over objects rather thanon the shape of objects themselves.These artists broke up solid shapes and

blurred the edges of objects by applyingpaint to the canvas in small dabs of purecolor. When viewed from a distance, thedabs blend together visually. If youstand too close to an Impressionistpainting, all you will see are colorfulbrushstrokes of paint. You have to stepback to allow your eyes to perform thework of blending the colors.

One of the first artists working in theImpressionist style, Claude Monet(klohd moh-nay), painted many differ-ent series of landscapes, seascapes, andcityscapes that depicted the quality oflight at various times of day, and in dif-ferent seasons of the year (see Figures6.24 and 6.25 on page 153). In Figure13.22, Monet has achieved the effect ofa hot summer day with brushstrokesthat make the gladioli flowers appear toshimmer in the light.

� FIGURE 13.22 Notice that the woman is not the focal point of the painting. Instead, she isdepicted as simply a part of the whole garden.

Claude Monet. Gladioli. c. 1876. Oil on canvas. 60 � 80 cm (235�8 � 311�2�). Detroit Institute of Arts, Detroit, Michigan.City of Detroit Purchase.


Post-ImpressionismEventually, some artists felt that

Impressionism was not suited to theway they wished to depict the world.These artists began working in a varietyof styles that came to be called Post-Impressionism, a more individualapproach to painting, unique to each artistworking at this time. The term for thisperiod is Post-Impressionism becausethese works appeared after Impression-ism. The word post means after. Some ofthe most outstanding Post-Impressionistartists were Paul Cézanne (say-zahn),Paul Gauguin (goh-gan) and Vincentvan Gogh (van goh).

� FIGURE 13.23 Cézanne was interested in the structure of objects. He used small brushstrokes likebuilding blocks to make forms look like geometric solids. Notice how the trees look almost as solid as thebuildings. How does Cézanne’s technique affect the appearance of this scene?

Paul Cezanne. The Gulf of Marseilles Seen from L’Estaque. c. 1885. Oil on canvas. 73 � 100.3 cm (283�4 � 391�2�). TheMetropolitan Museum of Art, New York, New York. Bequest of Mrs. H. O. Havemeyer, 1929 (29.100.67).

Paul Cézanne, who had originallypainted in the Impressionist style, feltthat the blurred shapes of Impressionismdid not depict the solidity of the world.He wanted to create an art that empha-sized form more than light. Cézanne did this by laying down interlockingblocks of color rather than dots and dabsof paint. He joined these patches of colortogether as if they were pieces of a puz-zle. In this way, Cézanne strengthenedthe underlying structure in his composi-tions, giving the images a feeling of per-manence and solidity. In Figure 13.23,the trees look almost as solid as thebuildings, and the hills across the gulflook like geometric forms.


Paul Gauguin turned to the use ofcolor and shape to create daring, uncon-ventional works depicting far-off landsand people. Giving up his job as a stock-broker, he traveled around the world tolearn about art and experience differentartistic traditions. He finally settled inTahiti, where he produced most of hisfamous works. Notice the simple shapes

and brilliant colors in Figure 13.24.Gauguin used arbitrary color in most ofhis paintings.

Vincent van Gogh, like the otherPost-Impressionists, was initially dazzledby Impressionist works but later felt thatImpressionism was limited in what itcould express. Van Gogh was not inter-ested in achieving visual accuracy.

� FIGURE 13.24Notice how color is thedominant element in thispainting. Shape and formare also important. Howdo these elements createa dreamy quality?

Paul Gauguin. Faaturuma(Melancholic). 1891. Oil oncanvas. 94 � 68.3 cm (37 �267�8�). The Nelson-AtkinsMuseum of Art, Kansas City,Missouri. Purchase: NelsonTrust, 38-5.


Instead, he explored ways to convey hisfeelings about a subject. To do so, heused expressive elements in his paint-ings such as twisting lines, rich colors,and complex textures.

Van Gogh’s art was rejected and he only sold one painting during hislifetime. His brother supported himfinancially. Toward the end of his life, hepainted The Starry Night (Figure 13.25).He executed it using quick brushstrokesto create the dark trees that resembleflames. The stars in the sky seem to bealive with movement. He expressed theviolent energy and creative force ofnature in this painting. Today, we regardthis artwork as one of van Gogh’s great-est because it reflects his passion andoriginality in creating an energetic andforceful image.

� FIGURE 13.25 Notice van Gogh’s unusual use of color, texture, and line to depict rhythmand movement. He uses the elements to make the stars swirl and the trees dance as if all ofnature was alive.

Vincent van Gogh. The Starry Night. 1889. Oil on canvas. 73.7 � 92.1 cm (29 � 361�4�). The Museum of ModernArt, New York, New York. Acquired through the Lillie P. Bliss Bequest.


1. Describe Neoclassicism.2. What was Realism a reaction to?3. What was emphasized in Impression-

ist painting?

Analyzing a Style

Selecting and Analyzing Exhibitionsfor Intents and Meanings. Find anexhibition of Impressionist art in yourcommunity or online. List at least fourImpressionist works of art, each onepainted by a different artist. Select one ofthe four works to analyze.What conclu-sions can you form about the meaning ofthe work and the artist’s intent?

LESSON 4

Early Twentieth CenturyDuring the first half of the twentieth century, artists responded to rapid

changes in technology, world politics, and culture by creating a varietyof approaches to artistic expression. One style replaced another with bewil-dering speed. With the invention and spread of photography, artists nolonger functioned as recorders of the visible world. They launched a quest toredefine the characteristics of art.

Trends in the arts changed rapidly because increased travel and new waysof communication helped artists to compare ideas. One individual or groupcould easily influence another. It no longer took years for one art movementor style of art to catch on in other areas. In fact, some artists who lived longlives, such as Henri Matisse and Pablo Picasso, changed their own styles sev-eral times during their careers.

European ArtIn general, European artists assumed one of three different directions in

artistic expression: self-expression, composition, or imagination. Each direc-tion emphasized a different aspect of art.

In Germany, artists began working in a style later called Expressionism,a style that emphasized the expression of innermost feelings. The German Expres-sionists did not think the purpose of art was to make pretty pictures. Instead,because they experienced the terrible economic and social conditions in

Germany before and after World War I,they wanted to express their feelings aboutthese conditions. Their emotional subjectsranged from fear and anger to a preoccupa-tion with death. Käthe Kollwitz (kah-tehkohl-vits), an Expressionist concerned withpoverty and war, created many movingimages of mothers grieving for dead chil-dren. She based her work on personal expe-rience: she lost her eldest son during thefirst weeks of World War I (Figure 13.26).

In France, a group of artists createdworks that focused on the formal qualities.Some of these artists created Cubism, astyle that emphasizes structure and design. Threemain concepts influenced the Cubists.

Vocabulary

ExpressionismCubismSurrealismRegionalists


� FIGURE 13.26 Describe the person that you see here. Identifythe elements of art that the artist used. How does Kollwitz viewherself? Is this a person you would be interested in meeting? Why or why not?

Käthe Kollwitz. Self-Portrait. 1921. Etching. 21.6 � 26.7 cm (81�2 � 101�2�).National Museum of Women in the Arts, Washington, D.C. Museum Purchase: The Members’ Acquisition Fund. © 2003 Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/VG Bild-Kunst, Bonn.

LESSON 4 Early Twentieth Century 375

The first concept was that shapes innature are based on geometric forms.The second concept, based on a scien-tific discovery, showed that all matter ismade up of atoms that are constantly inmotion. The third concept, based on artfrom other cultures (African sculpturehad recently been displayed in Paris),revealed that shape and form could besimplified and rearranged to increasethe expressive qualities of an artwork.Pablo Picasso and Georges Braque pio-neered the movement. In Figure 13.27,you can see how Picasso visually trans-lated the human body into geometricshapes. He tried to paint three-dimen-sional objects as if they could be seenfrom many different points of view atthe same time.

A third group of artists relied on fantasy to create art that expressed personal feelings. They explored thepsychology of the mind as subject mat-ter in their work. Surrealism empha-sized art in which dreams, fantasy, and thesubconscious served as inspiration for artists.Surrealists painted very realistic, almostphotographic, images but combinedobjects that didn’t belong together. Thework of the Surrealists appears strangeand dreamlike. Surrealist paintings canbe funny or mysterious and frightening.Figure 13.28 reflects the Surrealistbelief in the power of dreams. RenéMagritte places the external environ-ment, a cloudscape, within the eye.

� FIGURE 13.27 Near the bottom of this work,Picasso places a musical staff and a treble clef near thesong title Ma Jolie. This, along with the title, suggests thepresence of a figure playing music.

Pablo Picasso. “Ma Jolie” (Woman with a Zither or Guitar). 1911–12.Oil on canvas. 100 � 65.4 cm (393�8 � 253�4”). Museum ofModern Art, New York, New York. © 2003 Estate of PabloPicasso/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York.

� FIGURE 13.28 Magritte hascombined the realistic depiction of ahuman eye with a surreal skyreflected in the eye’s iris. Interpretthe meaning of this work’s title.

René Magritte. The False Mirror. 1928. Oilon canvas. 54 � 81 cm (211�4 � 317�8”).Museum of Modern Art, New York, NewYork. © 2003 Herscovici, Brussels/ArtistsRights Society (ARS), New York.


North American ArtIn the United States in the beginning

of the twentieth century, a group ofyoung artists turned to the harsh reali-ties of the city for subject matter. Theycalled themselves The Eight and orga-nized an exhibition in 1908. Their origi-nal name was soon forgotten whencritics immediately labeled them theAshcan School. Critics expressed dis-pleasure at the subject matter of theirwork: stark tenement buildings,crowded city streets, poor working people, and ragged children.

Although this realism shockedunwary viewers, the Armory Show of1913 exerted an even greater impact onthe American art world. This showintroduced Americans to the work ofEuropean artists. Most Americans feltconfused by what they saw. The art ondisplay did not fit into their traditionalunderstanding of the nature and pur-pose of art. However, the show ener-gized many American artists, whoresponded to the challenge posed by the

daring exhibition and took their firststeps toward making modern art in theUnited States.

Alexander Calder, a sculptor, ranksamong these twentieth-century innova-tors. Most sculptors at this time workedwith traditional materials and methods.A few experimented with the new mate-rials of modern industry. Calder created anew form of sculpture by arranging wireand sheet metal into balanced arrange-ments that stayed in motion (Figure 8.20on page 213). He called these movingsculptures mobiles (moh-beels).

As a reaction against the infusion ofEuropean styles into American art, someartists decided to focus on strictly Ameri-can themes. Called Regionalists, theseartists painted the farmlands and cities of theUnited States in an optimistic way. Eachartist had a slightly different style, but allof them portrayed upbeat messages intheir work. They focused on the vastexpanse, beauty, productivity, and abun-dance of the United States and depictedhappy, hardworking people. Figure13.29 is an example of Regionalism.

� FIGURE 13.29 Bentonmodifies the backbreakingnature of the work by placingthe workers in an idyllicsetting. He created a flowingrhythm by repeating the gentlecurves of the hills, trees,clouds, and bundles of wheat.

Thomas Hart Benton. Cradling Wheat.1938. Oil on board. 78.7 � 96.5 cm(31 � 38�). The Saint Louis ArtMuseum, St. Louis, Missouri.© T. H. Benton and R. P. BentonTestamentary Trusts/Licensed byVAGA, New York, NY.

LESSON 4 Early Twentieth Century 377

Like France in the late eighteenthcentury, Mexico at the beginning of thetwentieth century experienced deepsocial and political unrest. The tensionerupted into the Mexican Revolution.Some Mexican artists felt the need todevelop new approaches to art thatwould express their feelings about theplight of the people. These Mexicanartists were referred to as the Mexicanmuralists, because they covered wallsand ceilings with murals about Mexicanhistory, the suffering of the peasants,and the immoral behavior of the rulingclass. Artists such as Diego Rivera (Figure 9.5, page 229) and David AlfaroSiqueiros (Figure 10.14, page 264) combined the solid forms of ancient,pre-Columbian Mexican art with thepowerful colors and bold lines of Cubismand Expressionism.

In this painting, Thomas Hart Bentoncelebrates the work of farmers harvest-ing wheat. He portrays their labor in adignified, graceful style.

Another American artist working atthe same time showed a different side ofthe American experience. African-American artist Jacob Lawrence usedbright, flat areas of color in a geometricstyle to create his art (see Figure 4.19 onpage 80). His series paintings tell thestories of historical African-Americanfigures, as well as describe the strugglesof African-Americans moving from theSouth to the North in the early twenti-eth century.

The twentieth century also saw vastchanges in architecture. New materialsand technology and new demands forcommercial space led to the develop-ment of skyscrapers. Architects designedfunctional structures with steel framesthat emphasized simplicity of form toreplace heavy, decorated structures. One famous modern architect, FrankLloyd Wright, believed that form shouldfollow function, meaning that the lookof a building should be based on its use(Figure 13.30). He also designed build-ings that blended harmoniously withthe landscape around them (Figure11.20,page 301).

� FIGURE 13.30 Wright designed the rampfrom the main gallery to the upper level, usinga gentle curve. The slope and curve allow thecustomer to look down on the objects ondisplay. Notice how the wall and the upstairsgallery create harmony through repetition offlowing rhythms.

Frank Lloyd Wright. Xanadu Gallery, San Francisco,California. 1949.


1. Define Expressionism.2. Name the three main influences

on Cubism.3. Compare and contrast the historical

styles in Figure 13.28 on page 375and Figure 13.29 on page 376 to identify the general themes of each style.

LESSON 5

Art After 1945After World War II ended in 1945,the European art world was in disar-

ray. Paris was no longer the center of artistic creativity. The war dis-placed many people. A number of artists who had fled Nazi Germany settledin New York City. They began teaching there and by the 1950s, they andtheir students established a new center for the arts. New York City becamethe new capital of the art world.

In the years since World War II, artists have created many changes in artis-tic approaches, styles, and techniques. A variety of art forms once consideredminor, such as printmaking, weaving, ceramics, and jewelry making, havecome to be considered art forms equal to painting and sculpture. New digitalmedia, such as graphics programs and digital cameras, have had a powerfulimpact on the world of art.

Abstract ExpressionismAbstract Expressionism, the first new

style to arrive on the scene in New York inthe years following World War II, emphasizedabstract elements of art rather than recognizablesubject matter, and also stressed feelings and emo-tions. Following in the tradition of GermanExpressionism, Abstract Expressionist artistsbelieved that art should function as a spon-taneous expression of emotion, and theydid not necessarily rely on planned struc-ture to organize the design of their paint-ings. Look at Figure 13.31. It is calledFlowering Swamp, but you cannot see anyrealistically depicted flowers or swamps. Ifyou use your imagination, however, youcan see how the two rectangles seem tofloat over a background that suggests waterand flowers.

Pop and Op ArtDuring the early 1960s, artists turned to

the mass media, and especially to advertising,for subject matter. Pop art portrayed imagesof popular culture, such as soda bottles,soup cans, soap boxes, giant hamburgers,and comic strips, in a variety of art forms(Figure 1.18, page 20). Pop artists made peo-ple take a new look at everyday objects.

Vocabulary

Abstract Expressionism

MinimalismSuper-RealismPost-Modernism


� FIGURE 13.31 Hofmann, who was inspirational to the AbstractExpressionist style that grew in New York, is best known for his useof brilliant colors and textures. What does the artist appear to beexpressing here? What is the mood or feeling of this work?

Hans Hofmann. Flowering Swamp. 1957. Oil on wood. 122 � 91.5 cm (481�8 �361�8�). Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Smithsonian Institution,Washington, D.C. Gift of the Joseph H. Hirshhorn Foundation, 1966. © 2003Estate of Hans Hofmann/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York.

LESSON 5 Art After 1945 379

They often used bright colors and car-toonish graphics to depict their subjectmatter. Figure 13.32 is an example ofPop art. Artist Roy Lichtenstein (lick-ten-steyn) used a strong sense of design, alimited color scheme, and bold shapes tocreate a painting that was based on acomic strip.

Another style of art popular in thisperiod took advantage of people’s fasci-nation with visual illusions. Op art, oroptical art, uses scientific knowledgeabout vision to create optical illusions ofmovement. Op art relies on the specialarrangement of the art elements such asthe precise arrangement of lines, or theplacement of complementary colorsnext to each other to create the illusionof movement. If you look at Figure13.33, you will notice the unusualorange color of the background. Theblue-green dots seem to be placed in noapparent order, but in fact the artistcarefully planned their arrangement. Ifyou look at the dots for a few moments,they appear to vibrate because the after-image causes a visual response that cre-ates the illusion of movement.

� FIGURE 13.32 The comic bookquality of this painting is captured in itsstrong black lines, limited use of color,and bold shapes. Lichtenstein calls whathe does �quotation.” What do you thinkhe means by that?

Roy Lichtenstein. Blam. 1962. Oil on canvas.172.7 � 203.2 cm. (68 � 80�). Yale UniversityArt Gallery, New Haven, Connecticut. Gift ofRichard Brown Baker, B. A. 1935.

� FIGURE 13.33 This piece of Op art is intended to cause a visualeffect. Do you think the artwork has another purpose or meaning?Why or why not?

Larry Poons. Orange Crush. 1963. Acrylic on canvas. 203.2 � 203.2 cm (80 � 80�).Albright-Knox Art Gallery, Buffalo, New York. Gift of Seymour H. Knox, 1964. © Larry Poons/Licensed by VAGA, New York, NY.

� FIGURE 13.35 Notice the outlines of this painting. It isnot a traditional rectangular shape. Observe how the redborder ties the work together. How has Stella usedrepetition and contrast to further unify the painting?

Frank Stella. Agbatana III. 1968. Acrylic on canvas. 304.8 �457.2 cm (120 � 180�). Allen Memorial Art Museum,Oberlin College, Oberlin, Ohio. Ruth C. Roush Fundand National Foundation for the Arts andHumanities Grant, 1968. © 2003 FrankStella/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York.

� FIGURE 13.34 Rothko controlled the visual effect of hiswork by limiting the number of colors. Standing in front of thispainting, which is over 7’ tall, the viewer has an intense visualexperience. Why do you think Rothko tried to evoke this kindof experience?

Mark Rothko. Ochre and Red on Red. 1954. Oil on canvas. 2.3 � 1.7 m (7’6� � 5’9�). The Phillips Collection, Washington, D.C. © 1988 KateRothko Prizel and Christopher Rothko/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York.

Color-Field PaintingAs artists experimented with a variety

of new styles, they occasionally selectedjust one element of art to focus on intheir work. An example, Color-Fieldpainting, is art created using only flatfields of color. It is created without theprecision of Op art and also without itsinterest in illusion. It is color for thepure sensation of color. Look at theexample by Mark Rothko in Figure13.34. His color areas have hazy edgesthat seem to float in space.

MinimalismSome artists sought absolute simplic-

ity in their art. This focus came to beknown as Minimalism, or art that uses a minimum of art elements. Minimalistsemphasized either color or shape as thedominant element in painting. In sculp-ture, they used the fewest possible geo-metric forms. They depicted art at itsmost austere, arranging only the sim-plest art elements. Minimalist painterswho placed importance on the crisp,precise edges of the shapes in theirpaintings came to be known as Hard-edge painters. Frank Stella (Figure13.35), used different canvas shapes for his works and created art on alarge scale. He relied onthin white lines to setoff colors, defineshapes, and unifythe work.



New Forms of RealismAlthough modern American artists

have created many abstract and non-objective artworks, Americans harbor alove for realism. Many American artistscontinue to portray subjects in a realis-tic style. This sculpture made by DuaneHanson (Figure 13.36) appears so life-like that it once fooled a gallery secu-rity guard. The guard thought that oneof Hanson’s motionless, seated figureslooked ill and called for an ambulance.The painting in Figure 13.37 looks soaccurate in visual detail that a casualobserver could easily mistake it for aphotograph. This is how the styleearned one of its names: Photo-Realism.It is also called Hyper-Realism andSuper-Realism. Super-Realism is artthat depicts objects as precisely and accu-rately as they actually appear.

� FIGURE 13.36 These figures are made of bronze painted to looklifelike. They are dressed in real clothes and accessories. If you walked upto them, do you think they would fool you? Why or why not?

Duane Hanson. Old Couple on a Bench. 1995. Bronze and mixed media with accessories.Life size. Collection of Palm Springs Desert Museum, Palm Springs, California. Purchasedwith funds provided by Muriel and Bernard Myerson. © Estate of Duane Hanson/Licensed by VAGA, New York, NY.

� FIGURE 13.37 This street scene seems almost like a photographalthough it is a painting. How does the artist create this illusion? What isthe purpose of painting such an illusion when one could simply take aphotograph?

Richard Estes. Paris Street Scene. 1972. Oil on canvas. 101.6 � 152.4 cm (40 � 60�).Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, Richmond, Virginia. Gift of Sydney and Frances Lewis.© Richard Estes/Licensed by VAGA, New York, New York/Courtesy MarlboroughGallery, New York.

Describing GeneralCharacteristics

Applying Your Skills. Look through thisbook to find five paintings from a varietyof Western cultures. Select artworks cre-ated after 1950. For each, list the name ofthe artist, the title of the work, the stylein which the work was painted, and othergeneral characteristics.

ArchitectureAfter World War II, architects devel-

oped the International Style of architec-ture, a plain, austere building style. Itsorigins could be traced back to the workof Frank Lloyd Wright and Louis Sulli-van, who both designed buildings before


World War II. In their Seagram Build-ing, the architects Ludwig Mies van derRohe (ludd-vig meez van der row) andPhilip Johnson created a simple geomet-ric glass box that exemplifies van derRohe’s favorite saying, “Less is more”(Figure 13.38).

Architects of the 1960s looked to thefuture as well as to the past. Figure13.39 shows an apartment complex thatlooks futuristic in its design but actuallyechoes the Pueblo apartment complexesbuilt by Native Americans hundreds ofyears ago. The interlocking apartmentunits are designed to give occupants asense of openness and space. Becausethe units are not lined up next to eachother as in traditional apartment com-plexes, each apartment has plenty ofwindows that allow sunlight to enterand give the illusion that each apart-ment is a separate house.

Post-Modern ArtWe are currently in a period of art that

is rapidly evolving. Some say we are atthe end of the modern era. Others insistthat we have already entered the post-modern era. The subject is being hotlydebated in artistic circles, but the answeris something that only time can judge.

� FIGURE 13.38This simple design,called InternationalStyle, appealed toarchitects as areaction to thehighly ornate ArtDeco style thatwas popular in the1920s and 1930s.Can you easilyidentify thepurpose of thebuilding? What isits purpose?

Ludwig Mies van derRohe and PhilipJohnson. SeagramBuilding. New York,1958. © 2003 ArtistsRights Society (ARS),New York/VG Bild-Kunst, Bonn.

� FIGURE 13.39 Thisapartment complex usesspace efficiently. Do youfind the complex attractive?Why or why not? Whatare some of the personaltouches the residents have added?

Moshe Safdie. Habitat. Montreal,1967.


The term post-modernism firstappeared in reference to architecture.Post-Modernism is an approach to artthat incorporates traditional elements andtechniques while retaining some characteris-tics of modern art styles or movements. Post-Modern architecture was a reaction tothe plain glass boxes of the InternationalStyle. It incorporates decorative ele-ments from the past and takes advan-tage of the flexibility of new materials(See Figure 14.1 on page 388.)

The Rock-and-Roll Hall of Fame andMuseum (Figure 14.16 on page 399),designed by I. M. Pei, is an example ofarchitecture’s break from the modernglass box. The museum contains a con-cert hall, a film and video display center,several sound chambers, and a partyarea as well as the usual glass displaycases for showing off costumes, instru-ments, sheet music, and the personalbelongings of famous musicians. Thearchitect designed a building that reflectsthe freedom of rock-and-roll, but alsofunctions as a museum to house itsmemorabilia.

Other Post-Modern artists are break-ing traditional restrictions. Painters arecreating three-dimensional paintingsand sculptors are adding paint to theirworks. Figure 13.40 is an example of aPost-Modern work with some identifi-able subject matter. Is it a painted sculp-ture or a three-dimensional painting?

No one knows what will happen nextin the art world. The acquisition ofimages from the past, and the incorpo-ration of them into new works withnew meanings, is only one facet of thisnew era. We have entered a time in artin which the diversity of ideas reflectsthe diversity of contemporary life.

� FIGURE 13.40 This sculpture represents several musicalinstruments. Can you identify what these instruments are? Noticehow big the sculpture is. Why do you suppose the artist chose tomake it so large?

Frank Stella. St. Michael’s Counterguard (Malta Series). 1984. Mixed media onaluminum and fiberglass honeycomb. 396.2 � 342.9 � 274.3 cm (156 � 135 �108 �). Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Los Angeles, California. Gift of AnnaBing Arnold. © Frank Stella/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York.


1. What is the subject matter of Pop Art?2. How is Color-Field painting different

from Op art?3. Why is Super-Realism sometimes

called Photo-Realism?4. Describe Post-Modern architecture.5. Compare and contrast the contempo-

rary styles in Figure 13.32 on page379 and Figure 13.37 on page 381 toidentify general art trends.

� FIGURE 13.41

Chuck Close. Paul. 1994. Oil on canvas. 259.1 � 213.4 cm (102 � 84�) Philadelphia Museum of Art, Philadelphia,Pennsylvania. Purchased with funds from the gift of Mr. and Mrs. Cummins Catherwood, the Edith H. Bell Fund, and others.


1 DESCRIBE What do you see?Read the credit line for information about the artwork.

What do you see when you look at this painting upclose? When you look at it from a distance?

2 ANALYZE How is this work organized?This step deals with the composition of the work.Thisis a clue-collecting step about the elements of art.

Which art elements do you think play the biggest rolein the eye’s ability to form a picture out of seeminglyrandom shapes? Explain.

Compare and contrast the artist’s use of balance andharmony to unify this work. Describe his use of variety.

3 INTERPRET What message is this artwork communicating to you?Now you will combine the clues you have collectedand your personal ideas to form a creative interpreta-tion of the work.

This work is 81�2’ tall. How do you think it would feel tostand close to it?

Give this work a new title that sums up your reactionsto it.

4 JUDGE What do you think of the work?Now it is time to decide if this is a successful work of art.

Do you think this is a successful work of art? Why orwhy not? Which aesthetic theory best supports yourjudgment?

Chuck Close is not a painterof people. He creates paintingsbased on large photographstaken of friends and family. For 20 years he was a leading photo-realist. He created very largeblack-and-white works, using agrid to enlarge the work. In the1980s, he began to use color. In1988, Close suffered an illnessthat left him paralyzed. He wasable to use his arms but not hishands. A device strapped to hisarm permits him to hold hisbrush. He continues to workwith photos and a grid format,but the brushstrokes are looser.Close’s recent works have beencompared with those of theImpressionist Claude Monetbecause of their use of brilliantcolors.

Critiquing the Artwork

Art Criticism in Action 385

Chuck Close. Self-Portrait. 1991. Oil oncanvas. 254 � 213.4 cm (100 � 84�). PaceWildenstein Gallery, New York, New York.

Chuck Closeb. 1940

A sculptor and architect communicatestremendous emotion through her work.

rtists and architects often create memorials to honor thememory of important people or historic events. These works

challenge visitors to reflect on the past and to think about thefuture. One such artist is Maya Lin, a sculptor, architect, andcraftswoman. Every year, more than one million people are movedby the simple beauty of her most famous work: the NationalVietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C. It is inscribed withthe names of the American soldiers who died in the Vietnam War.Lin designed the memorial when she was a 21-year-old student atYale University’s School of Architecture.

Thousands more have been moved by another monument that Lin hascreated in Montgomery, Alabama. It honors people of all colors andreligions who were killed fighting for civil rights in the 1950s and 1960s.

The monument is composed of a sheet of water running over a granitetable. The slick table is inscribed with words from a speech by Martin LutherKing Jr. As with Lin’s Vietnam Memorial, it reminds visitors of past struggles.It also honors those who worked to make this world a better place.


A

TIME to Connect

Sculptors and architects connect with viewers by conveying common emotions.Writers do the same by conveying emotions with words.

• Write a personal essay about an emotional event in your life—a special celebration oran argument with a friend.What do you want to convey about that moment in time?

• Using powerful language, including descriptive adjectives and vivid verbs, re-createyour emotions on paper. Start by prewriting (jotting down all your thoughts andfeelings on paper), then write a first draft. Proofread your draft for style and use ofproper grammar.You may wish to present your finished paper to the class.

Maya Lin

The Civil Rights Memorialis made of organic materialsto create a soothing workof art. It honors those whohave died in the fight forcivil rights.

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Building Vocabulary

On a separate sheet of paper, write the termthat best matches each definition given below.

1. A style of architecture in which churchessoared upward, used pointed arches, andhad stained-glass windows.

2. The period at the end of the Middle Ageswhen artists, writers, and philosopherswere “re-awakened” to art forms and ideasfrom ancient Greece and Rome.

3. An art style that borrowed subject matterand formal design qualities from the art ofGreece and Rome.

4. An art style that featured everyday subjectsand emphasized the momentary effects oflight on color.

5. An art style that emphasized the expres-sion of innermost feelings.

6. A style of art in which dreams, fantasy, andthe subconscious served as inspiration forartists.

7. Artists who painted the farmlands and citiesof the United States in an optimistic way.

Reviewing Art Facts

Answer the following questions using com-plete sentences.

8. Why was the Middle Ages also called theAge of Faith?

9. What social changes was Mannerism aresponse to?

10. Identify the characteristics of Romanticism.

11. Name one similarity and one differencebetween the artworks created by the Real-ists and the Impressionists.

12. Describe the subject matter chosen by theMexican Muralists.

13. Define Op art.

Thinking Critically About Art

14. Explain. In this chapter, you learned how political and social events can shapeart movements. You also learned howadvances in technology can influence artstyles. What social and political events,along with technological advances, pavedthe way for the Renaissance movement?

15. Historical/Cultural Heritages. Com-pare the famous historical sculpture byMichelangelo in Figure 13.8 on page 357to the contemporary sculpture by AllanHouser in Figure 11.18 on page 299. Iden-tify the general theme of these works.

Read about one of the mostperformed dance works cre-ated in the twentieth century.The classic “The Green Table”, presented bychoreographer Kurt Jooss, is featured onpage 425 of the Performing Arts Handbook.

CHAPTER 13 REVIEW

Would you like toknow more aboutthe richness andvariety of modern

art? Explore the online exhibits of the collec-tions at the world famous Museum of ModernArt in New York. Simply follow the WebMuseum Tour link at art.glencoe.com to discover more about the diverse artists andphilosophies of the twentieth century.

ART

Linking to thePerforming Arts

Chapter 13 Review 387

Documents

350 CHAPTER 13 Western Traditions in Art - Glencoe · Museum of Art, New York, New York. Gift of J. Pierpont Morgan, 1917. (17.190.103). 354 CHAPTER 13 Western Traditions in Art The