Art History General Characteristics and Timeline - Liz Ketner

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Art History General CharacteristicsCompiled by Liz Ketner, May, 2003

African Jijora- combination of realism and abstraction Symmetry around vertical axis Curving cylindrical forms Frontality and static poses; rigid, upright Calm facial expressions Use of negative space Odo- prime of life Parts of body that are considered most important are emphasized

Example: Dogon Primordial Couple

Indian Sensuality, eroticism Smooth, simplified body volumes with little

muscle definition Idealized figures based on forms in nature Overall decorative quality with profusion of images and

ornament (horror vaqui) Use of symbols Mudras- hand positions Attributes to identify deities Narrative Architectural settings

Example: Shiva Nataraja

EgyptianExample: Palette of Narmer

Extreme conservatism: very little change in art for 3000 years (exception: Akhenaton & Amarna Pd)

Hieratic scale Combination of text and images Use of registers Things may be seen from the front, the side, or above Rules for depicting pharaoh and family; very stylized and

idealizedo Shown in prime of lifeo Broad shoulders, narrow hips, some muscle definition o Calm faceo Limited poses include composite view and Egyptian sculptural stance

Naturalism for depiction of non-royalty, landscape, and animals in natural surroundings Men are dark, women are light Continuous narrative Sculpture serves as a home for the spirit/ka Symbols Architecture

o Old Kingdom : mastabas; pyramids serve as burial sites and monumentso Middle Kingdom: cliff side tombs and temples with reserve columnso New Kingdom: funerary temples; corridor axis approach


Amarna Period (Akhenaton): Exception to all the Egyptian art rules; shows naturalism

Predynastic: 3500 - 3000 BCE Palette of Narmer (above)

Old Kingdom: ~3000 - 2200 BCE Khafre Menkaure and Khamerernebty Seated Scribe

Ti Watching a Hippo Hunt Prince Rahotep and his wife Nofret Pyramid of King Djoser by Imhotep

Middle Kingdom: ~2100 - 1600 BCE Rock-cut tomb

New Kingdom: ~1500 - 40 BCE (includes the Amarna Period* 1355 – 1325 BCE) Funerary Temple of Hatshepsut Temple of Ramses II Temple of Amen-Re at Karnak Akhenaton* Akhenaton and His Family*

Mesopotamian SANTA ANNA NEVER BAKED A NUTTY PANKAKE (Sumerians, Akkadians, Neo-Sumerians,

Babylonians, Neo-Babylonians, Persians)

Sumerians ~3500 - 2300 BCE Example: Standard of Ur Votive figures Stylized figures with large eyes

(reflecting sense of fear), curly hair and beards

Gestures of humility Cylindrical, curving figures Heraldic arrangement Use of Egyptian characteristics-

registers, repeated figures, composite view, slight hieratic scale, linear and flato Ziggurats; bent axis approach o Standard of Uro Ram offering stando Bull-headed lyreo Bull holding a Vase

Akkadians ~2300 - 2200 BCE Example: Victory Stele of Naram-Sin More confident, arrogant attitude; claims kings are divine Use huge hieratic scale

o Victory Stele of Naram-Sin

Neo Sumerians ~2200 - 2000 BCE - bring back Sumerian characteristics: King Gudea shows humility toward gods


Example: Seated Gudea

Babylonians ~1900 - 1600 BCE Example: Stele of Hammurabi Symbolism Heraldic arrangement Composite human animal form

o Stele of Hammurabi

Assyrians ~900 - 600 BCE Example: Lamassu

Use general Mesopotamian characteristics in addition to a mix of naturalism and abstraction

Common theme of the royal lion hunto Lamassu (Winged Human-Headed Bull)o Lion Hunt Bas Reliefs

Proto-GreekCycladic plank idols - continuation of the ancient fertility figure; abstract, simple,

geometric, tubular

Minoans ~2000 - 1500 BCE Images of animals, recreation, marine life, flora and fauna Playful, curving lines; “Minoan swirlies” Bright, rich colors Happy mood Stylized, idealized human form; tall, slender, broad shoulders Celebration of youth Men are darker, women lighter Continuous narrative

o Snake Goddesso Palace at Knossoso Dolphin Frescoo Toreador Frescoo Octopus Vase

Myceneans ~1500 - 1100 BCE Weapons, death masks, walled cities and palaces (war-like) Adopt Minoan writing and art forms Use repoussé

o Corbelled vaults, beehive tomb "Treasury of Atreus" with its corbelled vault

o Repoussé maskso Lion Gate at Mycenaeo Inlaid dagger blade with lion hunt


GreekGeometric ~900 - 700 BCE

Vases- huge pots that function as grave markers Stylized, triangular human form Very little detail No text b/c writing disappeared

o Diplyon Vase

Archaic ~700 - 480 BCE Egyptian influence Kouros/Korae figures: stylized and

idealized; goofy smile/Archaic smile; curly ravioli hair; nudes in the prime of life;

Egyptian sculptural stanceo Kouros Figureso Temple of Artemis in Corfu with

pediment relief of Medusao Siphnian Treasury with frieze of the

battle of the giantso Black-figured then red-figured vases

Classical 480 - 323 BCE Severe Style 480 - 450 BCE: calm faces; contrapposto stance (Kritios

Boy); realistic but idealized male nudes; focus on mastering body mechanics and showing motion

o Kritios Boy—contrapposto stanceo Warrioro Poseidon or Zeus

o Discobolos by Myron

High Classical 450 - ~370 BCE: use of earlier characteristics + focus on perfect proportions

o Doryphorus by Polykleitoso The Parthenon by Iktinos and Kallikrates, sculpture by Phidiaso Temple of Athena Nike

Late Classical ~370 - 323 BCE: Praxiteles does 1st female nude; subtle changes that lead to Hellenistic

o Cnidian Aphrodite by Praxiteleso Hermes and Dionysos by Praxiteles

Hellenistic 323 - 31 BCE Loss of Greek independence leads to different mood Wider range of subject matter Art expresses emotion, especially negative ones Intentionally erotic art Realistic and naturalistic Eastern influences

o Dying Gaulo Seated Boxero The Altar of Zeus at Pergamon o Venus de Milo


o Laocoön and His Sonso Nike of Samothrace

Greek Architecture: Doric and Ionic columns (Corinthian on inside) Peristyle (or peripteral) temples with entry from all sides Decorated pediment Triglyphs and metopes (Doric temples); frieze

(Ionic temples) Vertical and horizontal lines; balance and

proportion Post and lintel system Religious structures Focus on exterior decoration Significance of location of buildings

Etruscans 800 - 500 BCE Tuscan columns - bases but no flutes Round arch Tombs arranged in cities called

necropolises "Happy" wall paintings w/ curving

lines, sense of vitality Temples: made of wood; solid walls

with columns only in front on a portico; plain pediments

o Apollo of Veiio Sarcophagus from Cerveterio Tomb of the Reliefso Tomb of the Leopards with Banqueters and Musicianso Capitoline Wolf (or She-Wolf of the Capital)

Romans

Roman Republic: ~500 - 40 BCEo The Battle of Issus Mosaic o First Style Wall Paintingo Second Style Wall Paintingo Third Style Wall Paintingo Busts—Verism, Head of a Roman

Imperial Rome: ~40 BCE - 476 CEo Augustus of Primaportao The Pantheono The Colosseum o Basilica of Constantineo Equestrian Statue of Marcus Aurelius o Colossus of Constantineo Four Tetrarchs

Mosaics: earth colors; tesserae (flat tiles) Cities laid out according to ideal grid plan Use arch (round), vault (barrel, groin), dome, concrete in

monumental ways


Basilicas: rectangular; apse; entrances on sides; roof higher than side aisles; barrel and groin vaults; coffered ceiling; clerestory windows; Corinthian columns

Exterior and interior decoration Triumphal arches Wall painting

o 1st style: emulates marble

o 2nd style: illusion of 3D space- atmospheric and linear perspective,

diminution, foreshortening, overlapping (all not perfected)o 3rd style: reasserts primacy of the wall;

framed pictureso 4th style: combines earlier 3

Sculptureo Roman Republic: super-realism/verismo Early Empire: idealizedo 3rd Century: expressionistic

Early Christian ~30 - 500 CE Art in catacombs and on sarcophagi Jesus shown as good shepherd and later as

Pantocrator Use of lunettes Denaturing - moving back

to conceptual art Architecture: basilica plan;

clerestory windows; post and lintel (wooden ceiling); triumphal arch over apse; round arch/arcade; very light

Continuous narrativeo Painted catacomb ceiling of Jesus and Jonaho Sarcophagus of Junius Bassuso Old St. Peter'so Christ the Good Shepherd mosaic in Ravennao St. Michael the Archangelo Illumination of Rebecca and Eliezer at the Well from the Vienna Genesis

Byzantine ~500 - 1300 CE Architecture: central and quincunx

plan churches Mysterious, irrational, very

decorative Columns with basket capitals Mosaics with lots of gold “Too many peopleism” Stylized forms: large eyes, long thin

fingers and noses Central, frontal, symmetrical Figures lack mass and have down-pointing feet Hieratic scale Flat, linear; no shadows, no landscape background, little modeling Isocephalic- heads at same level


o San Vitale (in Ravenna) with Emperor Justinian and his Attendants mosaico Hagia Sophia commissioned by Emperor Justinian o St. Mark's, Venice

Islamic: About 700 CE on Hypostyle halls with lots of open space for communal prayer Wall of a mosque that is closest to Mecca is called the qibla; it is marked

by a domed niche called a mihrab Tower called minaret marks the entrance Courtyard that serves as preparatory experience Horseshoe and lobed arches Gold color; bands of geometric figures; Arabic

calligraphy; stylized intertwining plan formso Dome of the Rock, Jerusalemo Mosque at Cordoba, Spaino The Alhambra, Granada, Spaino The Taj Mahal, Agra, India

MedievalGermanic, Hiberno Saxon, and Viking: ~400 - 800 CE

Interlace patterns Imaginary animals Appears on small portable objects, usually with

a practical purpose o Purse Cover from Sutton Hoo Ship Burialo Animal Head Post from Oseberg Ship Burialo Lindisfarne Gospel

Carolingian (ca 750-900, period around rule of Charlemagne) Evidence of Classical Illusionism: modeling, landscape background, attempts at

perspective Expressionism: intensely emotional, with energetic lines, emphasis on

expression of inner emotional stateo Ebbo Gospels, Illumination of the evangelist Matthewo Palatine Chapel

Ottonian: ~900 - 1000 Stylized figures with big eyes Completely linear and flat “Too many peopleism” Hieratic scale Composition: central, frontal, symmetrical Isocephalic

o St. Michael's at Hildesheim, Germanyo The Annunciation to the Shepherds illumination

from the Lectionary of Henry IIo Otto III Enthroned … illumination from the

Gospel Book of Otto III

Romanesque ~1000 – 1150


Sculpture: Attached to churches, completely

dependent on the architecture Stylized, elongated

Architecture: Use of Roman round arch and barrel

vault Larger churches built to

accommodate pilgrimages: second aisle, ambulatory, radiating chapels

Stone barrel vaults replace flammable wooden roofs, cause walls to be thicker, w/ smaller windows so darkero Gislebertus, tympanum at St. Lazare, Autun, France

o St. Sernin, Toulouse, Franceo Durham Cathedral, Englando Churches with round arches, stone barrel vaults, buttresses,

etc. o Cathedral complex in Pisa, Italyo Bayeux Tapestry (commemorating Battle of Hastings, 1066,

victory of William the Conqueror over King Edward)

Gothic ~1150 – 1300Sculpture:

Increasingly less stylized and more naturalistic Increasingly Classicistic: Gothic sway is close to contrapposto

stance, Classical proportions, idealization Becoming more independent from the architecture, moving out

from the walls behind it.o The Virgin of Paris (Gothic sway)o Sculpture at Pisa by Giovanni Pisanoo Rottgen Pieta

Architecture: POINTED arch + Ribbed

groin vault makes ceilings much higher

Flying buttresses take weight out, can make big stained glass windows

o Notre Dame, Paris

o Chartreso Gloucester Cathedral, England

(Perpendicular Style)

Late Gothic/Proto-Renaissance aka TRECENTO: ~1300 – 1400Giotto re-introduces naturalism to painting:

shading


shadows individualization landscape settings moving away from hieratic scale

o Madonna Enthroned by Cimabueo Madonna Enthroned by Giottoo Maestá Altarpiece by Duccioo Arena Chapel in Padua painted by Giotto (the Lamentation)

International Gothic Style ~1350 - 1400 Commingling of Northern European and Italian style Tons of gold and bright rich colors Processions of wealthy looking people who are richly

dressed Very crowded canvases- horror vaqui Intentionally ornamental and decorative style,

meaning a loss of realism Thin, two dimensional, flatter figures; less modeling

and shadingo Les Tres Riches Heures du Duc de Berry by the

Limbourg Brothers

Early Italian Renaissance ~1400 – 15001st half of 15th century

Humanism Illusion of depth- linear and atmospheric

perspective; unified light source Contrapposto stance Heavy modeling Realistic arrangement of figures in space Individualized, realistic, often idealized figures In architecture, a return to Classical architectural vocabulary, more human

scale, more rational design based on mathematical ratios, balance, and proportion

o David, St Mark, Mary Magdalen by Donatelloo The Holy Trinity by Masaccioo The Tribute Money by Masaccioo Florence Duomo Dome by Brunelleschio San Lorenzo by Brunelleschi

2nd half of 15th century All earlier features PLUS Focus on motion and emotion Foreshortening, middle ground

o The Resurrection of Christ and The Flagellation of Christ by Piero della Francesca

o The Dead Christ by Mantegnao The Birth of Venus and La Primavera by Botticelli o Delivery of the Keys by Peruginoo Alberti: Palazzo Rucellai, façade of Santa Maria Novella

in Florence

Northern Renaissance ~1400 – 1600 Disguised symbolism


Miniature detail Surface realism Patterns, textures Bright oil colors Combination of everyday and supernatural Frail, pale, elongated figures Realism of everyday details, actual unidealized human faces, and landscapes (when depicted) Puddles of drapery with angular golds Humanism: artists’ signatures, secular subject matter, depiction of donors in paintings, frontal

portraits, personality in portraitso Arnulfini Portrait (Wedding Portrait) by Van Eycko Merode Altarpiece by Campino The Ghent Altarpiece by Van Eycko Escorial Deposition by Rogier van der Weydeno Portinari Altarpiece by Hugo Van der Goeso Garden of Earthly Delights by Boscho Isenheim Altarpiece by Grunewald o Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse by Dürero Henry VII by Holbeino Peasant Wedding by Bruegel

High Renaissance 1500 – 1520 Many Classical characteristics Balance, harmony, proportion Calm dignity and rationality Central, symmetrical Realistic but idealized human figures;

proportionate Figural pyramid Realistic deep space

o Mona Lisa by Leonardo o The Last Supper by Leonardo o School of Athens by Raphael o David by Michelangelo o Ceiling of the Sistine Chapel by Michelangeloo The Tempietto and the design of St. Peter's by Bramante (St. Peter’s altered when redesigned

and constructed by Michelangelo)

Venetian Style 1500 – 1600 Rich oil colors- red, gold, green “Miller Time”- soft late afternoon light Pastoral Arcadian landscape Painterly style Plump figures with golden skin; often in

motion Dynamic composition Asymmetrical with asymmetrical balance Diagonal lines Lightheartedness, sensuality, worldliness

o Feast of the Gods by Bellini o Pastoral Concert by Giorgioneo Bacchanal by Titian o Venus of Urbino by Titiano Madonna of the House of Pesaro by Titian


Mannerism 1520 – 1600 Anti-naturalism; trying to

make viewers uncomfortable Intentionally distorted,

disproportionate figure - elongated with small heads

Figura serpentinata - twisting figures

Chaotic sense of space- too many peopleism

Centrifugal composition; no focal point; figures pushed out around edges and to front

Clashing colors Overly dramatic; theatrical hand gestures Phase I: intense emotionalism Phase II: hyper-elegance; CHEESUS!

o Deposition or Decent from the Cross by Pontormo o The Madonna with the Long Neck by Parmigianino o The Rape of the Sabine Women by Giovanni da Bologna

Proto-Baroque: late 1500s Combines elements of Venetian Style and Mannerism for dramatic Counter Reformation art

o The Last Supper by Tintoretto o The Burial of Count Orgaz by El Greco

Baroque 1600 – 1700 Matter in motion

through time, space, and light

Action, drama, motion, tension

Chiaroscuro, tenebroso

Snapshot in time Emotional involvement and intensity- lots of diagonals,

emotional faces, figures in motion Space is outward and expansive; comes out towards us, involves us Profusion of ornament; “more is more” First style: Baroque naturalism- images of a realistic,

uncleaned-up natural world; Caravaggio, Artemesia Gentileschi, Velasquez, Rembrandt, Hals

Second style: Baroque classicism- idealized natural world; more resembles Renaissance art; Carracci, Bernini, Poussin, Claude Lorrain

Third style: Proto-Romantic- hyper dynamic natural world; spiraling composition; Rubens

David and Ecstasy of St. Theresa by Bernini

The Conversion of St. Paul by Caravaggio Judith beheading Holofernes by

Artemisia Gentileschi

St. Peter's extension and façade by Maderno San Carlo at the Four Fountains by

Borromini Las Meninas by Velazquez


The Elevation of the Cross by Rubens The Nightwatch by Rembrandt Still Life by Heda The Kitchenmaid by Vermeer

Fortune Teller by La Tour Burial of Phocion by Poussin The Palace at Versailles St. Paul's in London by Wren

Rococo 1700 – ~1750 Rich people doing rich people things Light-hearted, sensual, indulgent, playful Pastel colors Painterly style Nature is wild but nice, metaphor for the

carefree lives of the nobles Curvy lines Frivolous

o The Pilgrimage to Cythera by Watteau

o The Swing by Fragonard Reactions against the Rococo ~1700 – ~1750: Patrons were often the middle class, who sought art of a more serious nature, usually in the Academic Style

o Grace at Table by Chardin o Marriage a la Mode by Hogarth o Robert Andrews and his Wife by Gainsborough o The Death of General Wolfe by Benjamin West o Watson and the Shark by Copley

Neo Classical: ~1750 - ~1820 (considered the 1st phase of Romanticism) Polished, linear academic style Idealized figures “Noble art” showing scenes from ancient Athens or Roman Republic Meant to teach a moral or lesson Classical architectural settings

o Cornelia Mother of the Gracchi by Angelica Kauffmano Oath of Horatii by Davido Death of Socrates by David

Romanticism ~1790 – 1850 Dramatic historical scenes and contemporary scenes Images of heroism, suffering, the exotic Nature as vast, powerful, awe-inspiring Images of fear, cruelty, insanity Neo-Baroque techniques: intense color, intense drama, dramatic light, dynamic motion

o Third of May 1808 by Goya

o The Raft of the Medusa by Gericault


o Death of Sardanapalus by Delacroix o Liberty Leading the People by Delacroix o Salisbury Cathedral across the Meadow by Constableo Slave Ship by Turnero The Ox Bow by Cole (Hudson River School)

Realism ~1830 – 1860 Reaction against Romanticism Artists painted only what they could see Much of their art was used for calling attention to the

needs and problems of the working poor Everyday scenes, often of the lower class, who are

usually depicted sympathetically and with dignityo The Gleaners by Milleto Stonebreakers by Courbeto The Burial at Ornans by Courbeto Third Class Carriage by Daumier

Impressionism 1870 – 1890 Influenced by Realists and French Barbizon School Paint only what they can see Wanted to capture fleeting impressions of light and color Loose, rapid brushstrokes (“the revolution of the color patch”) Paint everyday scenes, usually of the middle class at leisure Avoided blacks and grays

o Luncheon on the Grass (and) Olympia by Manet (precursor to movement)o Impression: Sunrise by Moneto Le Moulin de la Galette by Renoir o The Glass of Absinthe (or ballet dancers or race horses) by Degaso The Floorscrapers and Paris Street, Rainy Day by Caillebotteo Pissarroo Morisot, usually women and/or childreno Cassatt (Influenced by Japanese woodblock prints)o Nocturne in Black and Gold by Whistler (also influenced by Japanese woodblock prints)

Post Impressionists 1880 – 1900 SOUTH CAROLINA VEGETABLES GROW TALL (Seurat, Cézanne, Van Gogh, Gauguin, Toulouse

Lautrec) Feel Impressionism is too limiting with its focus on fleeting impressions of light and color Retain the bright color palette but explore aspects of structure/form (Seurat and Cézanne) or

expression (Van Gogh, Gauguin, Toulouse-Lautrec)

Symbolists 1890 – 1900 Think realism is trivial Fascinated by the inner workings of

the mind Believe their task is seeing through

things to their deeper meaning and reality

o The Scream by Munch

20th Century (4 trends)


Expressionism: artists use art to express their own emotional responses to the world; influenced by Van Gogh, Gaugin, non-Western art

Abstraction: artists explore the internal structure of forms in the visible world; influenced by Cézanne and non-Western art


Fantasy: artists explore the interior of the human psyche, focusing on the non-rational, such as dreams, fantasy, imagination, fears; influenced by Symbolists and Freud

Realism: artists reveal their life in the 20th century, focusing frequently on mechanization, urbanization, war, and isolation; influenced by Courbet and Daumier

Documents

Art History General Characteristics and Timeline - Liz Ketner