Romantic Era
When it comes to art, before this class, I was more drawn to landscapes that told a story or a pretty picture of a couple together, which points me to more of the Romantic Era. In this week I will be comparing four different pieces from this era comparing the different happy smiles and pretty colors to desperate tragedies in Pre-Raphaelite and post-impressionism.
Proserpine
By: Dante Gabriel Rossetti
Rossetti was an English painter and poet, known for his Pre-Raphaelite paintings. Rossetti's work Proserpine, painted in 1874, is an example of the Pre-Raphaelite style itself, that is known for the vivid detail and symbolism throughout. In this painting, Proserpine is the main focus as she was the goddess of the underworld in Greek mythology, seen standing in dim lighting with a pomegranate in hand. There are a few things hidden in plain sight that also have a great influence on what the story might be and that would include the pomegranate as stated before, the incense burner and the ivy branch. After doing some research on what elements means, the pomegranate symbolizes her captivity and the dual existence between the underworld and Earth. The burner a symbol of her status as goddess and the Ivy branch is clinging to memory. The intention of the painting seems deeply personal and emotional with the theme being entrapment and longing for something more. The painting explores a women split between two worlds both linearly and emotionally. Of course when looking into all of the different elements that are used then there is a more emotional reaction to the story and more of a connection on something I probably would not have noticed before. The use of dark rich colors and textures creates a lot of mystery for me and relates to the main elements of the Romantic Era's immersive effect.
Ophelia
By: John Everett Millais
The painting above, Ophelai, was completed in 1852 and apart of Millais's Pre-Raphaelite work that has the emphasis on realism, symbolism, and inspiration. The painting was completed in London, and was inspired by Shakespeare's Hamlet capturing a tragic moment when Ophelia floats down the river just before she drowns. I was drawn to the painting because at first glace it is a women laying in a body of water, for some big tragic reason, surrounded by flowers and greenery so I wanted to know more about it. I learned that Millais painted in very natural settings and paid attention to every detail that surrounded him. The flowers were not only botanically correct but were used as a symbol as well as poppies are for death, the daisies for innocence and violets for faithfulness. The Pre-Raphaelite style is usually naturalism along with symbolism as the painting has both for form in favor of truth to nature shown. Knowing what I know now about what the painting represents it makes the work unforgettable. There is soft light and glowing colors that pull me as a viewer in until you realize its that moment right before death. The painting reflects the Romantic era's interest in emotion, nature, and tragic beauty while Pre-Raphaelite focus on the more serious, precise detail, and vivid colors used which describes the painting completely.
The Basket of Apples
By: Paul Cezanne
Painted in 1887 by French artist Paul Cezanne, highlights many different colors and shadows of fruits and breads with great structure throughout. Painters in the post-impressionists like Cezanne was, were concerned with structure, form, and a deeper symbolic or emotional meaning. There was a great use for bold brushstrokes and solid blocks of color where the shadows surrounding them were not blended in so neatly. There was rich and earthy tones that somewhat feel three-dimensional, especially the apples to me. I think the three important art elements were the form, composition, and perspective that were all manipulated to challenge how each viewer might take it all in. When I look at the painting is seems like it would be at a great house on a Sunday afternoon to visit. The colors seem to real and engaging. The color use and shadows are great and if you close your eyes it seems like it could be right in front of you. It also somewhat brings back memories of my grandmother who had those plastic fruits in the middle of her table, the grapes and apples, and brings back such good memories.
A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grange Jatte
By: George Seurat
Painted in 1884 by French artist George Seurat, the scene depicts a great Sunday afternoon on this island, but was also aimed to represent modern life in the style of classical Greek frieze and is a great example of post-impressionist art. Seurat was known to developed a technique called Pointillism which is the use of tiny dots of color placed next to one another so that the viewer's eye blends them from a distance. Instead of mixing paint, it seems Seurat lets your eye do the mixing using complementary colors that create light and shadow. The painting reflects the post-impressionist interest in science and optics as well. Key art elements here include the color, theory, lines, and composition. This painting seems to be more intellectual and removed and more visually exploration then a personal storytelling. He brought a scientific lens to impressionist freedom making it more modern. The figures in the painting do not seem to be interacting with one another much which seems to make it somewhat quiet even though there are many colors and many figures in sight. Personally, I am really liking this style more and more as I continue on with this project about the Romantic Era. I find it as I am looking into the past on this particular day and what every color or gesture might have meant. The post-impressionist technique use many shapes and suggested movement however still abstract and somewhat dreamy haze other them that I am really enjoying.
Work Cited:
Dr. Rebecca Jeffrey Easby, Dr. Beth Harris and Dr. Steven Zucker, "Sir John Everett Millais, Ophelia," in Smarthistory, February 7, 2025, accessed March 25, 2025, https://smarthistory.org/millais-ophelia/.
Stephanie Roberts, "Dante Gabriel Rossetti, Proserpine," in Smarthistory, August 9, 2015, accessed March 25, 2025,https://smarthistory.org/millais-ophelia/.
Cezanne, Paul. “The Basket of Apples.” The Art Institute of Chicago, Painting and Sculpture of Europe, Aug. 2015, https://www.artic.edu/artworks/111436/the-basket-of-apples.
Richman-Abdou, Kelly. “The Story behind Seurat’s Pointillist Masterpiece, ‘a Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte.’” My Modern Met, 9 Aug. 2022, https://mymodernmet.com/georges-seurat-a-sunday-afternoon-on-the-island-of-la-grande-jatte/.
The art from the Pre-Raphaelite movement is so beautiful. They strived to depict nature accurately while not sparing symbolism and the natural beauty of the human body. I love the revival of medieval themes in the movement’s works. Millais’s Ophelia very much captures the Pre-Raphaelite movement’s characteristics. The flowers and plants surrounding Ophelia not only relate to the symbolism of her character in Shakespeare’s Hamlet but also to how her death was described to the other characters. The weeping willow seen above her head could be what she fell from, as described by Queen Gertrude in the play. The weeping willow symbolizes mourning, which was a constant in Ophelia’s life. The colors Millais uses are vibrant and contrast the death of Ophelia, emphasizing the tragic life and fate of the young woman. She was caught in the crossfires of politics and the greed of those around her. She was subjected to judgment even after her death. Millais had Elizabeth Siddall model for Ophelia. She also had a tragic life, ridden with grief, and her untimely death was the result of overdose. Both Siddall and Ophelia’s death were debated on whether being a result of suicide or accidental. The 15th century and 19th century Christian beliefs viewed suicide to be an act against God, resulting in burial off of Church grounds. However, through the actions of Queen Gertrude and Siddall’s husband (in their own regards), both women received a Christian burial, ruling their deaths as terrible accidents.
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ReplyDeleteI was impressed with what you found out about Proserpine. Could you imagine being in her shoes? Wanting and waiting to go to this other world, trapped in hell (literally), but, and this is if I remember correctly, she could have returned when her mother pled her case to Jupiter and cried out for her daughter's return. He said it would be so, as long as she had not eaten any of the fruit from Pluto (I think it was Pluto). I had no idea what the pomegranate meant before this, the more I look for it though, I cannot find anything of it symbolizing captivity, nevertheless, history and women with "forbidden fruits" tends to repeat itself a time or two throughout history.
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