A Revolutionary Way of Seeing
TO DO:
- Read History of Modern Art, pp. 14-50
- Comments will be extra credit due to the President’s Day Holiday
Like last week, this week’s reading (History of Modern Art, pp. 14-50) discusses major shifts in the way people both created and viewed art. In your second discussion forum post, you will once again choose an artist from the reading to discuss and very briefly present a work of art by that artist as an example of their contribution to the history of art. You may choose a work of art discussed in the textbook but please make additional observations if you do.
In your two paragraph response, you will discuss the reason why this artist is important, and how they helped advance the evolution of art in the late 19th century.
- Briefly identify the artist and the movement with which they are associated.
- What influenced this artist? (For example, other artists, scientific advances, photography, Parisian culture, literature, nature, etc.)
- Was their work controversial? If so, why?
- Briefly identify the work of art and provide a few pertinent details about the piece.
- Describe the style or technique of the piece as well as you can. Was it revolutionary in some way? Does it affect the meaning of the work?
Due to the President’s Day holiday, you will have extra time for this assignment! Your discussion post should be completed by Tuesday 2/17 at 11:59 PM. It should include an image of your subject, which can be included by selecting the image option in the menu above the text box (it looks like a small rectangle with a mountain and sun). Comments will be extra credit due to the holiday. Please cite at least two sources in your post
! was a Parisian painter and a key figure in the transition from Realism to Impressionism. He’s often called the “father of modern art” for his role in breaking away from academic styles to depict modern life. Manet’s work was controversial for its use of frontal lighting, impasto brushstrokes, and contemporary scenes. Dr. Beth Harris and Dr. Steven Zucker discuss his painting “Olympia” and its importance to art history in the video below:
douard Manet, Olympia, oil on canvas, 1863 (Muse d’Orsay, Paris)
is a 19th-century art movement that originated in France. Impressionist artists captured the effects of light and atmosphere on color and form. They used short brush strokes, bright colors, and open compositions to create an unfinished look. Although it may seem traditional to us, Impressionism was originally controversial and marked a radical change from previous ways of making art. Learn more in the video below:
was a French painter, sculptor, and printmaker who is considered a founder of Impressionism. Though he helped organize the first Impressionist exhibition in 1874, Degas preferred to be called a realist and rejected the Impressionist label. His work was deliberate and controlled, painted in the studio from memory, sketches, and notes. In the video below, MoMA curator Jodi Hauptman and conservator Karl Buchberg explore Degass monotype process with printmakers Andrew Mockler and Jennifer Marshall of Jungle Press Editions.
What is a monotype and how does it relate to Degas’ artistic philosophy?
A is a print, but with one major difference from other printmaking processes: the artist creates exactly one print, instead of multiples (called editions). This is due to the way a monotype is made.
To make a monotype, the artist applies paint or ink directly onto the plate which can be metal, glass, plexiglas, or even . The plate is pressed against the paper to transfer the ink. (So the finished print is a mirror image of whats on the plate.)
Learn more in the video below:
The history of photography began with the discovery of two critical principles: The first is camera obscura image projection; the second is the discovery that some substances are visibly altered by exposure to light. Photography has revolutionized the world since its invention in the 19th century. The short video below, Illuminating photography: From camera obscura to camera phone by Eva Timothy, is an entertaining summary:
Cinema has also transformed the world. See the original “moving picture”, the Race Horse from 1878 by :
is considered one of the most important painters. He moved away from the apparent spontaneity and rapidity of and developed a structured, more monumental art to depict modern urban life. His most famous painting is A Sunday on La Grande Jatte (1884, 1884-86). Learn more in the video below, which is presented by Dr. Beth Harris and Dr. Steven Zucker for Kahn Academy:
Georges Seurat, A Sunday on La Grande Jatte – 1884, 1884-86, oil on canvas, 81-3/4 x 121-1/4 inches / 207.5 x 308.1 cm (The Art Institute of Chicago).