Neoclassicism And Romanticism Analysis

Throughout history art has been representative of culture, serving as a barometer detecting changes within societies and civilizations of varying scale. During the 18th and 19th centuries the Western Hemisphere faced dramatic changes in politics, economics, and culture as a result of emerging Enlightenment philosophies. These changing times were reflected in the various art movements, which became popular, the most prominent of these movements being Rococo, Neoclassicism and Romanticism. The transitions between these movements were a direct result of shifts in society, and each was in effect a response to its predecessor, therefore having distinctly different characteristics. Rococo was a movement that occurred in the 18th century, which encompassed

The Neoclassical movement coincided with the Romantic movement from 1750 to 1900. Romanticism was a reaction against what defined the Neoclassical movement. Romanticism was fueled by the French Revolution and the ideologies it introduced. John Jacques-Rousseau is considered the father of Romanticism; his ideas expressed the core idea of naturalism, that happiness is brought upon by the natural emotions, and all men are naturally good and society is what corrupts them (Document 11). The nationalism of the French Revolution became a key theme in Romanticism known as Romantic “nationalism”. The most iconic example of Romantic nationalism is “Liberty Leading the People”, which depicts the Parisian uprising against Charles X. The French flag and national landmark are examples of nationalist iconography within the piece, showing the artist, Eugene Delacroix’s, favoritism of France (Gardner). The French Revolution created the context, which allowed for Counter-Enlightenment and in effect Romanticism to occur. Counter-Enlightenment was the greatest factor in the emergence of Romanticism, specifically the German Sturm und Drang movement, which held emotion and subjectivity over rationalism (Hardin). Like Counter-Enlightenment, Romanticism rejected the rigidity that characterized the principles of Enlightenment, which were based off of the scientific revolution. The economic changes in

Art transcends language, and provides a depiction of cultural ideologies, fashion, and ideals in a way texts from the time period can not. Rococo, Neoclassicism, and Romanticism were all indicators of a changing time in which economics, politics, and culture were altered. The transition between each gauges the severity of the change depending on how extremely each differs from its predecessor. While the most extreme occurred between the Rococo movement and the Neoclassical, the transition between the Neoclassicism and Romanticism signified a less severe but still influential change in society. A document from a citizen criticizing art during the time of both the Romantic movement and Neoclassical movement would aid in describing public opinion of the two, and the change in popularity dependent on the classes or perception of the time period. Another document from a commoner on nationalism may have also expanded the perspective of how nationalism was prominent during the time, and how this was reflected in art. All of the movements continue to influence modern art. Rococo inspires artists in depicting the wealth gap, Neoclassicism continues to be used in architecture especially relating to government buildings, and principles of Romanticism are still used in idealized landscape paintings or other imaginative