A couple weeks ago I presented to you the first half of my
"Classic Top Ten". This week I would like to present you with my second half. These are artists between the Renaissance to Modern period. I have placed them in no specific order. Simple enough, right? Solid.
Just a short recap on the artists so far:
1. Artemisia Gentileschi
2. Theodore Gericault
3. Hieronymus Bosch
4. Gustave Courbet
5. Edgar Degas
6. Bernini
Being able to sculpt marble is an applaudable feat in and of itself. But Bernini took it about ten levels higher than it had ever been before. Bernini captured movement, and emotion in marble. He had an extraordinary skill for texture and fabric. Just to illustrate this a little bit more.
This is his statue "The Rape of Proserpina" created in 1622. Genuinely impressive, is it not? The composition, the motion of the figures, its ability to keep interest in a 360 degree view are all great qualities in his work. Alright, now let's take an even closer view.
No. That is not a photograph, that is the same statue. Pay careful attention to the way his hands press into her flesh, the veins and tendons on the surface of his palm, and the subtle plane change in her body. That is solid marble that now imitates human flesh. Pure genius. He still gives me chills.
7. Donatello
While we are on the topic of sculptors, let's take a quick detour to Donatello. This man paved the way for artists like Bernini. His work came about in the early to mid 1400's. His most famous piece is his rendition of David. Nope, not that David, this one.
He mastered the change from the military-esque statues that were produced around that time. He created slouched postures and story-lines within his statues. His pieces were often controversial. The one above was often referred to as hyper-sexualized because of the feather tracing up the inside of David's leg. This type of depiction of David had not been seen before. He is young, coy, and naked instead of a strong figure, clothed and ready to cast a stone. Plus the fact that Donatello depicted a twelve year old boy standing on a severed head.
8. Henry Ossawa Tanner
This man was a brilliant realist painter. He was the first African American to receive international acclaim for his artwork. He often depicted the most mundane scenes of daily life, but somehow they still strike emotion into the viewer. It is a hard enough task to make it as a painter. Henry Tanner not only had to struggle in the art world but in society against racism and bigotry. His works remain some of my favorite to this day.
"The Banjo Lesson" 1893.
9. Caravaggio
LIGHT. This man was an innovator in the subject. He was no longer working in sunlight throughout the room. He used limited amounts of light in his paintings emanating from unusual spots in the room. He experimented with negative space, and visually crowded areas. Not to mention he was fantastic at recording likeness. He did not paint what was conceived to be perfect, but what was real.
"Conversion of St. Paul" 1601
Last but not least-
10. Jacques-Louis David
Have you ever seen a better neoclassicist? Jacques-Louis made the top ten for one main reason, he brought art out of the Rococo period. Really easy lesson on the Rococo. It was a time period of the frilly, meaningless, bourgeoisie, sexual, pretty-pretty. It was brutal. If there was one time period that I could remove from art history, it would be Rococo. Jaques-Louis decided he absolutely detested it as well. His response:
"Oath of the Horatii" 1784.
Hot-damn, right? He brought art back to its Greek and Roman roots. It was a revival of masculinity, familial bond, strength and solidarity. After weeks of studying the Rococo, I nearly cried of happiness.
Hope you have enjoyed this miniature glance into art history.
I welcome questions and comments!
