The As A Form Of Influence On European Art

Peter Paul Rubens’ masterpiece, Venus and Adonis, is not only a significant artwork of the baroque-period in Europe during the seventeenth century, but it also tells the mythological story that begins with love, and ends in tragedy. Displayed in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, this painting is admired for representing the unique baroque-style of this era, as well as Rubens’ particular use of the medium and how it reaches those who are viewing it. His attention to detail and crafty use of symbolism within the painting assist viewers in deciphering the story, along with the values of the period in which Rubens was living. In studying the composition of the work and noting the historical context from which it came, one can ultimately

The difference between the Middle Ages and the Renaissance is most visible through art and architecture, demonstrated specifically through an emphasis on religion or classical antiquity, and humanity. During the Middle Ages, art was more religious because it had a very religious influence from the church having such great power in the community. When the Renaissance started, art became more focused on ancient Greece. The Greek influence was because scholars were broadly studying the revival of classical antiquity. The architecture was affected in the same way because in the Middle Ages the style of the buildings was being influenced by religion. The style in the Renaissance was being more influenced by ancient Greece.

Ralph P. Locke’s theory of musical exoticism takes form through a spectrum that ranges from pure musical exoticism to transcultural composing. However the main requirement of exoticism is the notion of conjuring up a specific place or group of people as being perceived as different from the audience culture. In terms of pure exoticism, the composer willingly incorporates exotic sounding elements in order to mark a specific group or place as foreign. Transcultural composing is the other facet of exoticism. It is different in that it is not intended to marginalize any exotic group, rather it is a mix of Western and non-western styles. While both George Bizet’s Carmen and Benjamin Britten’s Death In Venice incorporate exoticism, they each take on an opposite form of exoticism. Bizet’s use of stereotypical gypsy music, as well as the portrayal of Carmen, explicitly marginalize and construct Carmen as different. Carmen’s lack of Spanish descent and her Gypsy ethnicity are constructed as different via musical and performative aspects of the opera. Within the exoticism framework, Bizet’s carmen is an example of pure exoticism. In contrast, Britten's Death In Venice is an example of transcultural composing because the “other” being marginalized is homosexuality, which is an identity that Britten is apart of and is not exclusive to any one group.

Eugène Delacroix, Death of Sardanapalus, 1827, taking its Orientalist subject from a play by Lord Byron.

Written language can change and can be forgotten but art will always stay constant, you can destroy people and their way of life but if art is preserved the way they lived their lives it will tell their story. Missing or stolen art has had a big impact on the world of art. There are many types of art that have been stolen; paintings, sculptures, jewelry, photography, and written artifacts. There are many questions on whether art is important to the preservation to a culture such as;

Neoclassical Art was an art form that followed the Baroque and Rococo art periods. Neoclassicism was a way for artists to display their wish to return to meaningful art, to escape the frivolity of landscapes and still life paintings, and paint something that had a moral, educational or inspirational value to the viewer. Neoclassical art was an attempt to return knowledge and purity back to art. Neoclassicism was mainly focused on Greek and Roman arts and stories of the classical era with some new advancement. It was a revival of antiquity.

Europe went through an era fueled by the search of truth and grand ambitions. This was a time period was characterized by much advancement in the sciences, politics, philosophy, and the arts.

Form of "afterlife insurance" in order to trick the soul into staying alive in the event of the body's destruction

The Renaissance time period was home to many new ideas in art. This includes new artists bringing forth ideas that had yet to be discovered and made popular. New themes and types of art were also being brought forward during this period.

The renaissance or “rebirth” was a cultural awakening which spanned from the fourteenth to sixteenth century. A growing interest in humanist traits and classical ideas heavily influenced the art during the renaissance. A growing community of artists provided much needed competition for their profession. The renaissance introduced many different and modern ideas but also remained obedient to classical belief. The unique art of the renaissance spread throughout Europe. Northern European art differed tremendously from Italian art.

Baroque music tends to be complex, but with a very organized system of forms and harmonies that is the basis for almost all music from what is called the “Common Era,” the period between 1700-1900. The Common Era developed throughout the nineteenth century, but after 1900 music entered an age of experimentation; music perhaps became a postmodern art genre very early on. Baroque music all sounds similar, although the educated listener can tell Bach from Handel without difficulty. In the realm of contemporary music, however, entirely atonal music from Schoenberg and Webern can easily exist alongside French Impressionism and Copland’s American neo-Romanticism. Today’s composers are similar only in that their styles, and entire musical languages, are radically different.

It is amazing how something that is recognized as an important center of European Medieval art is looked upon by most of the world as a place where you can snap a cool picture of yourself ‘leaning’ on the Tower of Pisa. A place detailed, yet decayed… a place with four monuments, yet recognized as one center… a place representing life, yet death. The aura surrounding this square makes me just want to sit on the grass and read or write or think. I just want the stony intricate building to envelop my train of thought and allow me to live in a world hundreds of years before. I want the world to appreciate art and to live in art and to see through art. I want the world to get off their useless, mind-numbing gadgets and look up at the sky, or

When the new upper class movement, Renaissance, occurred in Italy around the 14th century, a revival of the classical forms originally developed by the ancient Greeks and Romans, an intensified concern with secular life, and interest in humanism and assertion of the importance of the individual began. Thus, artists such as Mosaccio and Giotto depicted art that unlike the Middle Ages, showed emotions, feelings, and bright colors, thus demonstrating the deep concern for naturalism in the society. Other artists during the Italian Renaissance period such as Giovanni Bellini began to express their art through secular and religious themes and ideas that were exhibited through landscapes and portraits. As new styles of

In the late nineteenth century, France forged a new path in music and ushered in the practice of musical exoticism. Pieces, such as operas, began to be characterized by their use of exotic elements including: music, makeup, clothing and props. Ralph P. Locke in, Musical Exoticism: Images and Reflections, expanded upon this notion stating that the purpose of musical exoticism was to evoke a place that is perceived as different from one’s home (Locke, p.47). Elaborating from this definition a spectrum of musical exoticism was contrived; with “pure” exoticism, intended to “other” the exotic elements, and transcultural composing, intended to provide a hybrid of musical styles, representing the two extremes on opposing ends (Locke, p.44, 228) . Benjamin Britten in his opera, Death in Venice, uses exotic elements —Gamelan music—in a nontraditional sense that does not adhere stringently to the conditions of “pure” exoticism or transcultural composing. Some pieces, such as Britten’s Death in Venice, blur the lines of distinction between each end of the musical exoticism spectrum and are open to subjective interpretation by the listener. Thus, through analyzing the use of exotic elements and their intended purpose in Britten’s Death in Venice, it is my opinion that the piece falls more in accordance with “pure” exoticism rather than transcultural composing, due to Britten’s use of the exotic elements to effectively “other” the homosexual attraction of opera’s main character.

“Painting today is pure intuition and luck and taking advantage of what happens when you splash the stuff down. “- Francis Bacon. However when I learnt more about history of art and the way each movement and happenings in the world inspired artist to make new works, I was able to see much more than just a canvas with random paints and sketches. The interesting part about this concept is that each piece of art could be interpreted in many different ways. In contemporary art there isn’t right and wrong, each of us view and find different meanings and connections with artworks.