The Story of Art (Chapter 25-26)

The Story of Art by E. H. Gombrich (Chapter 25-26)             Chapter 25 Permanent Revolution (The nineteenth century)   1. Houses of Parliament in London (p. 500) : Some architects succeeded in creating works which are neither sham antiques nor mere freak inventions. It became landmark of the city and have accepted as if it were part of the natural scenery. Sir Charles Barry, an expert on the Renaissance style, determined the overall shape and grouping of the building, while A.W.N. Pugin, an expert on Gothic details, looked after the decoration of the facade and the interior. Seen from the distance, Barry's outlines do not lack a dignity, and seen at close quarters, the Gothic details still retain something of their Romantic appeal. 2. The painting in the nineteenth century : The break in tradition had thrown open an unlimited field of choice to painters. The greater the range of choice had become, the less likely was it that the artist's taste would coincide with that of his public. The wide ranger of choice, and independence of the patron's whim, which had been acquired at such high cost, made it possible that art for the first time became a perfect means of expressing individuality. The history of art in the nineteenth century is rather the history of a handful of lonely men who had the courage and the persistence to examine conventions fearlessly and critically and thus to create new possibilities. And Paris became the artistic capital of Europe in the nineteenth century. 1) Jean-Auguste-Domminique Ingres(1780-1867) - The leading conservative painter in the first half of the nineteenth century and a follower of David, and like him admired the heroic art of classical antiquity. Figure 328(p. 505) shows his mastery in the rendering of forms and the cool clarity of his composition. But his more passionate contemporaries found such smooth perfection unbearable. 2) Eugene Delacroix(1798-1863) - He preferred the Venetians and Rubens, had no patience with all talk about the Greeks and Romans, and went to North Africa to study the glowing colors and romantic trapping of the Arab world. In figure 325(p.506), there is no clarity of outline, no edifying subject. What painter wants is to make us to share his joy in the intense movement and romance of the scene. 3) Jean-Baptist Camille Corot(1796-1875) - Figure 330(p. 507) shows that he concentrated less on details than on the general form and tone of his motif, to convey the heat and stillness of a summer day in the southern France. Corot sought for a clarity and balance, and captured the radiant light and luminous haze of the scene with his palette by new means, silvery grey that does not swallow up the colors but maintains them in harmony. It was his poetic bent that secured him international fame. 4) Jean-Francois Millet(1814-75) - He is one of Barbizon to follow the programme of Constable and look at nature with fresh eyes, and he decided to extend this programme from landscapes to figures. He wanted to paint men and women at wok in the fields. In figure 331(p. 509), there is no dramatic incident; three hard-working people are intent on working. He emphasized their square and solid build and their deliberate slow movements. It is this firm modelling and simple outlines against the bright sunlit plain that the three peasant women assumed a dignity more natural and more convincing. 5) Gustave Courbet(1819-77) - His 'Realism' was to mark a revolution in art. He wanted not prettiness but truth like Caravaggio. In figure 332(p.511), there are no graceful poses here, and it seems downright childish. He wanted his picture to be a protest against the accepted conventions of his day and to proclaim the value of uncompromising artistic sincerity. 6) Edouard Manet(1832-83) - He brought about a revolution(Impressionism) in rendering of colors; he discovered that in the open, we do not see individual objects with its own color but rather a bright medley of tints which blend in our eye. In figure 334(p. 515), he created a solid bodies, and did so through the interplay of shadow and light. The heads look flat, but the fact is that in the full light of day, round forms look flat, like mere colored patches. It was this effect which Manet wanted to explore, and the consequence is that they looks more real. 7) Claude Monet(1840-1926) - What so outraged critics was not only the technique but also the motifs the 'The Impressionists' chose. In figure 338(p. 520), he is fascinated by the effect of light streaming through the glass roof on to the clouds of steam, and by the forms of engines emerging from the confusion. 8) Pierre Auguste Renoir(1841-1919) - In figure 339(p. 521), he captured the mood of a carefree open-air dance. He wants to conjure up the gay medley of bight colors and to study the effect of sunlight on the whirling throng. The picture looks 'sketchy' and unfinished. This is the outcome of great artistic wisdom to avoid looking dull and lifeless.              Chapter 26 In Search of New Standards (The late nineteenth century)   * The painting in the late nineteenth century : The dissolution of firm outlines in flickering light and the discovery of colored shadows by the Impressionists had once again posed a new problem: how could these achievements be preserved without leading to a loss of clarity and order? To put it in simpler language: Impressionist pictures tended to be brilliant but messy. 1) Paul Cezanne(1839-1906) - He abhorred messiness, and longed for strong, intense colors as much as he did for lucid patterns, that is to say, desired to turn 'Impressionism' into something more solid and enduring. In figure 351(p. 541), the landscape is bathed in light and yet firm and solid without sacrificing the brightness of colors. 2) Vincent van Gogh(1853-90) - He longed for an unsophisticated art which give joy and consolation to every human being. He absorbed the lessons of Impressionism and of Seurat's pointillism. He liked the technique of painting in dots and strokes of pure color, and used individual brushstrokes not only to break up the color but also to convey his own excitement. He used colors and forms to convey what he felt about the things he painted. 3) Paul Gauguin(1848-1903) - He was proud to be called 'barbaric'. It is not only the subject-matter of his pictures that is strange and exotic. He strove to bring his own portraits of the natives into harmony with this 'primitive' art. He simplified the outlines of forms and did not shrink from using large patches of strong color.