Neoclassicism Flashcards
Angelica Kauffmann, Cornelia, Mother of the Gracchi, 1785
neoclassical exemplum virtutis- Tiberius & Gaius Gracchus, 2nd c. BCE reformers of Roman republic, here as children; Cornelius introduces to other woman who is showing off jewels- indicates boys are her “jewels”
good wife and mother, sacrifices for boys’ education (they carry books & scrolls) vs. “feminine” materialism (girl plays with jewels)
style: Roman relief sarcophagi, left to right, pared-down background, achromatic, minimal landscape
Cornelia wears white, stands above other woman physically and morally
Jacques-Louis David, The Oath of the Horatii, 1784
Enlightenment belief: subject matter should have moral (civic) virtue- exemplum virtutis
Royal patron to recruit French troops- becomes symbol of revolution & sacrifice for country
dark, pared down background, set in Ancient Rome- reference to play by Livy- pre-Republican Rome- Rome (Horatii) vs. Alba (Curatii)
Masculine= positive virtues- courage, patriotism; Feminine= negative- emotions of love, sorrow, despair
Appeal is to logical & rationality, not emotion, built like tectonic grid (neoclassicism), opposite of Rococo
Antonio Canova, Pauline Borghese as Venus, 1808
Napoleon’s sister, uses official sculptor; Napoleon & her husband wanted Diana, virgin goddess of hunt, she wanted Venus, goddess of love and sex; so scandalous only seen by candlelight
comprehended from one angle, reclining on accurate reproduction of Greek bedstead and table
imitate High Classical sculpture, but posed more rigidly to reflect Neoclassical sensibilities; opposite of dramatic, exuberant Baroque
calm, closed, timeless beauty; streamlined body, desirable & distant, erotic & cold, mortal & divine
Pierre Vignon, La Madeleine, Paris, France, 1807-1842
symbol of Napoleon’s desire to link himself to Roman emperors, emulate architecture of Imperial Rome
“Temple of Glory” to honor French soldiers
Roman temple front, tall platform, colossal, monolithic Corinthian columns
completed after Napoleon’s fall and turned into a church (St. Mary Magdalene)
