Rollercoaster of Arts and Architecture Brought About by Napolean Bonaparte

Rollercoaster of Arts and Architecture

Before the 1800’s, Europe went through many trials of major events, both good and bad, that gave people new outlooks on the world and changed many of their lives. In particular, the way art was developed and appreciated changed dramatically in most part because of the rule of Napoleon Bonaparte. Soon enough art would become a way for people, (even those without high-level education) to express themselves. The new styles of architecture and visual arts that Napoleon introduced in France sparked new eras of art like Romanticism that he used to make himself popular; it caused Napoleon to be noticed, not just because of his military conquests, but also because of his artistic vision and innovation.

The rule of Napoleon Bonaparte was spectacular because of his elaborate and for a long time infallible military successes. Napoleon made art an important part of his legacy. Whenever he would defeat neighboring countries, he would often plunder the art and literature of the country and bring it back to France. Also, he made a big deal of using propaganda to increase his public image. The type of propaganda he would use would deal with the paintings he’d have made of him, the buildings he’d make to honor himself, and the things he’d have carved out of his image. Napoleon took his propaganda very seriously, and when he found Antoine-Jean Gros, an artist that he really liked, he hired him to become his battle painter. Gros was a French painter in 19th century of France who was influenced a lot by the Romanticism style. One of his works was “Napoleon on the Battlefield” in Eylau, when Napoleon battled against the Russians. In this painting, Gros showed the bloody match between the two sides, and thankfu...

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...the significance was that it is Bonaparte and his army making a journey through to the Alps. It involved colors, different brush strokes and oil on canvas. ("Napoleon Crossing the Alps." French Wikipedia).

In conclusion, art allowed people who may not have had good educational backgrounds a chance to let their voices be heard in society. More and more artists became famous during and soon after Napoleon’s rule and since then, new concepts were made that still take effect today. Napoleon may have been known for war and ruling as emperor in the 18th century but he gave artists a chance to express themselves with help from the era of Romanticism. The arts back then were more strict and uptight. Over the centuries artists took the old styles and remixed it with the new. Today, there are different forms of art and architecture such as modern, dark, light and many more