John William Waterhouse was born on the 6th of April, 1849 in Rome, Italy and died in London from cancer on the 10th of February, 1917. Waterhouse’s mother and father were painters and throughout his life they referred to their son as “Nino”, for Giovannino (‘Little John’), he was the eldest of three; a younger brother Edwin and a sister named Jessie. When Nino was eight he experienced the death of his mother and it was shortly afterwards that his father remarried. Between 1861 and 1870 his father and new step mother birthed four children, which was a drastic life change for Nino and his two younger biological siblings. In 1861 Nino had to leave school and his sister Jessie went to live with an aunt. Luckily it wasn’t too long before his expanding family had reached some financial success. He was able to begin schooling in classical history, literature and mythology and he also learned Latin at an unidentified leads school (Kerr, J. 2000).
Nino Waterhouse did not have a particularly strong urge to become a painter in his younger years, he was more interested in engineering. It is said that if he did want to look at art he would take advantage of the exhibits held at his leads school and take part in enriching services in London during the holidays. After his studies ended, Nino began helping his father with background painting for commissioned portraits. Shortly following this, between the years of 1868 and 1877, Nino’s name appeared in various museum registers. It is believed that at this time his love for painting began to emerge (Kerr 2000). On page 14 In Peter Trippi’s book titled John William Waterhouse, he notes that; “Nino’s earliest surviving sketchbook depicts classical statuary, armor and musical instruments, as well as...
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Although much of the life history of John William Waterhouse is unaccounted for, it is comforting that we do have such a large and undeniable selection of his masterpieces. It is hard to stop looking at his work once you have started, more so because the myths behind the paintings are so compelling and he retells these old-world stories as one would do who believed them. Waterhouse was truly a genius when it came to creating a ‘pictorial and emotional equilibrium (Trippi, 2000).
Bibliography
• Beckett, W., Wright, P. (1999). Sister Wendy’s 1000 Masterpieces: Sister Wendy Beckett’s Selection of the Greatest Paintings in Western Art. New York, New York: DK Publishing.
• Kerr, J., (2000). The Art and Life of John William Waterhouse. Retrieved from http://johnwilliamwaterhouse.com
• Trippi, P. (2002). J.W. Waterhouse. London: Phaidon Press Limited.
I observed a very unique series of photographs by Vik Muniz called Seeing is Believing. Vik Muniz’s images are not simply photography but are pictures of complicated pieces of art he has produced at earlier times. Utilizing an array of unorthodox materials including granulated sugar, chocolate syrup, sewing thread, cotton, wire, and soil Muniz first creates an image, sculpturally manipulates it and then photographs it. Muniz’s pictures include portraits, landscapes, x-rays, and historical images.
This work shows impeccably drawn beech and basswood trees. It was painted for a New York collector by the name of Abraham M. Cozzens who was then a member of the executive committee of the American Art-Union. The painting shows a new trend in the work of the Hudson River School. It depicts a scene showing a tranquil mood. Durand was influenced by the work of the English landscape painter John Constable, whose vertical formats and truth to nature he absorbed while visiting England in 1840.
Besides bright or dim colors, and fine or rough brush strokes, artists use centralized composition to convey their interpretations in "The Acrobat's Family with a Monkey," "Amercian Gothic," "The Water-Seller," and "The Third of May,1808.”
"John William Waterhouse Biography." Artble: The Home of Passionate Art Lovers. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Feb. 2014.
Artists are masters of manipulation. They create unimaginably realistic works of art by using tools, be it a paintbrush or a chisel as vehicles for their imagination to convey certain emotions or thoughts. Olympia, by Manet and Bierstadt’s Sierra Nevada Mountains both are mid nineteenth century paintings that provide the viewer with different levels of domain over the subject.
Nash, Susan. Oxford History of Art: Norther Renaissance Art. 2nd. New York: Oxford University Press, 2009. 30-65. eBook.
Though most works of art have some underlying, deeper meaning attached to them, our first impression of their significance comes through our initial visual interpretation. When we first view a painting or a statue or other piece of art, we notice first the visual details – its size, its medium, its color, and its condition, for example – before we begin to ponder its greater significance. Indeed, these visual clues are just as important as any other interpretation or meaning of a work, for they allow us to understand just what that deeper meaning is. The expression on a statue’s face tells us the emotion and message that the artist is trying to convey. Its color, too, can provide clues: darker or lighter colors can play a role in how we judge a piece of art. The type of lines used in a piece can send different messages. A sculpture, for example, may have been carved with hard, rough lines or it may have been carved with smoother, more flowing lines that portray a kind of gentleness.
Peter Paul Rubens’ masterpiece, Venus and Adonis, is not only a significant artwork of the baroque-period in Europe during the 17th 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 time 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 understand Rubens’ point-of-view and thus, connect to the painting in a way he or she has never imagined.
Throughout this paper, I will discuss the painting, “A Bit of War History” by Thomas Waterman Wood. I will analyze numerous of art techniques that evoke the theme of the portrait of the image and how it changes over three paintings which individually have their own unique meaning.
At first glance, John Taylor and Howling Wolf’s visual representations of the treaty signing at Medicine Creek Lodge appear very different from one another. It is more than apparent that the two artists have very different interpretations of the same event. This paper will visually analyze both works of art by comparing and contrasting the compositional balance, medium, and use of color, as well as how the artists narrated their views using different visual elements.
Gardner, Helen, and Fred S. Kleiner. Gardner's Art Through the Ages: The Western Perspective. N.p., 2014. Print.
In the mid 1800’s realism was developed as a style of painting to replicate the world as it was seen in a traditional artistic style. This allowed for a new style of art to be created that was based of a real moment or scene but to forget the traditional artistic laws such as distinct lines and forms. Approaching art from this impressionistic view Monet’s painted “Impression, Sunrise” bringing to life a natural scene of a hazy harbor using quick, short brush strokes and defining uses of color and natural light. Van Gough’s “Starry Night” uses similar impressionistic styles to paint a natural scene using vibrant contrasting colors, yet he embellishes the scene to create art that in not merely a landscape but a piece of self expression and shifted
This exhibition will examine the changing role of Classical imagery from seventeenth through nineteenth century painting, as well explain how these changes gradually produced Realism. In the seventeenth century Nicholas Poussin and Peter Paul Rubens produced works that corresponded with the Classicism of the French Academie des Beaux-Arts, though they presented these ancient subjects in very different ways. The predominance of drawing and planning in Poussin’s work was seen in contrast with the dynamic use of colour in the works of Rubens. These two means of addressing Classical themes ideologically divided the Academie between the rubenistes and the poussinistes, who quarreled for over a century about artistic approaches and techniques. The innovative and expressive works produced in the eighteenth century and beyond can be seen as a product of the rubenistes’ triumph in this conflict. Following in the example of Rubens, British artist Joshua Reynolds made use of colour and dynamic compositional techniques that combined the portraiture popular in England with the Grand Manner style that gained favour in the Academie. Reynolds became the first president of the Royal Academy in Britain and gained international acclaim for his work. The achievement of such an honour fared more difficult for artists such as Eugène Delacroix, who took a bolder approach to combining Classical imagery with reality and was frequently rejected by the Academie for doing so. This was also the case for Edourad Manet, whose scandalous work shocked viewers of the Salon des Refusés with its perceived immorality and distasteful appropriation of Classical imagery.
In spite of religion being the ruling subject matter of art for many centuries, magic and mysticism have long been interwoven in a dark curtain that hangs over a large segment of the art world. The whole world is alive and filled with soul, whether light or dark. “Each material form may be thought of as attracting an appropriate soul, as firewood treated with sulphur draws flame.” While there is no historical or scientific evidence for the legitimacy of séances, magic or communication with the deceased, in D.H. Rawcliffe’s book Occult and Supernatural Phenomena, he reminds us of the importance of hallucinations and other fantastical experiences of the subconscious. These often provide strange and impressive experiences, interpreted as supernatural in origin. As we study art, we can only begin to wonder what spirits might have visited the great masters, any hallucinations they might have experienced, and how their paintings were influenced by the dark corridors of their subconscious.
...s work The 3rd of May, 1808 is a very detailed and dramatic narrative within a collection of war themed works by the artist. I believe that by using the formal elements of color, texture, shape, lines, space, and the value I was able to sufficiently provide evidence that Goya offers a sequential order of direction for the audience to comprehend from their personal viewing. The twisted and grief stricken work creates a massive emotional connection and the artist plans for the viewers’ to grow and understand this message. The subject highlighted is obvious that Goya is passionate on his stance and outlook on war is suggested in the work. It’s obvious that Goya’s formal organization of his color palette, variation of brushes, repeating shapes, and play with lighting all correspond to depict man’s savage and at times monstrous actions are justified during war.