Art in the Modern Era - Case Study Example

A. Modern Art Modern art refers to art that produced between 1860 and 1970. This kind of art rejected the forms that were traditionally accepted, and put more emphasis on individualism, where there is a natural representation of the visual world. Examples of art include paintings, sculptures, graphic arts, and architecture. This era has improved styles of art and varied movements in the various forms of arts. There is use of modern movements that include symbolism, cubism, futurism, suprematism, and surrealism. This era also experiences an improvement in technology, scientific developments, and understandings, and seeping in of non-western cultures (Rabinow, 2004). Modern art, in contrast to the previous types of art, is non-objective. There is little effort to depict the forms of objects in an objective manner as they are in the visual world. Use of photography in this era is a major improvement to the art because it aids in depicting forms of art in another form rather than the manual form previously used. The use of photography is an example of a technological advancement that led to a change of art into the modern era. New technology slowly replaced the existing forms, and art became more advanced as compared to the early era (Rabinow, 2004). Edouard Manet was from Paris, France and lived in the 19th Century. He was born in 1832 and died in 1883. At the time of his life, France was undergoing a transition from traditional art to the modern forms of art. It is also during this period that impressionism is widely developing, in both painting and music. There is the revolution of French art, with the introduction of Fauvism, where art was wild and multi-colored. Cubism is also invented in this era, with the introduction of different textures and collage elements. In this period of modern art, France is undergoing a transition from the traditional type of art to the period of technological advancements in art (Rabinow, 2004). B. Role of Art in the Modern Era Art produced in the modern era was during the transition between the First World War and the Second World War. The world war was among the inspirations to paint during this period. Most artists during this period had paintings depicting the state of the country at the time, how people were dying, or people and weapons. Art was also used post war to show the effects of the war (Rabinow, 2004). Art is also a major form of beautification in this period. Most paintings are colorful and of great designs, making them very attractive. Most of the paintings are hung on walls for decorative purposes. Others are preserved in museums of art for reference and recognition of the various artists. Paintings availed in museums act as a scenery for viewing by people who visit the museums. The paintings and art are also a way of preserving culture (Rabinow, 2004). The artists to express their feelings also use Art. Most of the paintings during this period are graphic, an indication of what was going on in the artist’s mind as he drew. This helps bring out their imaginations to a pictorial view, hence they are able to share their feelings with the world (Rabinow, 2004). C. Rouen Cathedral in Full Sunlight - Harmony in Blue and Gold 1893 (oil on canvas) Color. This work of art is a piece by Claude Monet. The artwork belonged to the style of impressionism, which tried to capture light and bring out colorful designs of a piece of art. The colors used in this piece are drawn from the spectrum and avoided dull colors like black. The artist used the technique of tinting his shadows with complementary colors to give them more vitality and creating secondary colors by painting small strokes of the primary colors together. For example, strokes of yellow and red are used to create the brown color while blue is for darkening the shadows (Courthion, 1977). Texture and time The texture of the painting is even, although the quality of work is heavy. The even texture is achieved by the brushstrokes. The texture depends on the type of weather or atmosphere depicted by the painting. The time of day is also another aspect considered when the painting was made. Midday may have some brightness from the sun whereas evenings are depicted as dull because of the cold (Courthion, 1977). Variety and unity These are achieved by considering the time of day the painting was made. The cathedral paintings are different according to seasons, time of day or weather hence it brings about uniqueness in every type of painting while maintaining the original idea, which is the cathedral (Courthion, 1977). Claude Monet Claude belonged to the impressionist movement, a group of artists who believed in use of light to create colorful paintings. Monet’s interest in light and color saw him paint the cathedral under different atmospheric and light conditions, leading to his many collections of the cathedral. His paintings have a very natural appearance, making him the greatest impressionist painter (Courthion, 1977). D. The Egyptian Curtain Color The painting by Henri Matisse belonged to the Fauvism style of art. The fauvism nature used extremely bold colors to depict their style. The color was used to express the feelings of the artists. The Egyptian curtain has bold and bright colors that radiate sunshine. The painting is simplified to improve the expressive power of its colors (Whitfield, 1996). Tone The tone is simplified and flattened to show the expressive power of the form. Traditional methods are employed to show how the space is organized within the painting. The table, a bowl, and a wall on the left window all aim at conveying the illusion of depth (Whitfield, 1996). Depth Depth in the painting is expressed by the use of scale and how objects are positioned in relation to others. Since the painting is on an Egyptian curtain, the curtain is displayed as the largest object in the painting. The other objects are drawn to scale to clarify the position of the curtain further (Whitfield, 1996). Movement Movement in the painting of the Egyptian curtain is depicted by the brushstrokes that are visible. The movement could be upward or sideways, indicating clearly how the painter moved his brush while painting. These movements also make the painting more attractive because of its decorative nature (Whitfield, 1996). Henri Matisse Henri Matisse belonged to the Fauvist group of artists as one of the founders. He is considered one of the greatest artists of the time. Unlike other artists who used the happenings of their time to paint, Henri used happier depictions of his paintings. He wanted to give his audience a feeling of relaxation. In later years of his life, he was incapable of painting because of his confinement to a wheelchair. Hence, he resorted to drawing (Fichner-Rethus. 1986). E. Comparisons Both the painting of the cathedral and the Egyptian curtain show a general use of color to depict the moods. They both avoid using dull colors in the paintings. However, the cathedral painting mainly used light to depict the state of the atmosphere or the time of day whereas the Egyptian curtain used very bold and bright colors on their paintings. The cathedral painting belonged to Claude Monet, an impressionist who believed in light and colorful designs, making use of advancements in technology. The Egyptian curtain painting, on the other hand, makes use of certain traditional aspects, making it not fully dependent on technology (Holzwarth, 2011) . Claude Monet chose to paint the cathedral because of his love of light and color. He wanted to do the cathedral during various seasons to depict the differences. His inspiration comes from how the various states of the atmosphere can be depicted differently just by use of paint. His love for liveliness inspires the paintings. Henri Matisse, on the other hand draws his inspiration from the need to present people with a more lively kind of art. Unlike other artists who use events like the World wars to do their paintings, he prefers to provide people with art that brings them joy and inspiration. He Paints the Egyptian curtain to show the beauty of the room brought about by the colors of the curtain (Holzwarth, 2011). Conclusion Art in the modern era is generally very bright and there is use of technological advancements. The paintings and sculptures have a brilliance of color that is unique to this period. Dullness is shunned as a traditional method. References Courthion, P. (1977). Impressionism. New York: H.N. Abrams. Fichner-Rathus, L. (1986). Understanding art. Englewood Cliffs, N.J: Prentice-Hall. Holzwarth, H. W., Taschen, L., & Elger, D. (2011). Modern art. Köln: Taschen. Museum of Modern Art (New York, N.Y.), Varnedoe, K., Antonelli, P., & Siegel, J. (2000). Modern contemporary: Art at MoMA since 1980. New York, NY: Museum of Modern Art. Rabinow, Rebecca (October 2004). Édouard Manet (1832–1883). The Metropolitan Museum of Art.Retrieved May 28, 2014, from http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/mane/hd_mane.htm. Whitfield, S. (1996). Fauvism. New York: Thames and Hudson. Read More