Romantic art movement and Science - Essay Example

ROMANTIC ART MOVEMENT AND SCIENCE Introduction The Romantic Art Movement is an artistic period that became predominant atthe wake of the 19th century. During this period, the movement spread fast in Europe among countries like Germany, France, and England among other countries1. This period glorified various characteristics such as secularism, scientific progress, as well as critical thinking through various artworks. This movement advocated for creative thinking as it completely disregarded the neoclassical movement. This movement re-established significant ways to look at things from a different perspective. By integrating the concept of nature, new skeptical ideas were developed as the old ones were ruled out. This paper will focus on the Romantic Art movement and its relation to science. The Romantic era involved various industrial expansion incorporated in advanced technology as well as science. The industrial revolution became prevalent during the latter part of the 18th century. It spread out across Europe into America2. The industrial revolution was characterized by developed marker economies, machine power and tools driven by scientific advancements rather than manpower. It was during this era that scientific development became rampant that led to the development of urban centers and factories. Human labor increased together with scientific developments that necessitated the development of factories. The rapid growth of the urban centers supplemented the faster advancements in industrial revolution. Industrialization made life cheaper by allowing the production of cheaper goods and services. During this movement, reactions leveled against the philosophy of enlightenment increased. This philosophy established its grounds on coherent thinking, pragmatic evidence, and science in general. Romantics revolutionized the ideas of science by admitting that reason and rational thinking was not enough to establish certain ideologies about life and its great mysteries3. Some of these mysteries, however, were uncovered through means of intuition, creative thinking supplemented by imagination, as well as emotion. Nature was applied in a wide sense to uncover mysteries of the mind, spiritual learning, and other self-discoveries. It was during this time that the renowned famous poet Samuel Taylor quoted, “Just like a shark, I shall attack Chemistry.” The scientific discoveries that were made during this era inspired more artistic works from various great artists. The Romantics based their life on the freedom of expression, spirituality, and to some extent deep feelings4. These three virtues may have arguably acted as a barricade to the negative effects of industrialization that were dehumanizing. The Romantic Art Movement exalted the potentials and values of the human race. Various artists incorporated the features of this era into their work. Most of the great artist did not regard rationalism to characterize this particular age. They also rejected rules that were based on the neoclassical school of thought. Some of the artists including the baroque artists visualized their artworks to inspiring emotional responses among people and stir the mysteries that people had about life. During the Romantic Art Movement, the ideology of nationalism was brought forth and became paramount in affecting the ideologies surrounding art5. Scientific breakthroughs in various fields became evident as it changed people’s perception towards the universe. An example of this breakthrough involved the discovery of Uranus as the seventh planet in the galaxy made by the astronomer William Herschel. The key to these discoveries was necessitated by advancement in scientific tools such as the homemade telescopes that replaced the traditional refractor telescopes. With this kind of ingenuity that characterized this age of science, scientific revolution proved to be paramount. Artists such as Theodore Gericault characterized this period and pioneered the spread of this artistic movement in France. He is well known for his artwork Raft of the Medusa that depicted horror in a graphic approach. The impact of this artwork characterized the necessity of scientific revolution and influenced other artists of this period. Theodore Gericault inspired Mary Shelley who was also a Romantic artist. In her very own piece, Frankenstein, she conveyed important characteristic that surrounded the mystery of science. She was concerned with the fact that other artistic movements manipulated and used nature in a reductionist way. Most of her works was based on the fact that humans ought to become responsible in their effort to accommodate science into the society6. She also suggested that science is subjective to distortions and stereotypes if the human refutes to acknowledge it as extensive but only try to control it. One characteristic about science that the Romanticists argued about is that nature is not controllable. These artists argued that natural occurring phenomena ought to be based on vera causa7. This argument was based on the fact that established facts and causes are rigid and produce similar results independent of time or location. It was also during this age that the Romanticists disregarded the pre-existent hierarchy involving inorganic sciences. This class of science was based on a reductionist approach that it was at the top of the pecking order. The Romanticists, however, argued that inorganic sciences existed at the bottom in relation to life sciences. This thought was applied in arguing the convolutions of the human race. During this age, the artists regarded the human knowledge as sacred in a way that allows its direct interaction with nature8. According to the artists of this age, natural science does not involve accepting existent ideas and norms that devalue humans. Natural science meant finding the spark of life and the reason of existence of the human race. It involved the disregard of mechanical notions and descriptions and replacing them with the organic allegories that take credit of the world having sentimental living beings and not machines9. This knowledge could only be understood by people willing to take further steps in learning about nature. The Romantic era promoted science as rather a self-understanding discipline rather than based on the beliefs of others. It was this understanding that led to the peaceful co-existence of humans and nature. The philosophy of nature advocated for more experimentation and recording of facts that liberated the discipline of science from controlling philosophies. Romantics believed that science acts as a link between man and nature. Conclusion Romanticism brings forth four principles that are paramount in understanding the ideology behind science. Firstly, science is not efficient unless it links up humans with nature. This idea was disregarded by other artistic movement. Secondly, the fragmentation of human faculties was paramount to ensure pre-existing ideologies are done away with. This idea involved moving away from norms in order to make scientific discoveries concerning nature. Thirdly, the Romantic Art Movement advocated for the existence of liberalism in a direct way that allows contemplation of nature. Finally, it advocated the integration of scientific terms with spiritual approaches in efforts to interpret the relationship that humans have with nature. Notes Crary, Jonathan. “Géricault, the Panorama, and Sites of Reality in the Early Nineteenth Century.” Grey Room, No. 9 (2002): 5-25. Crosland Maurice. ‘Popular Science and the Arts: Challenges to Cultural Authority in France under the Second Empire’, The British Journal for the History of Science, vol. 34, no. 3 (2001): 301-322. Majluf Natalia. “Ce nest pas le Pérou,” or, the Failure of Authenticity: Marginal Cosmopolitans at the Paris Universal Exhibition of 1855’ Critical Inquiry, vol. 23, no. 4 (1997): 868-893. McCauley Anne. ‘Caricature and Photography in Second Empire Paris’, Art Journal, vol. 43, no. 4, (1983): 355-360. Trapp Frank Anderson. ‘The Universal Exhibition of 1855’, The Burlington Magazine , vol. 107, No. 747, French Art in the Later Nineteenth Century (1965): 300-305. Beth Segal Wright. ‘Scotts Historical Novels and French Historical Painting 1815-1855’, The Art Bulletin, vol. 63, no. 2 (1981): 268-287. Read More