Analysis of 15 Art Videos - Movie Review Example

15 Art Videos It could be d that the first video expresses admiration and respect of the artists of Renaissance and their heritage. The key themes, which are present in this short video, include greatness of Rafael’s talent and artistic legacy, shown though description and brief analysis of his two beautiful paintings (Madonna of the Meadow and Transfiguration); juxtaposition of the two painters of Renaissance, Rafael and Sebastiano Del Piombo; incredible talent of the pupil, who surpassed his teacher, Michelangelo and others. Moreover, the video shows Rafael in his entire splendor, celebrating his incredible works. Finally, one more idea presented here is that art evolves and Renaissance traditions are pretty out-of-date nowadays, while modern art with its new traditions and forms came into existence. Nevertheless, we must respect and accept art of the past periods, because it has played its role in development of culture. 2. One of the main themes presented in the video is greatness and overwhelming scale of the underestimated yet magnificent work of Michelangelo. The idea is that despite the fact that “The Last Judgment” was often out of people’s attention (because visitors of the Sistine Chapel pay attention to the ceiling). The author of the video seeks to explain difference of “The Last Judgment” from other paintings in the Sistine Chapel, giving historical background for us to understand moods and motifs. The idea standing behind the detailed description of this vast painting is that art always reflects perceptions and state of the society: here it is illustrated by the way Michelangelo’s painting style of the Sistine Chapel changed, when reformists came to replace the Renaissance clergy. Over more than 20 years between the chapel ceiling and “The Last Judgment” moods in Europe changed and the frame of mind grew darker. 3. The third video also revolves around the ideas of Renaissance, but it focuses on another talented artist, Titian of Venice. I think that the authors of the video wanted not only to describe the panting referred to as ‘Venice of Urbino”, but also to show the origins of the new tradition in art. The idea is that Titian rethought female nudity and found the way to depict it in a very sensible and beautiful way. The video shows importance of this painting for future visual arts and depiction of nude women. Another idea implied here is celebration of contemporary beauty standards and the way Titian used a special technique to create unique soft atmosphere. Also, I think that the themes present in the video are pure beauty, sensuality and sexuality and women as perfect and admirable objects of art. 4. The life and artistic work of Caravaggio wasn’t similar to those of others, especially of the Renaissance artists, who were, as Simon Shama says, good guys. The drama of this talented yet nonconformist artist is shown in the film. The theme of rebel in art is present in the film, as Caravaggio wasn’t a good genius, he was a villain and was on the run. He lived in a rotten neighborhood of Rome and reflected its life in his paintings, creating drama of life and death in paintings. The idea is that the way the painter used colors, space, techniques and details, crashed safety barriers between the picture and the viewer and distanced his art from traditions. The video actually tells a story of an incredibly gifted sinner, who painted traditional scenes from the standpoint of the sinner and depicted sinners as well (however, awing people and making them believe). 5. The purpose of the exhibition preview presented in the video is to celebrated splendid legacy of the talented Spanish painter Velazquez. Combined with biographical details, his paintings give us an image of himself and his life and show his strongest points. The theme supported by the narrator is the ability of the painter to depict detail and people in a very tangible and natural way; he even painted gods and Virgin Mary in a very humanlike manner. At the same time, the video demonstrates how Velazquez managed to combine bodegons and scenes with religious motifs. Moreover, I think that the video demonstrates the idea that a really talented person can achieve success even at an early age, because the story of Velazquez states that he became a court painter for Habsburgs at the age of 24. 6. Next video under consideration is devoted to the famous Dutch artist Rembrandt and his understanding of biblical scenes and themes throughout his life. The idea is to demonstrate that the painter identified himself with the biblical character and wanted to express this parallel and make amends for his way of life. The theme of autobiographical element in artistic works is present here, similar to the video about the legacy of Caravaggio. The careful analysis of the painting “The Prodigal Son” shows numerous elements that connect this interpretation of biblical story to the life of the painter and express his begging for forgiveness. Moreover, throughout this video, we see the idea that careful view of the painting can supply us with many unseen or hidden details, which can help understand the true meaning of the artwork. 7. The fragment of the Simon Shama’s film about Jaques-Louis David, the famous French artist and the pioneer of neoclassic painting, focuses on the tough period of the French revolution and the impact it produced on French society. Analysis of the painting called “Oath of the Horatii”, which was created before the revolution and public turmoil expresses the idea of anticipation of changes in art and symbolic meaning of call in the picture. The theme of the French revolution and its effect on work of Jaques-Louis David shows hints at the idea of close connection between historical events and culture, art. This idea is supported by the example of the unfinished painting of the adherents of the revolution, which was never finished, as almost all “models” were soon dead. Moreover, the video implies that David was on the side of people. 8. Here is one more thorough descriptive analysis of a famous painting by Eugene Delacroix. The video is devoted to the painting called “Liberty Leading the People”, which is inspired by another French revolution of 1830, thus the theme of revolution in art persists in it. Moreover, the idea of historical events’ effect on art is also present. Detailed description of the painting shows that the painter was very inspired and encouraged by the revolution and painted the embodiment of freedom in a female figure with humanlike features and noble profile. The main point of it is that Liberty is depicted as the power uniting people of different social strata in their struggle. The video is aimed at explaining the painting to us and showing its splendor and Delacroix’ talent. In addition, the video hints at power of art in influencing people, because there is information that this picture was later withdrawn from the exhibition by Louis Philippe to prevent unrest. 9. The video description of Manet’s Olympia is dominated by the theme of female beauty and its depiction in painting and how it changed in the course of art’s development. The picture is paralleled with Titian’s Venus mentioned above, however, the stress is on the features of modern. The idea is that modernist understanding of art and female nudity in particular is different from that of previous epochs. The point is that Olympia’s features are not idealized, there is no perfection, and she looks more like a real woman. Moreover, the video shows that this depiction is a typical characteristic of Manet’s contemporary Parisian society. As the narrators state, the idea is that the painting isn’t just about nudity, it is also about perception traditions and the was conventions in art (e.g. academic art) make us view a certain picture. 10. Moving to impressionism, this video focuses on Monet’s “Water Lilies”, a set of horizontal paintings framing an oval pavilion. The panting’s background, technique, style and space are described, and the stress is laid upon unconventional use of space, because the landscape doesn’t have neither the skyline, nor the bank of the pond, where the viewer could imagine himself standing. The painting has an interesting space orientation and vivid colors, yet it is created in impressionistic manner with rough brushstrokes and silhouettes expressing transcendent sensation. Moreover, the authors of the video talk about the idea of redemption and speaking to God through art, because this painting was created in the last years of Monet’s life, when he had already lost his son and wife. There is the theme of unconventional decisions is art and art’s value as of the legacy. 11. This short video is devoted to the legacy of Edgar Degas and the exhibition hosting 230 of his works depicting ballet. Ballet was one of the main themes in Degas’ work and he was obsessed with dance. The video offers a new perspective of this theme in his art, stating that dance was the best pretext for studying of human body and movement. Ballet and various forms of dancing were seen as the source of inspiration for him. The idea expressed here is that Degas was a painter, who witnessed the dawn of photography and filmmaking and tried to picture sophisticated movements not only on canvas, but in photos, too. The theme of movement and its depiction goes through his art and is expressed in numerous artworks including several photographs, which are exhibited at the exhibition from the video. 12. Cairo museum hosts numerous treasures of King Tutankhamen, which were discovered in his tomb. They are made of gold, precious and semiprecious stones and express idealistic view of reality. The mask, coffins and jewelry found on Tut’s body all reflect love and respect people had for him. All these artifacts are made with perfect taste and are real masterpieces, especially because they were made in the ancient times. All the details are brilliant and have symbolic meaning. The video shoes the throne of Tut, which has a depiction of him and his wife. It shows love shared by the couple (they share a pair of shoes in the picture). The main idea is that all this precious heritage symbolizes splendor and greatness of the pharaoh and reflects the high artistic level of ancient Egyptians and their perfect taste. 13. The film narrates about the Parthenon, the magnificent acropolis in Athens and the symbol of Western civilization. The building is the most copied one in the world and is a mystery of ancient civilization. The scale, its width and length are unbelievable for Ancient Greece and embody power and culture. The theme of the film is restoration of the building and its secrets, its unique proportions. The secrets are necessary to reveal, because even such great buildings are ruined and damaged in the course of time, and people need to know the secrets to save and restore them. It is clearly seen on the example of catastrophic restoration, which took place at the beginning of the 20th century. Moreover, the film shows that qualified specialists and new technologies are capable of true miracles in restoration of such complex and unique object. 14. The video tells the story of another great ancient building, Roman Coliseum, which was built in the first century AD and took much time, power, material and many lives. This took eight years and the Coliseum became the tallest ancient Roman building. Moreover, we see that this landmark also illustrates uniqueness of ancient technologies, which have no analogues. Coliseum is a symbol of power and wealth of Rome. The video celebrates incredible engineering of the arena and its design made to control people and also make them comfortable. On the other hand, the purpose of this building is controversial, because it was made for demonstrating carnage, execution of prisoners, fighting and death for entertainment. Moreover, there were even recreations of naval battles, when the arena was flooded with water from numerous channels. 15. The last video is devoted to another great monument of Rome, the Pantheon, built at the beginning of the Christian era. The building is 250 feet wide and 250 high, and its design is unique. The scale and size reflect power of the empire, which was at the peak of prosperity at those times. Moreover, the Pantheon has the incredible miracle of engineering – the largest concrete dome ever, which isn’t supported by anything and the high portico of 16 extremely high columns. The construction is really close to perfection, but this building – like other ancient buildings – has its secrets and flaws. Nevertheless, the idea of the video is to celebrate the heights of engineering in ancient Rome and praise the uniqueness and beauty of this monument, which has survived until nowadays. Read More