William Blake and Manet - Essay Example

Compare and Contrast Name Course code + Name Date Compare and Contrast the artists, William Blake and Manet Introduction The era of High Renaissance art was between the years 1490 and 1527, this was the era when ideals of classical humanism got accomplished fully in both sculpturing and painting. This period was also characterized by Shading, painterly techniques of linear perspectives and several methods of realism. The High Renaissance art was centered on the Rome and paid for by the Pope, unlike the Early Renaissance which was centered on the Florence and completely paid for by the Medici family. This art of High Renaissance nearly depleted the wealth of the Vatican City due to its massive spending on the art. The paper shall focus on two artists and compare the roles they played during this era. The two artists mentioned in the paper include William Blake and Manet, and their roles in the High Renaissance art at least 100 years earlier. The paper looks at the pieces of evidence that support the ways the High Renaissance influenced their lives and explores various pieces of evidence showing the ways through which their High Renaissance artworks were different based on social-cultural, political, religious, historical and technological perspectives. In fact, immediately after the Giotto left his medieval hieratic art in favor of depicting the nature, High Renaissance got in the world almost immediately with the aim of improving the portrayal of the real world. During the 15th Century, the universal adoption of oil painting nearly replaced the matt colors, thus made it easy for the distances to get conveyed by the graduation of tones. Apparently, the characteristics of the High Renaissance included the linear perspectives, vanishing points, illusionistic, chiaroscuro among the rest. Considering the way the High Renaissance art influenced William Blake between the years 1757 and 18271, the paper looks at his most original visual artistic work in the Romantic era. William Blake learned a lot of conventional training which was later replaced by the study of medieval and Renaissance art. In fact, during the High Renaissance era, Blake strived very hard to emulate the artists like Raphael, Durer, and Michelangelo whom he revered as his role models and mentors in the artistic world in producing the gothic, timeless arts which were primarily confused with the Christian spirituality as well as the poetic genius. The High Renaissance art made a number of social impacts in the life of Blake; in fact, he married Catherine Boucher during this time whom he made to be his studio assistant. Economically, Renaissance art made William Blake a staunch engraver who used to operate art shops. The image below portrays William’s artwork about “Our Lady with the Infant Jesus Riding on a Lamb with Saint John” of the year 1800. Our Lady with the Infant Jesus Riding on a Lamb with Saint John On the other hand, Manet’s painting was nearly similar considering their size and juxtaposition of their canvases, thus revealing the way Manet had specialized in the Titan’s images. For example, in his art of rendering pillows and fold’s of sheets more especially in a huge care with an aim of producing rich colors based on the Titan’s dark hangings and ruby-red mattresses2. In fact, Manet’s High Renaissance artworks have been recognized by several professionals including a professional model, Victoria Meurent, who at one point even featured as the best nude in the Déjeuner Sur L here’. Moreover, even the Olympia represented the Manet’s Renaissance arts as a modern demimondaine and Mallarme at one point of time referred to these artistic works as the “wan wasted courtesan”. Manet’s Renaissance artworks borrowed a lot from the Titan paintings of nudes based on the live models. However, some scholars argue that Manet might have borrowed a lot from the light classical statuary and the elements of coyness as portrayed in the angles of heads and the light blush on the cheeks of his most artworks. Manet used to say that he could not make any piece of High Renaissance art without involving a model and he further noted that he could only interpret what he is able to in his artwork. This might be among the challenging realistic depictions of Manet. Indeed a number of exhibitions in Europe have explored Manet’s combined elements of Italian and his own brand of realism in his high Renaissance artworks. Below is Manet’s artwork, a Portrait Of Antonin Proust. Portrait of Antonin Proust William Blake’s High Renaissance work actually fascinated many people since they had a strong connection with the artworks of Michelangelo though seemed not to be having the first-hand art knowledge of Michelangelo, an influence which is thought to have been transferred through the inferior engravings. This work actually stressed Blake’s anatomical exaggerations and left out some of the stronger parts of his strengths3. Nevertheless, Blake’s High Renaissance artwork also was characterized with some of the paintings and engravings errors which were also seen with Michelangelo previously based on the exaggerated anatomies and grotesque. Consequently, his fanatics still believed that Blake was not an imitator and that those were his own personal and original artworks4. It is true that every artist must borrow some little creativity from his/her predecessor in terms of the development of the symbolic types and visual symbolism. The figure below is a portrait of William Blake’s artwork talking about the reunion of the soul and the body at the resurrection in the year 1808. The Reunion of the Soul and the Body at the Resurrection (1808) Apparently, Manet’s artworks could sometimes be rejected by the Salon, however, he continued the show and submit them to a number of Impressionists who actually loved them so much. Sometimes the Salon could accept Manet’s artworks though not in good faith which was evident because of critics which he was being shown. In fact, this malicious response could sometimes baffle Manet so much. Following all this malice of the Salon, Edouard Manet was forced one day to write to the Baudelaire in exile in Brussels, upon realizing that his Olympia artwork had been shown in the Salon. Below is another artwork by Manet a Portrait of Zacharie Astruc. Portrait of Zacharie Astruc 1866 On the other hand, William Blake as an academic draughtsman was being viewed as a junior to Edouard Manet though people agreed that there a lot of similarities in their High Renaissance artwork. This was evident in their deliberate borrowings from each other which could sometimes be absurd5. A number of scholars believe that some of the finest northern artworks were especially the ones of the twentieth century that had a foreshadowing of both Manet and William Blake due to their spirits which did not incorporate any academic accomplishment and they argued this might have formed the origin of the similarity that existed between these two arts works6. The Manet’s and Blake’s sculptors and illuminators of the twentieth century show a lot of similarities with regards to imaginations and struggling expressions which were seen to naturally evolved a form of expression in a number of ways which nearly were similar to those of the twentieth-century primitives7. However, William Blake’s drawings laid a lot of emphasis on the linear patterns and the swaying rhythms of his figures which were spread in all of his prototypes in a number of the illuminated Manuscripts in Ireland and the Medieval England. There was a copy of inks which were meant for the Concert Champêtre and were also contributed to Giorgione; however, many people did not believe that they were Manet’s artworks as majority believed they might have been Titan’s artwork. Manet had the artworks in his studio and he could sometimes provoke a critical storm when it was being showcased during the years of 1863 at the Salon des Réfusés. This showcasing was described as the first modern painting and was represented by the oil sketch version which was taken at the Courtauld. However, Manet copied “Venus of Urbino” which was actually one of the Titan’s artwork and this took place by the time he was at the Florence in the year 1857. Moreover, Manet went to extent of reinterpreting and transforming modern art to the High Renaissance as showcased in spectacular fashion in his exhibition rooms where his Olympia and Titan’s were being shown8. Below is Manet’s artwork a portrait de Berthe Morisot of 1882. Portrait de Berthe Morisot of 1882 The High Renaissance art affected Blake’s socio-economic and political life in several ways. Blake in the year 1789 became very philanthropic to people who were victims of poverty. This philanthropic nature of Blake was as a result of the outbreak of the French Revolution which resulted into political urgency with regards to Blake. During this era, a number of new radical groups emerged in London and started demanding for major changes concerning the political change. Examples of such political groups included the Society of Constitutional information based in London. This group was formed earlier but it remained dormant until the leadership of the middle-class individuals when it was revived. After that, a number of political groups emerged with the aim of providing radicalization to their members. During these periods in London, William Blake joined other politicians in engaging in radical politics with an aim of spreading their influence of the Paine’s plane speaking of their rights9. The figure below is William’s artwork about “Satan Calling Up His Legions” of the year 1809. Satan Calling Up His Legions 1809 The political temperatures which made universal suffrage for adults and redistribution of wealth via taxation are what triggered political oblivion during those times. During this time, Blake was employed as an engraver during this time by the Unitarian bookseller, a man who was in connection with a political group which was known as the prominent radicals. In fact, this Revolution further widened the range of voices which was out to fight for change. The political temperatures that lead to radicalization triggered Blake to push for an envisage turning point in the political history during that era10. However, Blake took a lot of precautions as far as the law was concerned and ensured that his exercised politics watchfully. In fact, the social problems that Blake went through during the High Renaissance era made him acquire a complete liberalization out of the existing political systems. These social oblivions created notable impacts on Blake due to the transformation of the sense of his political potential. On the other hand, throughout the life of Manet, he was considered by many people too much radical artist. In fact, there was no artist who used to be radical like Manet. This radicalization behavior of the Spanish nation was witnessed during Renaissance era. This Spanish culture could be in the Italian Renaissance art and could also be seen in Manet as well. However, the most ironical thing was that Manet’s painting and sculpturing work caught the little attention of people despite the fact that the Italian artwork provided a direct influence on several artists who were celebrated in terms of paintings and sculpturing11. This High Renaissance influenced Manet social behavior rigorously as he attended a six-year traditional training at the Thomas Couture in the city of Paris, France. During that similar year, Manet joined the Louvre copyists’ team which was a collection of rich Italian artists. During the year 1853, Manet got an opportunity to travel to Venice in the company of his wife and another artist with an aim of performing arts. Nonetheless, Blake’s experiences and skills in art were really strange and it made a lot of impacts in his life. William Blake was sometimes referred to as wood engraver by his colleague artists due to these experiences he showed during the High Renaissance era. The influences that High Renaissance had on him were more considerable since he was the first artist to intentionally react opposing the influence of Joshua Reynolds12. This made a sense of not being an artist only but more of a liberator to many of his followers. In fact, among the several imaginative painters and illustrators, William Blake’s traces of inspirational High Renaissance artworks appeared continually and consistently on the patterns with regards to designs especially during the times of distortion which really made him a forerunner of the modern art. Conclusion During the late eighteenth century, the High Renaissance period got characterized by the short period of skilled artistic works in the Italian states, particularly, in the Vatican city of Rome. This was the capital city of Papal States which is normally under the administration of Pope. A number of historians have not yet established the exact time when the age of High Renaissance art began and they still leave it debatable. Generally, the best-renowned pioneers of the High Renaissance artworks included the early Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci, and Raphael. Additionally, the overall rubric High Renaissance art culture and the visual arts were characterized by the rejuvenated considerations of the classical traditions which were the expansion of networks and patronages. This High Renaissance art era was also characterized by gradual attentions of the figural trends which later turned into Mannerism. The High Renaissance arts which were paintings and sculptures were said by various scholars like Stephen Freedberg to portray the culmination of Renaissance pattern painting. These High Renaissance styles of painting and sculpturing works got characterized by several compositions which were also closely observed by the human figures and the decorative styles of classical antiquity. Several historians view this High Renaissance work as emblematic since, in more recent years, this art had been historically characterized by the movements which were contrary to an era when several experimental attitudes towards arts were being done. This High Renaissance movement was characterized by conservatives who made new attitudes towards beauty. Indeed these beauty artworks were what characterized both the works of Manet and William Blake’s as mentioned above. These two artists allowed the era of High Renaissance to influence their lives socio-economically, politically and culturally as seen above in the previous paragraphs. William Blake joined political radicalization and this made him experience several political challenges in Rome during this era of High Renaissance art. It is good to note that intentional approaches of synthesizing models of electricity were also linked to fashions in the literary cultures of the Renaissance. Bibliography Frye, Northrop. Fearful symmetry: a study of William Blake. Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press, 1969. Herndl, George C. The high design: English Renaissance tragedy and the natural law. University Press of Kentucky, 2015. Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York, N.Y.), Gary Tinterow, and Kathryn Calley Galitz. Masterpieces of European painting, 1800-1920, in the Metropolitan Museum of Art. New York: Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2007. Reynolds, Simon. William Blake Richmond: an artist's life, 1842-1921. Norwich [England]: Michael Russell, 1995. Sterpetti, Antonio V., Giorgio De Toma, and Alessandro De Cesare. "Thyroid swellings in the art of the Italian Renaissance." The American Journal of Surgery 210, no. 3 (2015): 591-596. Tinterow, Gary, Edouard Manet, Geneviève Lacambre, and Diego Rodríguez de Silva y Velázquez. Manet, Velázquez: the French taste for Spanish painting : [published in conjunction with the exhibition "Manet/Velazquez: the French taste for Spanish painting" held at the Musée d'Orsay, Paris (September 16, 2002, to January 12, 2003) and at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York (March 4 to June 8, 2003). New York: Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2003. Read More

This might be among the challenging realistic depictions of Manet. Indeed a number of exhibitions in Europe have explored Manet’s combined elements of Italian and his own brand of realism in his high Renaissance artworks. Below is Manet’s artwork, a Portrait Of Antonin Proust. Portrait of Antonin Proust William Blake’s High Renaissance work actually fascinated many people since they had a strong connection with the artworks of Michelangelo though seemed not to be having the first-hand art knowledge of Michelangelo, an influence which is thought to have been transferred through the inferior engravings.

This work actually stressed Blake’s anatomical exaggerations and left out some of the stronger parts of his strengths3. Nevertheless, Blake’s High Renaissance artwork also was characterized with some of the paintings and engravings errors which were also seen with Michelangelo previously based on the exaggerated anatomies and grotesque. Consequently, his fanatics still believed that Blake was not an imitator and that those were his own personal and original artworks4. It is true that every artist must borrow some little creativity from his/her predecessor in terms of the development of the symbolic types and visual symbolism.

The figure below is a portrait of William Blake’s artwork talking about the reunion of the soul and the body at the resurrection in the year 1808. The Reunion of the Soul and the Body at the Resurrection (1808) Apparently, Manet’s artworks could sometimes be rejected by the Salon, however, he continued the show and submit them to a number of Impressionists who actually loved them so much. Sometimes the Salon could accept Manet’s artworks though not in good faith which was evident because of critics which he was being shown.

In fact, this malicious response could sometimes baffle Manet so much. Following all this malice of the Salon, Edouard Manet was forced one day to write to the Baudelaire in exile in Brussels, upon realizing that his Olympia artwork had been shown in the Salon. Below is another artwork by Manet a Portrait of Zacharie Astruc. Portrait of Zacharie Astruc 1866 On the other hand, William Blake as an academic draughtsman was being viewed as a junior to Edouard Manet though people agreed that there a lot of similarities in their High Renaissance artwork.

This was evident in their deliberate borrowings from each other which could sometimes be absurd5. A number of scholars believe that some of the finest northern artworks were especially the ones of the twentieth century that had a foreshadowing of both Manet and William Blake due to their spirits which did not incorporate any academic accomplishment and they argued this might have formed the origin of the similarity that existed between these two arts works6. The Manet’s and Blake’s sculptors and illuminators of the twentieth century show a lot of similarities with regards to imaginations and struggling expressions which were seen to naturally evolved a form of expression in a number of ways which nearly were similar to those of the twentieth-century primitives7.

However, William Blake’s drawings laid a lot of emphasis on the linear patterns and the swaying rhythms of his figures which were spread in all of his prototypes in a number of the illuminated Manuscripts in Ireland and the Medieval England. There was a copy of inks which were meant for the Concert Champêtre and were also contributed to Giorgione; however, many people did not believe that they were Manet’s artworks as majority believed they might have been Titan’s artwork. Manet had the artworks in his studio and he could sometimes provoke a critical storm when it was being showcased during the years of 1863 at the Salon des Réfusés.

This showcasing was described as the first modern painting and was represented by the oil sketch version which was taken at the Courtauld. However, Manet copied “Venus of Urbino” which was actually one of the Titan’s artwork and this took place by the time he was at the Florence in the year 1857.

Read More