Artsz.org

Images have had different meanings throughout time.  In any culture images have a certain meaning and they produce certain feelings such as peace, tranquility, and even hope. Throughout history these images have changed and the meaning or feelings those images inspire has also changed.

Let’s take for example the painting of “The Marriage Giovanni Arnolfini and Giovanna Cenami” by Jan van Eyck, which was painted in 1434.  This visual image was well understood in the 15th century, but it is not interpreted similarly today.

At the time, this painting was a type of “wedding certificate.” Their grave faces indicate the responsibility of marriage. The green dress that the bride is wearing indicates fertility, and was the traditional wedding dress color of the time.  She is not pregnant as may be thought in this day and age, but the swelling of her abdomen suggests great female beauty for the 15th century.

The lack of shoes was a religious symbol that indicated the standing on holy ground, and the burning candle symbolizes the presence of Christ. Now unless we knew about these images and what they presented in the 15th century, people would have no idea of what this painting represented in today’s time. The same is probably true, if we took a painting of Andy Warhol’s “Soup can” back to the 15th century. Do you think they would understand that it is a representation of Modern day life.

Perhaps the most representative romantic painting is “Wanderer above the Sea of Fog”, which is also known as “Wanderer Above the Mist”. The Wanderer above the Sea of Fog was painted by Caspar David Friedrich in 1818, an oil on canvas work that is quite symbolic of romanticism.

The Wanderer above the Sea of Fog depicts the painter himself standing on top of a high mountain with a great mass of fog before him. You can see peaks of other mountains above the surface of the thick fog, and a mountain range is visible in the background. Expansive sky above the mountains is much of the painting.

This painting is a powerful statement of loneliness and difficulties experienced by people who are intellectuals. The man in the painting is representative of the few people who are not the same as the majority of society – this thread is quite typical of the romantic period, which was a time when the industrial revolution was in full stride and many people attempted to get away from machinery, as well as the poverty and pain that machines brought to their world. People of this time wanted to return to the purity of nature and get away from societies evils.

Surrealists appreciated Dali for his ‘Paranoiac critical method’ of accessing the subconscious as greater artistic creativity. Dali’s most famous work is ‘The Persistence of Memory’ (1931), sometimes called Soft Watches or Melting Clocks. The work introduced the surrealistic image of soft, melting pocket watches.

The general interpretation of Dali’s ‘The Persistence of Memory’ is that soft watches debunk the assumption that time is rigid and deterministic and this is supported by other images in that work like the wide landscaping, the ants and the fly that devour the other watches.

Dali, as he explained inspired himself on camembert cheese to Saint the watches in the painting. He said that these watches were “tender, extravagant, solitary and paranoid“. Watches, just like memory, softened with the pass of time. Dali once said about the painting: “Just as I am surprised that a bank employee has never eaten a check, I am equally surprised that no other painter before me thought about painting a soft watch”.

This painting has historical significance in surrealism and is an icon within the genre. It explains the creativity and expresses the time and space between real life and the imaginary life very clearly. Dali’s painting ‘The Persistence of Memory’ illustrates clearly the style of surrealism which could not be conveyed in words. This is a painting which has brought out the actual essence of time and what makes it perfect is that it is something for which you can never find the right words.

The most representative of the Cubist paintings and the one painting that started it all was “Les Demoiselles d’Avignon”. This painting became pivotal in the history of modern art. This painting changed everything for Picasso.

Les Demoiselles de Avignon was Picasso’s earliest work, which broke dramatically from the figurative and poetic paintings from the first part of his life. The painting relates directly to the prostitution district of Paris. In this painting the features of the three women to the left were inspired by the wooden carvings on which Picasso worked during the summer of 1906.

The two women to the right were based on African and Oceanic masks. Their bodies are so razor-sharp that it looks as if they might cut you if you touched them. These women appear to be seductive and yet horrifying at the same time. It was a long time before this painting became acceptable to even the most progressive members of the artistic community. Picasso felt that his whole understanding of painting had transformed in doing this painting, which he called his “first exorcism picture.”

The Oath of Horatii is one of the best known examples of the Neoclassicism era. Painted by Jacques Louis David, it was considered to be the ideal of the new school of art. A style based on the ideas of a return to the classical. This painting was finished in 1785.

The painting portrays the Horatii brothers swearing their allegiance to the state while their father holds swords high for them to grasp.

The Oath of Horatii was commissioned from the Comte Dangiviller, supervisor of all architectural building under Louis the XVI. He wanted a painting based on Corneilles play, Horace, which at the time was performing in Paris. David began painting the Oath of Horatii in Paris, but felt that he needed the ambiance of Rome to finish this work. When the painting was first exhibited in Rome in 1885, it was considered to be a sensation, and was associated with the need to cry for the French Revolution, which was declared four years later.

The structured lines of the painting demonstrate how David stayed away from the delicate, feminine lines of Louis the XVI. Every line and color is minimalist and there are no unneeded brush strokes or anything that might denote femininity. The colors are well balanced, though kept to a minimum and even the clothing is made to denote patriotism.

Rococo began in the 17^th century and found its height in the 18^th century. It is characterized by its light airy and feminine lines. The style was known for its arabesque forms, shells, elaborate curves and asymmetric composition.

Among the most influential & representative paintings of the Rococo was the Swing by Jean Honore Frangonard which is a good example of the frivolity, eroticism and gallantry of the paintings of the time. In this painting, aristocrats are shown interested only in pleasurable pursuits and completely unaware of the social problems of the times, which would later give rise to the French Revolution. The painting shows intricate detail & ornamentation as was quite common to the Rococo period.

Other representative paintings of the Rococo were Watteau’s, Pilgrimage to Cythera. The painting represents a group of happy go lucky people starting a pilgrimage to Cythera (the city were Venus was born) in search of love. Watteau’s style mixed a lot of reality & fantasy in his work. Reality was represented in the form of the aristocratic outings of the time, like that of going on picnics, hunts, or even boat rides. The fantasy is represented by the inclusion of the mythological elements.