Neoclassicism: Art, History, and Societal Impact
Historical and Cultural Context of Neoclassicism
The Industrial Revolution brought profound transformations in production techniques that affected the economy and society. Peasants left the fields and moved to the cities, becoming a new social class: the proletariat. This class began to join in unions. The revolution in transportation brought new and faster ways to transport people and goods, such as the steam train and steamboat. Associated with these inventions were new types of buildings: iron bridges, railway stations, etc. All of this became a source of inspiration for art.
The Enlightenment saw the implementation of rationalism in all fields: politics, society, science, and culture. Religious prejudice and mythological magic were rejected. The primacy of reason and rational thought was emphasized.
The American Revolution: The Declaration of Independence summarized the ideals of the Enlightenment: life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
The French Revolution: The enlightened despotism that dominated the France of Louis XVI met the opposition of the aristocracy to any transformation that curtailed their privileges.
The emergence of art criticism and art history, the study of disciplines devoted to art. Academies, institutions created by Louis XIV in France, were dedicated to educating artists but also to imposing a controlling style in the arts. The Salons were exhibitions organized by academics (initially at the Salon Carrée du Louvre to celebrate the King’s anniversary) where these artists (and some who had received awards) presented their works.
Characteristics of Neoclassical Art
- Rococo art persisted in court and aristocratic circles (until the end of the century).
- Neoclassicism is the art most clearly identified with the Enlightenment (until approximately 1820).
- Romanticism is identified with the bourgeois revolutions (1st half of the century).
- Some artists, such as Goya, Ledoux, or Fuseli, are difficult to classify.
- Neoclassical art was a critical front against Rococo art, which was considered a sensual and superficial expression of the moral decadence and vitality of the aristocracy.
- Art contributed to changing the world, reflecting behavioral models and exalting virtues like sacrifice, nobility of sentiments, and fidelity to ideas.
- It is an art that takes Greek and Roman works as its model.
- The artist is freed from commissions. They are subject to a patron, a client, but also to the guidelines of the Academies and Salons.
- Reason, equilibrium, and mastery of emotions are exalted.
- Eternal and universal values (valid everywhere) are sought, and the individual is rejected.
Neoclassical Sculpture and Painting
- Clarity of forms, balance, and simplicity.
- Themes and traits of classical mythology.
- Often, copies of ancient works.
- Interest in the themes of Eros and Psyche, Venus, and Praxitelean figures.
- Idealized beauty, an abundance of highly idealized portraits.
- No eroticism in nudity.
- Predominance of the male nude; women tend to wear a Roman-style tunic and have little hair movement, a relaxed and calm attitude.
- Interest in the hero (the idea is more important than the execution).
- Closed volumes, contained. Centripetal compositions. Figures on the same plane.
- Use of allegory: Naked truth is often female, and the hero is male. Women tend to be identified with the mother or motherland. An angel with death, the lion with strength, the snake biting its tail with eternity. A set with a young adult and an old person represents life.
- Works with many studies and preparatory sketches.