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Running head: COMPARE AND CONTRAST THREE ARTISTS

Compare and Contrast the Painting Styles of

Renoir, David and Pollock

Through Three Paintings

Neo Classic, Impressionism and Abstract Expressionism

Compare

Artistic periods do not always have clear lines of demarcation. However, occasionally an artist or a painting will make a breakthrough thereby bridging styles. Such is the case of the three artistic periods portrayed here: Neoclassicism, represented by Jacque-Louis David’s “The Emperor Napoleon in His Study at Tuileries”, Impressionism as seen in August Renoir’s “Luncheon of the Boating Party” and Abstract Expressionism done by Jason Pollock in his “Autumn Rhythm” (Number 30). Each in their own way was a statement of rebellion against the popular styles of the day.

The Neoclassics wanted to return to the classics with symmetry and clean lines rather than ornamentation. The colors were in opposition as the Neoclassic artists used sharp colors rather than pastels. David (along with other Neoclassic painters) was finding the current Rococo period to be too asymmetrical and a bit gaudy.

Following the period of the Neoclassics, the Impressionists turned away from the clean lines and distinct academic depictions of the Neoclassics, blurring their subjects with implied details.

Following the Impressionist period came the Abstract Expressionists who, while not exactly rejecting the Impressionists, took the Impressionist ideas further into the emotions rather than painting impressions of visions.

All three forms were innovative to the art world, and so imposed a great deal of freedom in the way the art was represented. The rebelliousness of these new artists were not always well received, but could not be denied.

Not only were the artistic periods changing with these three new forms, but the same time frames also reflected social and historical changes. For example, as the Neoclassics rejected the overdone and complicated style of Rococo art, so were the French rejecting the increasing showiness and flamboyance of the French aristocracy. As the Impressionists sought to represent live as lighthearted, so did society feel the need to escape the heavy years of the French Revolution and the dreary years of poverty. The social levels of society were breaking down, and many Impressionist paintings portrayed the intermingling of the classes. During the time prior to the breakthrough of the Abstract Expressionist, people were delving deeper and deeper into their psyches. Freud was making psychoanalysis popular and feelings were more openly expressed, as were emotions in the artistic movement of Abstract Expressionism. Life was becoming more personal and so was art.

Contrast

When contrasting the three paintings in terms of subjects, we may say that that David portrayed his subject in an attempt to bring out his moral virtues in imitation of the high moral virtues demonstrated by the classic Romans and Greeks. The implication of many parts of the painting from the disheveled appearance of the Emperor to show his efforts as a military leader to the fact that David has placed him in a posture of magnificence and dominance all exhibit a man above men.

In contrast to this, the Impressionist did not want to be so thorough with their subjects, and sought only to leave a fleeting impression of an individual, as well as a more permanent impression of a lifestyle.

Pollock, the Abstract Expressionist wanted to represent the inside of a person, the soul with its chaotic feelings, emotions and lack of focus.

Painting Styles

The Neoclassic artists used somber colors as they sought to portray the seriousness of the subject. They applied thick varnish which toned the colors down. David’s “The Emperor Napoleon in His Study at Tuileries” focuses simply on the center of the painting and the Emperor Napoleon. The “cold colors and severe compositions of the heroic paintings” (David, Jacques-Louis, n.d.) David has previously painted was replaced by a feeling of pageantry. David was an ardent supporter of Napoleon and through the Emperor he regained his social and aristocratic position which he had previously held. The Neoclassic style used recognizable objects, such as the clock, the papers and so forth to emphasize that ideal.

New vibrant synthetic pigments were available for the Impressionists. Occasionally they would mix the colors on a single paintbrush creating a blend of the colors, and they also painted on top of damp canvases to continue the sense of indistinctness. Their brush strokes were wide and appeared to be applied in a more flowing fashion. The outlines of the figures are fused with their surroundings. Renoir in “Luncheon of the Boating Party” as well as other works, “communicated the joy he took in them (pretty children, flowers, beautiful scenes, above all lovely women) with great directness” (Renoir, Auguste, n.d.).

Pollock was known for his unusual methodologies of applying the paint to the canvas. He felt more in control with the canvas on the floor. He would drill holes in a paint can and swing it around to show movement. He trickled “thin lines of colored sand onto a horizontal surface” (Pollock, Jackson, n.d.). In “Autumn Rhythm (Number 30)”, he chose the colors of autumn, and by swinging a paint can, he found that he could represent the way leaves swirl on an autumn day.

References

David, Jacques-Louis, (n.d.). Retrieved March 2012 from

Pollock, Jackson, (n.d.). Retrieved March 2011 from

Renoir, Auguste, (n.d.). Retrieved March 2012 from

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