Artists play a huge role in the society of the world in a plethora of different ways. Art has been created, observed, and enjoyed by ordinary individuals since years ago. While artists are often undermined by society in the modern day, I think that without them, we would be missing a huge part of history and knowledge about ourselves and how people lived in the past. Without paintings of the war, how would we know just exactly what those times were like or what old countries and landscapes looked like? How would we know what kind of style people followed in the 17th century without paintings of royalty and peasants? One of the most prevalent roles of artists in today’s society is the ability to represent the lifestyle and way of life of people during particular time periods. Thus, artists play a huge crucial part in reassuring that we understand the history of our ancestors.
I chose the Baroque era to represent past art and how it applies to the lifestyle of individuals during this time period. The Baroque Era took place between 1600 and 1750. The way people dressed, ate, and went about their daily tasks was drastically different than that of today’s day and age. Thus, the paintings in this blog represent how we can determine these differences simply through art itself.
This painting is called Girl With a Pearl Earring by Johannes Vermeer. This piece was created sometime between 1660 and 1670, but it is unknown exactly where Vermeer created the painting. This piece represents that of high class and expensive goods during the Baroque era. This girl is painted with elegance and beauty highlighted with the sparkling pearl earring. I like how the artist painted the girl against a pure black background to make her outline and features really stand out. All the colors used are somewhat subtle in exception to the white collar and blue headband that frames her face. I chose this painting because I think it is really representative of style in the Baroque era. Obviously jewelry was highly lauded as the earrings of the girl are one of the most pertinent aspects of this piece. Also, the headband and wrap around her head is a type of style that is not common in today’s day but probably seen quite frequent in that period. I really like this painting because I think the painter did a really great job at illuminating the girls natural features.
This painting is called Las Maninas. It was painted in 1657 by Diego Velazquez. This painting is a scene of maids of honor during the 1600s. The scene seems somewhat busy as the ladies are preparing for the big event and there are people seen scurrying around in the background. There is also a dog pictured on the bottom right section of the painting that seems to be quite calm and placid amongst the bustling room. It is assumed by the observer that this atmosphere is common in this household according to this behavior of the dog. I like this painting because once again it represents the style of the Baroque era and how people lived. The structure the people are in seems to be very roomy with high walls, which is not as common in today’s day. The gowns that are worn by the girls are elegant and much more elaborate than those that would be worn in more modern day times. I like this piece but I most likely wouldn’t want to keep it in my household.
The painting above is called Mr and Mrs Andrews and was painted by Thomas Gainsborough in 1750. This scene was created in the countryside in England. The scene is a wealthy newly wed couple with their prized joined family estates in the background. The soft colors and lines of this piece really stand out to me. It elicits calm serenity and pleasure of a content couple with enough money to live a very comfortable life. The setting of the home of a wealthy family back in the 1700’s was often placed within a vast amount of land like is shown here. In modern times, wealthy families are more likely to represent their wealth with a larger home or an expensive apartment in the center of the city instead of owning a vast amount of farm land. I like this painting but I think it belongs in an educational museum rather than in a house.
This painting is called Bob Marley and was painted by Derek Russell in 2012. This piece captures the face of a popular reggae artist of modern times. Perhaps one of the most distinguishing details between this first painting from today’s time period is how much color is used. A multitude of different colors are used to represent a human face which is typically represented using a simple skin tone shade. Another detail that is vastly different from the art of the Baroque era is the expression on the individuals face. The older artists didn’t represent emotion nearly as much as modern artists. This painting is really representative of the modern day and the pursuit of happiness. The individual is shown laughing and expressing lots of enthusiasm – this is also representative of the ‘happy-go-lucky’ attitude that reggae artists tend to have. I really like this painting but I’m not a huge fan of reggae music so I probably wouldn’t have it in my own household.
This painting is called Downtown Express. It was painted in 2009 by Mike Massengale. This scene is of two football players in action during the interstate football championship of Pennsylvania. This painting really caught my eye because of the detail used to represent the speed of the athletes. Surrounding the players is a sort of blurry mesh of colors that makes the individuals look like they’re speeding across the field. The player in black appears to almost be grabbing the face mask of the other player which would indicate a foul. Thus this painting is also representative of how rough these athletes play in this sport. I think this painting really represents how much people of the 21st century value sports. And America in particular is very invested in football. The football gear is also indicative of what these athletes are required to wear during this time period.
This painting is called The City by Gray Artus. It is a scene of New York City created in 2013. This painting is an acrylic of downtown right before the morning rush hour. This is by far my favorite piece of art that I have analyzed over this whole course. The colors and illuminating lights give the scene a bright and exciting atmosphere. The towering buildings on either side of the street create a sense of symmetry. The minimal amount of cars on the street give the observer a sense of the early morning atmosphere of wandering city streets before they become over crowded with people. This painting couldn’t do a better job at representing city life in the 21st century. The yellow taxis are depicted on the streets at this hour because taxis are always on the roads in big cities no matter what time of day. The tall buildings represent the type of structures that people live and work in in today’s day and age. Finally, I am really impressed by the huge color variation of color used to create this painting. It also gives the street the look of being somewhat wet, as if it had just rained all night. I like this because when I look at it I can almost smell the early morning rain. I would love to have this painting in my own house.
My Art Journey
My relationship to art has drastically changed over the span of this course. I had never before analyzed so many different types of art from such a wide span of time periods. I used to only be interested in modern arts that were particularly that of simple drawing and ceramics and such. However, after this course I’ve grown to especially appreciate paintings. I’ve found out how much one can learn from simply analyzing a piece of art from a particular time period. So much history and knowledge can be learned from the observation of works that artists have created. Thanks to this course, I now have a list of art pieces that I would like to collect for my future household and I know the artists and history behind all of them.
Sources Cited:
“The City”, 2013 Arts/Paintings/Spontaneous Realism Paintings https://fineartamerica.com/featured/the-city-gray-artus.html
“Baroque Art and Architecture”, 2016, Jan 3rd, Encyclopedia Britannica https://www.britannica.com/art/Baroque-art-and-architecture
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