Week 6: Romantic vs Realist Art
Romantic Era: Romantic vs Realist Art; A Comparison of 4 Arts
Romantic era art is not just romanticism style art, but a mixture of many art styles that have evolved over time. The two styles that caught my eye the most when looking at this week's lectures were the romantic and the realist styles. Each portrays life and art in their own way, while also having similarities that tie them together. Let's dive into the Romantic style first with Turner's Fisherman at Sea.
Romanticism
Joseph Mallord William Turner, Fishermen at Sea, United Kingdom, 1796, Oil on Canvas.
The first thing I see when looking at this painting is the lighting. Only two sources of light can really be seen in this painting, from the boat as a small lantern, and from the moon that reflects on the water's surface. This ties in heavily with the contrast in this painting as Turner went with a heavier contrast instead of the more whimsical light colors one might think when looking for romantic-style paintings. Then there is the texture of the painting, where Turner gives much time to make the brush strokes not only resemble waves but feel like them too. They are almost palpable just from viewing this painting.
This painting is just as mesmerizing as it is haunting. It is gorgeous to look at, mind you are only looking at it at face value, but there is an undertone of unsettlingness to it. How the sea looks as though it could swallow the little boat whole without a second thought, while in the distance, it appears more calm and serene. This truly embodies Romanticism, with Turner's emphasis on the power and beauty of nature while also showcasing the possible horrors that undermining nature could cause. I would have this art piece in my home and make sure the lighting around it fits its theme well. Perhaps in a bathroom light with a soft yellow or blue light, or even a backlight to help it shine with its contrast even more.
Théodore Géricault, Guillotined Heads, France, c. 1818–1820, Oil on Canvas.
I think this is my personal favorite painting of Romanticism that I have come across. Most of my close friends and family know that I have a thing for all things morbid and horror-themed, and this painting by Géricault is right up my alley The composition of the faces, their placement as well as how they express death in two different ways in fascinating to me. The texture of the soft cloth wrapping around the rugged cuts along the neck shows just how violent and gruesome it can be. Then the colors, oh the colors. The dark and muted tones that help enforce the reality of the situation with the symbolism of red indicating danger and death work so well here.
I find this painting disturbing in a fascinating way. When I look at this painting, it makes me feel that death might just be one footstep away. The way that Géricault Géricault achieves this with his art is horrifying in its own right. He was known to take the decapitated heads and body parts of guillotine victims back with him so he could get the proportions just right. The way that he paints death with such accuracy makes you feel like he should have been a realistic artist instead of a romantic artist. Personally, while I would think this piece would be cool to have in my house, there is no place that it would fit as a decorative piece. There's no aesthetic pleasure that comes from this particular piece, and in this context, it would fit in a museum much better than in a person's house.
Realism
Honoré Daumier, Rue Transnonain, le 15 Avril 1834, France, 1834, Lithograph.
With Daumier's masterful linework on a lithograph, which is much different than the normal medium of oil on canvas, the horror of this massacre is seen at face value. The lines in this painting create a tragic scene, with the lines being soft yet precise. The lines help the lighting and the shadowing, which also enhance the feeling of motionlessness. This is then seen with the compositions of the bodies being unnaturally slumped upon the bed and the floor.
My initial reaction was abject horror when I saw that this was a piece about a massacre. The absence of color helps exaggerate the pure sadness in the painting. Instead of the horror being loud and bright like the color red, it is soft and quiet, cold and calculating. Daumier's art here is purely political; this was a depiction of civilians being massacred by government entities, mainly the police in France at the time, as retaliation against a murderer. Instead of doing their job and investigating who the murderer was, they decided to murder everybody in the house that they thought the murderer was in, including a child, who the main person in the center of the painting is on top of. It just goes to show how brutal this massacre really was during this time. As a political piece, you can see that this art is a quiet protest, compelling anger, and outrage upon viewing without so much as saying a word. This is not an artwork that I would hang in my house, as it is one that I believe should stay in a museum, as history is bound to repeat itself if people forget.
Édouard Manet, Olympia, France, 1863, Oil on Canvas.
Manet in this painting forces a different aspect upon our eyes using a great composition that isn't center-focused but arranges the subject's body to be relaxed. While she is more relaxed, her eyes rest upon us with almost contempt as she makes direct eye contact with us. The brushwork work is even more relaxed, with the strokes being visible. It gives the painting an almost unfinished look. To me, it adds to the painting as an almost realistic act of defiance, almost like our prostitute's gaze. The color in the painting complements the confrontational nature of our subject's gaze with cool and muted tones.
I find this painting very striking, as my expectations were immediately subverted when I met the prostitute's gaze. Manet historically challenged people's expectations and traditional depictions of women as nude, stripping away men's idealization of the perfect womanly body. He even challenged what we would regard as the moral hypocrisy of sexuality in his art. I would not have this painting in my house as I do not prefer to have nudity in my artworks for guests to see, but this would do very well in a museum for all those to note that this was a painting made in retaliation and rebellion against their societal norms of the 19th century regarding people's social class and sexuality.
Conclusion
My conclusion is that I prefer romanticism over realistic-style art. I just enjoy the coloration and the tones much more than the realistic implications that came with challenging political and monarchal ideals. I enjoyed the morbidity of the guillotine heads and the complex facial expressions that they both showed in their final moments. The female was almost as if she were welcoming death with her eyes closed in her face contorted in a more relaxed expression. This was in contrast to the man who seemed to be wanting to avoid death, almost like it caught up to him, and in his final moment, he stared death straight in the face.
"Théodore Géricault." The Art Story, www.theartstory.org/artist/gericault-theodore/. Accessed 22 Mar. 2025.
Kennedy, Randy. "Romanticism in Art History." ThoughtCo., 6 Feb. 2021, www.thoughtco.com/romanticism-art-history-183442. Accessed 22 Mar. 2025.
"Joseph Mallord William Turner (1775–1851)." Tate, www.tate.org.uk/art/research-publications/jmw-turner/joseph-mallord-william-turner-1775-1851-r1141041. Accessed 22 Mar. 2025.
"Paintings." Musée d'Orsay, www.musee-orsay.fr/en/collections/paintings. Accessed 22 Mar. 2025.
"Realism Movement Overview." The Art Story, www.theartstory.org/movement/realism/. Accessed 22 Mar. 2025.
I prefer Romanticism over Realism as well. Romanticism blends strong emotion with the influence of the natural world. I feel that while it does emphasize the visual aspects of a scene, it accurately captures the raw emotions of the human mind. Out of the works you presented, I am most drawn to Fishermen at Sea. Your description of the elements is wonderfully written. The contrast in tone focuses the eye on the fishermen while creating a sense of awe for the power of nature. I think that, had Turner chosen to set the scene in daylight, it would have taken away that feeling of peril, as well as the sense of fragility and the unknown. Another work I enjoy by Turner is The Eruption of the Soufrière Mountains in the Island of St Vincent, 30 April 1812 (1815). He uses vivid oranges to contrast the blue darkness of the night to petrify the viewer in the wonder of the eruption with a sense of helplessness.
ReplyDeleteHello there! Your blog was great! I learned a ton and it opened my eyes to different types and different paintings!
ReplyDeleteIf I were to choose between Romanticism and Realism, I'd choose realism. To me it just speaks more. makes me feel more as well.
I felt deep deep sorrow for the "Rue Transnonain" painting, slight chills, and a weird connection. It spoke to me which is why I'm singling it out. I absolutley agree with you when you said "The absence of color helps exaggerate the pure sadness in the painting." I can almost ignore the black and white and visualize the colors in the peice what would've been there if it wasn't black and white.
I think you did a fantasitc job pointing out the artist's intenions. Pointing out "Olympia" this time, the intention was pure shock to me. I always see paintings of women that men do, with the woman looking perfect. Hourglass shape, round chest, all the stereotypical "perfect body" norms. This one, he challenged it. She isn't "perfect" like the other paintings I see.
This blog opened my eyes to a lot of diffenet things, good job!!
Hello! It was interesting to read your blog. I compared the same two styles. "Guillotined Heads" and "Rue Transnonain, le 15 Avril 1834" helped me visualize the differences between the two. I think that in Romanticism, as showed in "Guillotined Heads", the goal was to illicit as much emotion as possible about the topic of death. Meanwhile, in Realism, the goal was more to show death in a more palatable way for the view. I personally am drawn more towards Romanticism because of its contrast between shadows and sources of light, as well as gloomier colors. The first painting you showcased, "Fishermen at Sea" is a beautiful example of this, with the light peaking through the clouds during the resolve of a storm (or possibly start of one).
ReplyDeleteHey Cassidy!
ReplyDeleteI thought your post was thoroughly enjoyable because your passion for Romanticism and Realism stood out while your insights brought every piece to life. I enjoy Realism because it depicts truth and social issues without embellishment, but your analysis of Turner's Fishermen at Sea helped me see Romanticism in a new light. How you described the contrast and lighting alongside emotional tension in the artwork effectively conveys nature's dual aspects of awe and fear.
The way you analyzed art elements such as texture and color demonstrated exceptional strength, particularly when examining Guillotined Heads. Your analysis of red's symbolic meaning and emotional resonance in facial expressions delivered a striking impact. I found your exploration of the artists' intentions remarkable, mainly through Géricault's detailed anatomy studies and Manet's societal norms challenge in Olympia. The authenticity of your responses enriched your interpretive analysis.
The Romantic style touches our inner emotions through sublime experiences, while Realism pushes us to face external realities. You captured this contrast well. Your imaginative proposal for displaying Turner's artwork in a home environment demonstrates your ability to think outside the traditional boundaries of the canvas. Great job!
Good evening,
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed reading this post. Out of the two options, I prefer realist art over romanticism. I like realism mainly because of how it highlights certain subjects like everyday life in detail without bias, although AI really do appreciate the imaginative, thought provoking, pieces that romantic art has that invokes deep emotions when viewing. I believe the Honore Daumier's intentions with the piece of art was to invoke the emption of sadness and tragedy which makes sense with the use or should I say lack of use of color, only incorporating black and white in this painting. This is completely different in contrast to the "Fishermen at Sea" painting, with the use of light and shadow bouncing off the ship and waves. It makes me see how truly large the ocean is and gives me the sense of loneliness seeing the ship out their, by itself, in the night. One fact I thought was neat was that realism came from romanticism, more explicitly, as a reaction against romanticism's emphasis on depicting emotion and imagination. Anyways, thank you for posting.
I enjoyed how you were connecting romanticist pieces of art and the effects that nature's power had over them. It is often shown in romantic period pieces but the way in which artists take the effects of nature on an environment to the next level is one of my favorite parts about the art style. Your picks for the realism art were also very interesting as I could imagine that the Honore Daumir piece could have been put into print with some effort so the tone for it being a political piece gives it more weight to me. Then your other piece for realism was an interesting choice style wise as when I first looked at the piece it reminded me more of the humanities then it did the realism style. I will have to agree with you that romanticism is the better style of art. Though I think that is more for how the art looks to me than the messages being delivered as realism, I think it serves as a better and more impactful style when one is trying to depict political beliefs. I think it is the cold truth that realism delivers that gives it a stronger political hold than romanticism carries.
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