Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio
(1571-1610)
Caravaggio
was an Italian painter active in Rome, Naples, Malta, and Sicily during the Baroque period.
Caravaggio is renowned for his realistic
observation of the human state and dramatic
use of lighting which was his dominant stylistic element. His realistic style became hugely influential, and his
dramatic chiaroscuro became known as “tenebrism”. His followers were called the "Caravaggisti" or “tenebrists” ("shadowists"). He used darkened
shadows and lit subjects in bright shafts of light, working rapidly, with live models, which is evident from his paintings, and an innovation, especially for religious works. He was also somewhat unusual in that he worked
directly onto the canvas (without preparatory drawings). His
influence can be seen in the works of Peter Paul Rubens, de Ribera, Bernini, and
Rembrandt. In the example below, we see how the strong shaft of light from the left defines and highlights the main participants in the scene, whilst at the same time adding drama with the strong use of dark shadows.
Caravaggio,
Supper at Emmaus, 1601, oil on canvas, National Gallery, London
Jan Vermeer (1632-1675)
Vermeer was a
Dutch painter specialising in domestic interior scenes of middle-class life, a provincial
genre painter, but evidently not wealthy. He produced
relatively few paintings (34 generally attributed to him) as he worked
slowly and with great care. He is renowned for his masterly treatment and use of light, but also for his frequent use of very expensive pigments (e.g. ultramarine, made from lapis lazuli).
After
a period of obscurity, Vermeer is now acknowledged as one of the greatest painters of the
Dutch Golden Age.
Vermeer, The
Milkmaid, (c. 1658)
In May I saw the
Monet and Architecture Exhibition at the National Gallery and in the summer I also went to
Paris and visited L’Orangerie, which houses Monet’s Water Lilies Series.
Above, photo inside L'Orangerie
Key to Impressionism is the way these artists capture the fleeting
effects of light, colour and reflections in nature. A characteristic was "plein
air" or open-air painting of mainly
landscape subjects. The Impressionists were influenced
by, and appreciated, the bright colours, high viewpoints and interlocking
asymmetrical compositions of Japanese prints. Their techniques included the use of mainly pale grounds, greys, cream, beige and white, with only a thin
layer of preparation which left the canvas grain exposed. their work was also characterised by the use of lively
brushwork, with textured surfaces which also unify the design. They would drag
stiffish paint across the canvas to create ragged, vibrant flickerings of
colour with impasted dabs of colour added here and there. Colours
slurred together on the surface and they used also wet over dry to let the colour underneath
show through.
Black
was abandoned in favour of opacity. Monet's later works are more “abstract” in that the water
lily paintings have no horizon, with the use
of repeat subjects and views in different light. The Impressionists would also make use
of plain, white or pale tinted frames to set off their paintings better, rather than
the ornate, gold frames of the Academy, and the paintings were usually
smaller in scale than previous Academy entries, again, breaking with tradition.
Fauvism: Key Period, 1900-1905
The Fauves exploited pure colour and used, in particular, vibrant reds and greens (closest in tone of all the complementary colours). They used unconventional brushwork, direct with an air of excitement and urgency. They employed fluid and original draughtsmanship with flattened forms, bold simplifications and decorative patterns. Henri Matisse (1869-1954) and Raoul Dufy are examples.
Henry Matisse, Odalisque a la culotte rouge, 1924-25
