FOUNDATIONS OF MODERNISM III: GET REAL

An example of Realist art: Gustave Courbet (French 1819-1877), A Burial at Ornans, 1849-50, oil on canvas, 315 x 668 cm

Gustave Courbet (French 1819-1877), The Stonebreakers, 1849, oil on canvas, 165 x 257 cm

Courbet was not interested in Romantic imagination and fantasy, nor the idealisation of both Neoclassicism and Romanticism. - ‘show me an angel and I’ll paint one…’

Alexandre Cabanel (French, 1823–1889) The Birth of Venus, 1863,oil on canvas, 106 x 183 cm.

Cabanel painted Academy-approved, idealised Nudes. This image was much admired and loved.

Gustave Courbet (French 1819-1877) Woman in the Waves, 1868, oil on canvas, 65 x 54 cm

Spot the difference(s)?

Honore Daumier (French, 1808 – 1879) The Third-class carriage, 1863(?) oil on canvas, 65 x 90cm

Daumier was best known as a caricaturist, making political cartoons.He was imprisoned at one point for making comments about the King, Louis-Phillipe (year). He was very concernedabout the poor and those from the working class, and wanted to describe their world. This was seen as vulgar.

The Laundress, 1863(?) oil on wood, 49 x 33cm

The middle of the 19th century in Europe was a very turbulent period politically. The new Realism in art reflected different ways of seeing the world. The idea of honesty, and describing the world of the here –and-now rather than looking to Classical Greece and Rome, was becoming increasingly significant in art practice. (You may recall this development when we looked at the landscapes of the Impressionists a few weeks ago.)

Edgar Degas (French, 1834–1917) Waiting, c. 1882, pastel on paper, 43 x 60cm.

What is the artist actuallyinterested in, in this image?

Edgar Degas (French, 1834–1917) At the Races in the Countryside, 1869, oil on canvas, 37 x 56 cm

Edgar Degas (French, 1834–1917) Ironers, c.1884

ART CRITICISM - HANDOUTThis piece is an example of some art-critical writing. It is a segment of a longer article discussing an exhibition of Degas’ Work in 2011. The author is Sebastian Smee

Edgar Degas (French, 1834–1917) The Tub, 1886, pastel on card, 60 x 83 cm

Woman at her toilette, 1900-1905, pastel on tracing paper, 75 x 72.5cmWoman in the bathtub, c. 1886, pastel on paper,

70 x 70cm

Remembering the Conceptual Framework, we’ll use the following categories, more or less:

Artist / artwork; Artist / world; Artist / audience; Audience / artwork; Audience / artist;Artwork / world.