Art History Blog

The Dying Gaul
- Time: Hellenistic Period, mid 200 BC
- Gauls: Celtic people
- Sculpture commemorates victory of Attalos I over the Gauls in 233 BC
- Artists want drama and lots of emotion, want the viewer’s admiration and them to pity the subject
- Gaul is a “barbarian” through his moustache, torque (gold band worn around neck), and bushy hair
- No attempt to portray the enemy as inferior; instead, he dies nobly, and despite bleeding profusely he is strong and powerful
- Victor is not in the sculpture, implying that he was probably greater and stronger than this man

Wikimedia, in public domain

Who: Michelangelo

What: Pieta, which depicts the dead body of Jesus on the lap of Mary after the Crucifixion.

When: 1499, Renaissance Era

Where: St. Peter’s Basilica, Vatican City, Italy

Why: It was commissioned for the French cardinal Jean de Billheres. The statue was made for the cardinal’s funeral monument, but it was moved to the current location in the 18th century.

How: Made of marble, the structure of the statue is triangular or pyramidal.

Photo by Richard Author Norton

Who: Ain Ghazal People

What: Figure from Ain Ghazal, Made of Plaster

When: 7000 B.C to 6500 B.C

Where: Jordan

Why: Found under special building, may have ritual function

How: White plaster over bundle of twig, shell as eyes

Photo by Einsamer Schutze

Who: Egyptians

What: Statue of Hemiuni, Limestone

When: around 2570 B.C

Where: Egypt

Why: Found in his tomb/mastaba, as the house of his spirit in the afterlife

How: Carved out of limestone, painted

Painting by Simone Martini

Who: Simone Martini

What: Annunciation and the Two Saints

When: 1333 A.D, Gothic

Where: For an altarpiece in the Siena Cathedral in the Town of Siena

Why: The Annuciation

How: Tempera on wood, Word coming out of Gabriel’s mouth, learned fitting figure in pattern from medieval tradition: Ex. Fitting of Gabriel’s wing into the pointed arch, Mary shrink back to in the pointed arch

Title: “The Betrothal of the Arnolfini”

Artist: Jan van Eyck

Time and Place: 1434, Netherlands

What: Italian merchant Arnolfini and his bride Jeanne de Chenany. Was revolutionary and new because it was so realistic: a windowsill with fruit, a dog at their feet, shoes lying on the floor, and very detailed brushstrokes on the figures as Van Eyck introduced the use of oil instead of eggs, creating a glazed effect.  This painting also contains a mirror in

between the two figures on the back wall, reflecting the entire picture.

Title: “Christ Handing the Keys to Saint Peter”

Artist: Pietro Perugino

Time and Place: 1481-1482, Sistine Chapel in Vatican

What: Christ is handing gold and silver keys unlocking the Kingdom of Heaven to a kneeling Saint Peter. They make up the lower foreground of the painting, along with a line of apostles on either side of them. In the middleground on the actual floor of the courtyard is a checkered patterned floor. In the background is an octagon-shaped building flanked by two arch-like buildings. Everything in this picture is in perspective, and all lines go to the vanishing point of the painting. The people, the buildings, as well as the clouds in the sky all match each other in placement and in number.

Pg. 264 in Gombrich

Who:  Sandro Botticelli

What: The Birth of Venus

When: c. 1485

Where:  Florence

Why:  A Medici or another rich family commissioned it. The painting shows a Greek myth,  since the Renaissance popularized the ancient cultures of Greek and Rome.

How: It’s tempera on canvas, and the proportions aren’t entirely accurate, like Gothic figures. His figures are more graceful, though, so it’s less apparent.

Pg. 254 in Gombrich

Who: Paolo Uccello

What: The Battle of San Romano

When: c. 1450

Where:  Originally in a room of the Palazzo Medici, Florence

Why: Shows a battle that happened in 1432.  The Medici’s commissioned the oil painting.

How: Uccello was a huge fan of perspective, and he wanted to make his figures stand out instead of using sfumato or its predecessors. The figures are arranged very carefully, which is reminescent of the Gothic style.

by ghenose

Who: Jan Van Eyck

What: The Ghent Altarpiece, Open

When: 1432

Where: Belgium in the Cathedral of st. Bavo, Ghent

How: Mary, God, john the Baptist. Jesus’s hat with crown at his feet. Population at the bottom to see Jesus. Intuitive Perspective

by Sancho_panza

 Who: Diego Velazquez

What: Las Meninas

When: 1656

Where: Museo del prado, Madrid

How: White Princess with ladies in waiting. Velazquez in painting itself

by ghenose

by dungodung

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Laocoon_Pio-Clementino_Inv1059-1064-1067.jpg
Who: unknown artist
What: “Lacoon and his sons,” marble, Hellenistic style, depicts sea serpents sent by the gods to stop Lacoon from revealing the plan of the Trojan Horse
When: First Century B.C.E.
Where: Greece
Why: n/a
How: Influenced many later artists for its portrayal of pathos and the male figure.

What: Oil on canvas depicting a steamer (type of vessel) in the middle of a storm
Who: JMW Turner, in the Romantic era
When: late 18th/early 19th century (work created in 1842)
Where: England,
Why: N/A, but this was a sort of experiment Turner tried to see what worked and what didn’t
How: Turner likes to squeeze in a lot of stuff in his paintings to create a dramatic effect, which he does with the wind/rain/seawater flying around. Everything is pretty blurry and vague, so that one does not look at details but more to feel the impression of what it must be like to get stuck in a storm like this.
“In Turner, nature always reflects and expresses man’s emotions” (Gombrich, 491-492).

here’s a link
http://emptyeasel.com/2007/11/20/romanticism-the-emotional-art-movement-of-the-18th-and-19th-century/

What: When first built, it was a temple for the Ancient Roman gods; now it is a tomb, a church, and a world heritage site by UNESCO
Who: Commissioned by Emperor Hadrian, in dedication to Agrippa.
When: 126 AD
Where: Rome
Why: people believe it was a temple, but they’re not sure exactly what the Romans did with it.
How: The most notable part of the Pantheon is the nave; it has pilasters, niches, coffers, and an oculus. the oculus is the main source of light for the building. the ground is slightly uneven so that rainwater can be drained during a storm.
you can also find corinthian capitals outside the building