Contrast Between Romanticism and Realism

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Representation v. Abstraction and Art & Society
Section 1: Representation v. Abstraction
Part 1: Contrast Between Romanticism and Realism
* Napoleon at the Penthouse (1804), Antoine-Jean Gros (France)
* Stone Breakers (1849), Gustav Courbet (France)
Across the history of art, art movements emerged in response to the existing artistic approaches. Romanticism, for instance, rejected the formalities of neoclassicism and instead focused on emotion. An example of such work is Napoleon at the Penthouse, painted in 1804 by Antoine-Jean Gros. On the other hand, realism rejected the notions of exotic subject matter and the perceived exaggeration of drama and emotionalism typified by the Romantic movement. Instead, realism was characterized by subjects painted while in day-to-day activities in a naturalistic manner. Such work is Stone Breakers, painted in 1849 by Gustav Courbet. A contrast between these two paintings should reveal distinctions between artists, art, and the culture in which they were valued.
Romanticism art's key distinctive features include painterliness, expressiveness & individualism, vividness and intensity, inspiration, emotion, presence of sensuous or religious themes, and interest in nature (Davies et al. 786). In Napoleon at the Penthouse, elements of painterliness are manifested through the use of color, light strokes, and smooth texture. The painting has distinctive colors, including red, white, brown, green, black, orange, and sky blue, with subtle strokes enhancing detail. The painting shows Napoleon visiting a penthouse where plague victims were being housed. Here, there is the portrayal of commanding and poignant feeling whose product is empathy for the victims. Further, the visit of Napoleon to such a place, if anything, is a show of gloried emotion both for the plague victims and the audience. In the background is a cloudy sky with orange shades that suggest sunset coupled with heavy grey clouds; an appreciation of nature as a trait of romanticism art.
Romanticism, scholars argue (Davies et al. 787), was inspired by revolutionary events like the American and French revolutions, emerging as a response to the disillusionment with the enlightenment values of order and reason and the artistic nostalgia of classical art that dominated the neoclassical era. The interest in individuals, such as the focus on Napoleon and plague victims, was a response to the need to address the individual needs of people, such as liberty, dignity, and independence, that had become necessary and dominated public discourse, especially in the aftermath of the French revolution. Nevertheless, addressing the needs of individuals called for understanding their emotions and the environment in which they lived. This is why Napoleon at the Penthouse attempts to capture emotional support, typify empathy, and appreciate the natural world's presence, as shown by the sky in the background. The cultural shift to the individual's needs, emotions, and needs became the central focus of Romanticism.
On the other hand, realism strived to capture the naturalistic manner of everyday life. This notion was influenced by the rise of photography and journalism, which inspired a new interest in capturing life as it is. The movement contradicted the notions of Romanticism by producing artworks in a realistic and almost photographic way. This is the first thing one gathers when looking at the Stone Breakers by Gustav Courbet. The painting depicts two peasants, an older man, and a young man, breaking rocks. As a work of realism, this work of art demonstrates everyday life and how people earn a living. The depiction strives to provide an accurate, unembellished depiction of contemporary life without the imaginative idealization. It focuses on the outward appearance of peasants working hard without making it emotional or romanticizing the situation.
There was little or no interest in the commoner's plight during the romanticism period, which spilled over to the post-French Revolution era. The focus was on iconic leaders like Napoleon and the elite members of society. From this perspective, realism was inspired by the renewed interest in the commoner and the perceived increasing interests of the leftist politics that emerged post the French and American revolutions and similar events. In essence, realists strived to 'tell it as it is so that society could understand what people were going through without the pampering of Romanticism. This stands out in the Stone Breakers, where the raw energy of hardworking men is depicted. It demonstrates an effort to change society and move away from monarchies' elitist politics into a political, social, and economic system in which the common person is visible.
Therefore, the contrast between Courbet and Gros's works reveals the different worldviews that motivated each of the respective paintings. If anything, these differences reveal a temporal transition in which people are increasingly calling for a change in society. Courbet's work does not have the painterliness depicted in Gros's work, and neither does it have the appeal to emotions or drama. Though it depicts a possible actual life event, it is not marred with emotions or a need for empathy. Instead, it shows the actual phenomenon in its natural context. Thus, these two eras of movements depict a shift in the perception of how the world should be, transitioning from an elitist-dominated society (Romanticism) to a society in which the ordinary person is visible (realism). These differences also emulate the political positions of the artists. Courbet, for instance, held the view that art could be used as an effective tool to capture and reflect the realities of the world in which he lived (Davies et al.). In his view, Romanticism worked to hide these realities and, therefore, caused people in leadership positions to ignore the plights of the common person. On the other hand, Gros held reasonable opinions that appeared to be fence-sitting and, therefore, left France at the height of the French Revolution, when radical positions were supposed to be taken to determine whether one was for or against the revolution. With one foot in the neoclassical perception of life and reality, his work was motivated by both nostalgia for neoclassicism and the increasing need for empathy for the common such as the plague victims in his work.
Part 2: Comparison Between Cubism and Naturalism
* Madonna of the Rocks (1483-6), by Leonardo DaVinci (Naturalism)
* Braque Houses at Lestaque (1908) by Georges Braque (Cubism)
Finding art that shares an interest in realism or abstraction across time helps people link different artistic traditions, moments, or movements based on their historical context. Naturalism and realism are both grouped under representational art, making them close in their respective traits. Like realism, naturalism was also a reaction against Romanticism because it was thought to have lost touch with reality on the ground. Thus, naturalism focused on rendering reality without ...