Humanities Essay Europe 2022

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Essay
Neoclassical paintings stress harsh reality and liner designs to depict a classical event,
theme, and characteristic using historical elements, costumes, and correct settings. Their
emergence in the form of paintings stimulated the new scientific interest among viewers and
classical antiques which arose during the 18th century. Romantic-era artist's voices, on the
other hand can be found across all genres such as music, art, and literature. The Romantic
practitioners reacted against the sober neoclassicism style which was preferred by academies
and countries (Brett and McKay). The modernist era was an era of fine arts which broke the
past views to portray new artistic expressions. The modernism started with the
experimentation of arts in late 19th till 20th century, especially following World War I. In this
light, this essay will reveal how the three masterpieces, The Intervention of Sabine women,
Massacre at Chios and Guernica reveals neoclassical, romantic and modernist era.
Jacques Louis David was a French painter and one of the most significant and
revolutionary painters of the Neoclassical movement in France. His compositional paintings
affected a disagreement towards Rococo fantasy and therefore, is considered as an influential
figure within European art between Rococo and Romantic period (History of Art). Painted
during the early revolution era, The Intervention of Sabine Women reflects an up-surging
desire for peace and the nation's exhaustion. While the theme was taken from Roman history,
a narrative message was highlighted in the form of Sabine women to bring peace amongst
Romans and the countrymen.
The Roman abduction following several years of conflict is represented in the
complicated scene besides depicting several loyalties within the play. The neoclassicism and
analogies of the post-revolutionary era are henceforth made clear. From a technical

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perspective, the painting features a more complex that a narrative art. It focuses on the white
and bare-chested women; however, several emotional monographs compete for the viewer's
perceptions at a time to gain attention. Such representation by Jacques contributed to a
significant change through singular plots which demanded a new look towards paintings. In
the exhibition of the painting, Jacques broke the tradition with a mirror and placed it on the
wall which was positioned opposite to the painting. Every onlooker could turn around and
look at their reflection in the mirror which enhanced the experience. The viewers felt that
they belonged to the revolutionary movement and were part of ongoing actions. This
participation approach became a key concern for 20th-century artists (The Art Story
Foundation).
The artwork, Massacre at Chios by Delacroix reveals a group of hysterical Greek
children, men, and women who lay huddled, some barely alive and few dead on the ground.
While a man on the left dies due to a wound in the stomach, his wife leans on his shoulder.
The mother leans against other women and children trying to suckle her bare breasts. Behind
all, an Ottoman Turk charges the group and drags a naked prisoner who seems to be fleeing.
The lesser defined figure in the background is engaged in the battle showcasing a devastated
area and the ocean meeting the golden sky horizons. The canvas as large as sixteen feet wide
encompasses the Greek's suffering and adds visual impacts to the drama (The Art History).
The painting made by Delacroix was greatly inspired by the Greek War of
independence in 1822 when the Island of Chios was invaded by Turkish Ottoman soldiers
who slaughtered several Greek rebellions. Diverging from classical narrative paintings and
entering into Romantic era, Delacroix's work established a new concept in art history which
was based on real circumstances instead of joining pieces of ancient mythology and history.
He brought the viewers closer to the reality and actions performed, particularly how the
victims suffered and making viewers feel that they belong to same plane as the figures in the

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painting do. Unlike other genres, Massacre at Chios showed a more classical moment in the
battleground, showing post-battle effects by using complex positional structure and rich
colors while grouping several figures in the background and front. When the painting was
exhibited in Paris Salon during 1834, it was surrounded by various critics as it portrayed the
Greeks as fatalities instead of brave soldiers (The Art History). However, the painting got
close observation later as it portrayed the landscape along with skies and raised the painting
level to a new and respectful form as other Romantic era paintings revealed. The painting
evokes a feeling of sublime and at the same time mixes it with terror and awe in the viewers.
In 1936, a Spanish painter Pablo Picasso was asked to paint artwork by a newly
elected Spanish Republican government for exhibiting in Spanish Pavilion at Paris World's
Fair (Khan Academy). The theme was set to Exposition and celebration of modern
technology; however, Picasso painted political painting. In brief, the history behind the
painting had taken the meaning behind the painting to an exceeding level, with the aesthetic
value of its own and showcasing the talent of its maker. The New York museum was
regarded as a custodian of art-work which held freedom endangered by advancements made
by Nazis. Guernica was much more than a good work an artist could ever make in the context
of theme alignment such as the beginning of the World War and people that were forced in
the battlegrounds (Giunta).
While artworks that were created for Republican pavilion seek providing service to
politics, Picasso planned to be apolitical although he was at a loss to whatever he painted at
that time. At the very first glance, viewers can see a chaotic and confusing picture that
immediately transports them amidst an intense violent action (Lesser). In the painting, space
is compressed with shifting and multiple perspectives of Picasso's Cubist and modernist style.
The images intersect and overlap which obscures the forms, making hard to distinguish the
boundary between them. In short, Guernica reminds people that every war kills thousands of

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soldiers besides killing several innocent families. In the modernist era, when wars became
insufferable, his panting proved how artwork can raise awareness among people concerning
self-assertion, giving rise to human rights movement and inborn freedom.
Work cited

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Brett and Kate McKay. The Basics of Art: The Romantic Period. 2018.
<https://www.artofmanliness.com/articles/the-basics-of-art-the-romantic-period/>.
Giunta, Andrea. “The Power of Interpretation (or How MoMA explained Guernica to its
audience).” Artelogie (2017): 1-18.
History of Art. Neoclassicism and Romanticism. n.d.
<http://www.all-art.org/neoclasscism/david4.html>.
Khan Academy. Picasso, Guernica. n.d. <https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/art-
1010/cubism-early-abstraction/cubism/a/picasso-guernica>.
Lesser, Casey. What Makes Guernica Picasso’s Most Influential Painting. 2017.
<https://www.artsy.net/article/artsy-editorial-guernica-picassos-influential-painting>.
The Art History. Eugène Delacroix. n.d. <https://www.theartstory.org/artist/delacroix-
eugene/>.
The Art Story Foundation. Jacques-Louis David Artworks. 2019.
<https://www.theartstory.org/artist/david-jacques-louis/artworks/>.