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“There were, as there always are, mitigating factors. For example, Rome was sacked in 1527, taken over by the armies of Charles V. Charles (who had previously just been Charles I, King of Spain) had himself crowned as Holy Roman Emperor and got to control things in most of Europe and the New World. By all accounts, he was not particularly interested in sponsoring art or artists - especially not Italian artists. Neither was he enamored with the idea of the independent city-states of Italy, and most of them lost their independent status.” |
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| "Additionally, a troublemaker named Martin Luther had been stirring things up in Germany, and the spread of his radical preaching was causing many to question the authority of the Church. The Church, of course, found this absolutely intolerable. Its response to the Reformation was to launch the Counter Reformation, a joyless, restrictive authoritative movement which had a Zero Tolerance policy toward Renaissance innovations (among many, many other things)." |
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| "Where High Renaissance art was natural, graceful, balanced and harmonious, the art of Mannerism was quite different. While technically masterful, Mannerist compositions were full ofclashing colors, disquieting figures with abnormally elongated limbs, (often torturous-looking) emotion and bizarre themes that combined Classicism, Christianity and mythology." |
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| There is no one style associated to Mannerism (named because of the effected manner many figures possessed during this time) |
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| "But during the last half of the 16th century and well in to the 17th century, we can see an increasing movement toward the individual artist using their creativity in unorthodox ways. . . . . . from distorting and abstracting the human form, to very different and sometimes strange compositional designs." |
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| "So with Mannerism, we go beyond Classicism toward the realm of the power of the artist to create and distort in which ever way he or she pleases." |
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[image]
Madonna of the Long Neck (1540)- Parmigianino
"Ultimately influenced by Raphael, Parmigianino borrows his graceful elegance, but that's just about all. As you can see, the Madonna's neck, body and fingers are outrageously distorted, as is the baby Jesus, who looks as if he's in the process of falling off the Virgin's lap. Adding to the sense of distortion is the saint with a scroll in the lower right, and the strange column in the background. Parmigianino tells us that there are more ways than just Classicism to render a painting." |
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| "A work in the mannerist style is generally based on intellectual preconceptions instead of direct visual perceptions. Additionally, this period is notable for the artificial rather than naturalist qualities of paintings." |
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| "Rather than emphasize the observation of nature, artists were starting to favor their own intellect, invention, and technique. This was a partial result of the artistic profession’s increasing societal prestige." |
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"A mannerist painting is characterized by the elongated forms of figures, irrational settings, and a lack of perspective. The lighting in most mannerist paintings can be described as theatrical. Virtuoso technique created compositions of clashing color; emotions; and combinations of Christian, mythological, and Classical themes." |
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| "Mannerism is also a general term for any idiosyncratic element of an author’s style that sets it apart." |
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"In general, Mannerist artists and architects took the classical or idealized forms developed by Italian Renaissance artists of the early 16th century, but exaggerated or used these forms in unconventional ways in order to heighten tension, power, emotion, or elegance." |
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"Mannerists felt free to experiment with traditional subjects from the Bible or mythology; they might intensify the emotional drama or add literary or visual references so that even knowledgeable viewers had to work hard to decipher the meaning. In other words, Mannerism is a style that displays the skill of the artist and demands knowledge of the viewer." |
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| "he term Mannerism derives from the Italian word maniera, meaning “style” or “way of working.” Writers of the 16th century praised works for having maniera—a way of saying they were stylish. But critics also used the term in a negative sense, for works in which the artist seemed to rely too much on imagination or on conventions established by other artists, rather than on observation of nature." |
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| Mannerism/Parmigianino 15- Source 4 |
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"His Madonna with the Long Neck (1534-1540, Uffizi, Florence) shows a sensuous Virgin Mary, whose elongated body and languid gestures reflect ideals of feminine beauty from that time. However, the painting shows glaring inconsistencies in its depiction of space: Mary, Jesus, and their attendant angels loom in the foreground, dwarfing a tiny prophet figure at lower right, and a single column in the background starts as multiple columns at its base." |
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| "In method the Mannerist artists were art critics, consciously selecting what they considered to be the best elements from the masters of the previous generation." |
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| "Mannerism in painting was concerned with problems of figure movement and emphasized purely decorative qualities and chiaroscuro. Moreover, in painting at the time there began the decided tendency toward dramatic realism..." |
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| "But the constant striving for emotional effects resulted in an artificial and pretentious style suggesting that the affectations were simply imitations, mannered and studied, and revealing that the artists were often not selective in the best sense of the term." |
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| "Maniera, as applied to an artistic movement, implies overt stylization and an obsession with artificial conventions. In the 16th century virtuosity, then equated with great facility of execution, and the overcoming of complex and difficult problems, was highly prized in the arts,..." |
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| ". An obsession with virtuosity and elegance, then, was the guiding force of mannerism, essentially an artificial, anti-naturalistic style." |
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| "It has been construed as a reaction against the ideals of the High Renaissance, as an expression of the spiritual crisis of the time, or as a sophisticated art created solely for art's sake, exemplifying the aesthetic theories of the 16th century. In fact, all of these theories are valid, presenting parallel, rather than incompatible, explanations of the many manifestations of this consciously ambiguous means of expression." |
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| " As inhabitants of a minor planet whirling through space, people began to realize that they were no longer the center of creation. The combined effects of these and other discoveries began to weaken the belief in divine intervention in human affairs." |
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| "The Mannerist derivation is fluid and expressive, more torsion than balance. In a two-dimensional depiction, the figure is composed in an S-curve, so the head faces the opposite direction as the feet, the hips uniting the opposing members by means of a sinuous curve." |
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| "In Florentine painting in particular, figures were often elongated, while the heads remained relatively small." |
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| " In Mannerist compositions, space is unevenly filled. The picture plane was no longer constrained by the rules of perspective, and its logical boundaries were blurred or ignored. Sometimes there is only a neutral background, providing no comprehensible environment. In other compositions, the background seems to stretch into infinity, interspersed with auxiliary scenes apparently not related the main theme." |
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| "In many instances the space in two-dimensional compositions is compressed, forcing figures and other elements to inhabit a shallow area uncomfortably close to the foreground limits. Other common Mannerist tactics are asymmetrical composition, off-center diagonals, and figures that are cut off, not fully contained by the picture plane. The consistent result is a composition that is deliberately confusing, fabricating tension in the viewer's perception." |
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| " No longer were the elements of a pictorial composition illuminated from a single light source, seemingly arriving from a logical point outside the painting. Now light was imposed arbitrarily, sometimes emanating from a source within the composition, such as a halo; sometimes coming from diverse directions, lighting elements at odd angles and casting impossible shadows. Light signified divinity and could be used to transform a commonplace setting into a heavenly realm." |
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| ". A new painterly concept was necessary for representing the spiritual. The primacy of line gave way to the emotional immediacy of color. Forms became less tangible and clearly defined, sometimes becoming focal points of vibrant, irrational hues. Brushstrokes could be broken or sketchy. Both the descriptive value of light and the focus on movement were effective tools that Mannerist artists utilized to concoct credible portrayals of transcendental themes." |
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| "The tenor of these paintings resounds with the initial reforming spirit of the early phase of the Counter Reformation, yet in execution they are still untamed and unregulated. The Church was telling artists what and what not to paint, but could not tell artists how." |
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| "The manifestation of the Baroque as a distinct style began in Italy as a direct outgrowth and emphasis of the Mannerism of the late sixteenth century." |
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| "The seventeenth century in art is called the Baroque period, taking its name from the Portuguese word for the rich fullness of an imperfect pearl, a term implying the enlarged outlook of art as a reflection of the times." |
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| " The Renaissance youth contrasts with the stronger Baroque figure of a grown man." |
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| "Baroque art encompasses vast regional distinctions. It may seem confusing, for example, to label two such different artists as Rembrandt and Gian Lorenzo Bernini as baroque; yet despite differences, many shared stylistic preoccupations and common themes were handled by each artist in his own way." |
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| "Religion determined many aspects of baroque art. The Roman Catholic church was a highly influential patron, and its Counter Reformation, a movement to combat the spread of Protestantism, employed emotional, realistic, and dramatic art as a means of propagating the faith." |
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| " The absolute monarchies of France and Spain prompted the creation of works that reflected in their size and splendor the majesty of their kings, Louis XIV and Philip IV." |
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| "Among the general characteristics of baroque art are a sense of movement, energy, and tension (whether real or implied). Strong contrasts of light and shadow enhance the dramatic effects of many paintings and sculptures. Even baroque buildings, with their undulating walls and decorative surface elements, imply motion with contrasts in light and color." |
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| "Intense spirituality is often present in works of baroque art; in the Roman Catholic countries, for example, scenes of ecstasies, martyrdoms, or miraculous apparitions are common." |
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| " Realism is another integral feature of baroque art; the figures in paintings are not types but individuals with their own personalities. Artists of this time were concerned with the inner workings of the mind and attempted to portray the passions of the soul on the faces they painted and sculpted. The intensity and immediacy of baroque art and its individualism and detailóobserved in such things as the convincing rendering of cloth and skin texturesómake it one of the most compelling periods of Western art." |
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| "When first applied to the visual arts, at the very end of this period, "baroque" conveyed a rather negative attitude. It suggested bizarre or simply bad taste." |
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| " In each country there was a considerable variety of styles from which to choose. An earthy realism that copied life was one choice. Another was a more refined manner that revived the classical styles of ancient Greece and Rome and of the Renaissance. A dramatic, emotionally charged style that sought to represent the supernatural was yet a third. Choices of subject matter frequently went hand in hand with such choices of style." |
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| " In most Protestant countries, including Germany and England, art was considered an unnecessary luxury and was suppressed. But in one Protestant country, Holland, an entirely new kind of art was created. It was based on the routines of everyday life. But it still followed the Calvinist doctrine of banning images that depicted religious subjects. In Catholic countries such as Italy, Spain, and France, it was different. Painters and sculptors continued the long-standing practice of using biblical stories as their primary subject matter." |
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| "Although the term embraced a bewildering variety of styles, it was typically characterized by two things: a sense of grandeur (or sensuous richness), plus an overt emotional content. It was through these two elements that Baroque painters, sought to evoke emotional states in the viewer by appealing to the senses, often in dramatic ways." |
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| "Baroque painting - in this case landscape painting - was also influenced by the general widening of human intellectual horizons, triggered by developments in science and by geographical explorations of the globe. These two factors produced a new sense both of human insignificance and of the mysterious complexity of the natural world. Thus in the landscape painting of the period we see humans often portrayed as tiny figures in a vast natural setting." |
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| "It is appropriate to begin an account of Baroque painting with its favourite genre and characteristic function: the illusionist decoration of the walls of an interior. Obviously the idea of using a wall to display a painted scene was as old as art; what was new, or almost new, was the use made of this technique of mural painting by Baroque artists." |
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| " On the walls, and more especially on the ceilings, of churches and palaces they painted vast, busy scenes, which tend to produce upon the spectator a trompe l'oeil impression that the walls or ceiling no longer exist, or at least that they open out in an exciting way." |
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| "Such illusionist art - among them some of the best Baroque paintings ever created - varied greatly in the stories they told - lives of saints, histories of dynasties, myths, or tales of heroes - but they were consistent in the components they deployed: architectural glories standing out against the sky; soaring angels and saints; figures in swift motion, their garments billowing out in the wind; all depicted with bold foreshortening - the perspective effect of looking upwards from below or conversely downwards from above, which makes the figures appear shorter." |
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| "In spite of the great divergences between the work of various artists in the Baroque period - divergences so great that many art critics are not prepared to designate their work by a single common adjective - the thematic use of light and shade in constructing any significant work was, to a greater or lesser degree, common to them all, to the extent of being the key feature and unifying pictorial motif of the age." |
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| "n. A hangover, if you like, from the Renaissance, classicism was the opposite of Romanticism, being a style of art in which adherence to accepted aesthetic ideals takes precedence over individuality of expression. In simple terms, it was a restrained, harmonious style that believed in primacy of design, rather than (say) colour or expressionism." |
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| "The realist Baroque aesthetic goes further than realistic composition: it also features photorealism. (Only in the Baroque era did painting reach a level of physical realism that could be reasonably described as “photorealistic”.) The contrasting approach is idealism, which had prevailed in Renaissance painting, and was generally continued by dynamic Baroque painters." |
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| "Thus, in the nations of Protestant Europe (including the Netherlands), artists were unable to make a living from either religious art or dynamic Baroque art. In terms of aesthetic, this led Protestant artists to embrace realist Baroque; in terms of content, secular (non-religious) subjects." |
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"Peter Paul Rubens, the greatest Baroque artist of Flanders, is often considered the foremost painter of the dynamic Baroque aesthetic (though he also worked in realist Baroque).1 His style is often described as painterly, which means that he prioritized free, expressive strokes of colour over sharply-defined forms. (An artist who prefers sharply-defined forms will first draw those forms, then carefully add paint within the lines of the drawing; this is linear style painting, the opposite of painterly style.)
Rubens’ most famous works may be two altarpieces: Raising of the Cross and Descent from the Cross. His gift for dynamism was also well-suited to hunting scenes." |
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| "The art of Flanders in the baroque period continued to reflect the religious beliefs of Catholicism and the rigid class distinctions of Spanish society. Peter Paul Rubens expressed the values of this culture better than anyone. His painting The Adoration of the Magi (1624) depicts the birth of Christ as an aristocratic pageant. It has none of the simplicity usually found in Nativity scenes. Instead of humble shepherds in a rustic stable, there are splendidly costumed Magi in a grand setting offering expensive gifts." |
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| Peter Paul Rubens 1- Source 12 |
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| " Religion figured prominently in much of his work and Rubens later became one of the leading voices of the Catholic Counter-Reformation style of painting." |
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| Peter Paul Ruben 2- Source 12 |
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"The Raising of the Cross, for example, demonstrates the artist's synthesis of Tintoretto's Crucifixion for the Scuola di San Rocco in Venice, Michelangelo's dynamic figures, and Rubens's own personal style. This painting has been held as a prime example of Baroque religious art."
[image] |
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| Peter Paul Rubens- Source 13 |
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| "In this painting as often in Rubens the facial expressions are relaxed and handsome (do we doubt that Hera’s is any different?) so there is a suggestion of five adults acting out a drama or myth but not experiencing its tensions, and this in fact is already an element in Lucian’s tale, in which Zeus proposes the contest as just a simple beauty contest: its fateful implications are not grasped by the participants. The warmth in the picture relates to this aspect. Though War cries overhead and is the meaning of the myth, the painting successfully asserts a tranquillity that is merely enriched by its darker elements." |
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| Parmigianino 1- Source 14 |
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| "Critical perception to Parmigianino has most definitely evolved over time and perhaps falls into two main strands: early critics who saw his work as exaggerated creations in order to challenge the artistic masters of his day and later critics who view it as an effort to translate the spiritual confusions of a turbulent era of history." |
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| Parmigianino 2- Source 14 |
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| "Parmigianino's style is characterized by lengthening of form, whether this is necks, limbs or shapes. Some of his artworks seem to be fixated by a sense of distortion, and as with many other mannerist artists his work exaggerates the ideal beauty depicted by Raphael and other eminent renaissance artists" |
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| " Often the colors used are vivid and give an impression of tension and unreal lighting." |
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| "In his drawings and paintings, if you look closely, you will see that often the subjects are built up by layers of sketchy, hazy brushstrokes, emphasizing the artificiality of the artist's impression of nature." |
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| "His figures, whether in individual portraits or characters within religious scenes, often seem to be imbued with a subtle or blatant sensuality." |
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| "Visually, Parmigianino always tried to play around with spatial relationships in his images and with the proportions of the human figure. " |
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| "One element that he most certainly picked up was the use of 'sfumato' or the smooth blurring of outline and tone. This is most apparent in Parmigianino's drawings where he has used red and black chalks." |
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