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Realism (n)
mid-19th-century movement, led by Gustave Courbet, in which artists strove to create representations of the world that were objective, unemotional, and democratic, focusing on common people and everyday activities rather religious or allegorical themes. Realist artists rejected the idealism of Salon painters, whom they considered too traditional and unaware of the realities of modern life. Realism culminated in the Impressionist movement. |
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Renaissance (n)
French word meaning "rebirth;" in 15th- and 16th-century Europe, a period marked by the revival of learning, literature, art, and architecture, emphasizing and often imitating classical examples from ancient Greece and Rome. Although the Renaissance was initially centered in Italy, aspects of Renaissance culture also appeared in northern Europe. |
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Republican (adj)
supporter of a republic, a type of government in which citizens are entitled to vote and are represented by a group of elected officials. In 18th-century France, Republicans were revolutionaries who sought to dissolve the monarchy and give a greater share of power and representation to the lower classes. |
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Revolution of 1848 (n)
series of revolts against European monarchies that began in Italy and spread to France, Germany, and the Austrian Empire. In France, the population revolted against the monarchy of King Louis-Philippe, which had been established in the wake of the earlier revolution of 1830. The 1848 French rebellion was briefly successful, resulting in reforms such as universal suffrage (right to vote), until Louis-Napoléon, Napoléon I’s nephew, seized power and established the Second Empire in 1852 under his own leadership as Napoléon III. |
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Rococo (adj or n)
of or relating to a period that emerged at the end of the Baroque characterized in art by decoration; lightness in tone, in both color and mood; and the use of organic forms and asymmetry in design. Subjects in painting include the fête gallante. Centered in France, the Rococo style was international, flourishing especially in Austria, Germany, and Italy. |
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Romantic (adj)
of or related to Romanticism, a movement in the first half of the 19th century that involved a rejection of the rigid rationalism of Neoclassicism in favor of imagination and emotional expression. Romantic writers and visual artists found fault with the idea of social progress through science and industry put forth by Enlightenment thinkers. Instead, artists turned toward nature, spiritualism or mysticism, and non-Western cultures for personal and artistic inspiration. |
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royalist/anti-royalist (n)
supporter of monarchical government; opponent of monarchical government
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Rubens Peter Paul
(1577–1640) major Flemish artist of the Baroque period who was sought after by patrons across Europe for his expressive paintings that combined religious and mythological themes with dramatic lighting, bold color, and dynamic compositions.
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rustic (adj)
rural; typical of country life |
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Rousseau, Jean Jacques
(1712–1778) French philosopher and theorist at the center of a group of Enlightenment thinkers known as the philosophes (“philosophers”). In his writings, Rousseau argued that progress had corrupted the natural goodness of humans and that inequality among men was the product of increasing alienation from nature. Rousseau advocated for a new type of private life, urging for the expression of emotion rather than polite restraint in social relationships and for care, interest, and love in childrearing. |
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Salon (n)
official art exhibition held annually (after 1737) for members of the French Academy (Royal Academy of Painting and Sculpture in the 17th and 18th centuries and the Academy of Fine Arts in the 19th and 20th centuries). Objects shown were selected by jury, and invitations to exhibit often secured an artist’s reputation. In the later 19th century, the Salon lost control over the Paris art world when competing exhibition venues established by independent groups, such as the Impressionists, were founded. |
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Second Empire (n)
regime established under Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte (Napoléon’s nephew), who ruled as Napoléon III, after the fall of the constitutional monarchy in the Revolution of 1848. The authoritarian Second Empire was a two-decade period of relative stability and only came to an end with the defeat of France in the Franco-Prussian war of 1870–1871. |
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still life (n)
a depiction of an inanimate object or objects, such as flowers or fruit |
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suite (n)
in art, a group of interrelated works, such as paintings, sculpture, or furniture |
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Tasso, Torquato
(1544–1595) late Renaissance Italian poet and author of the epic poem Jerusalem Delivered (Gerusalemme Liberata) generally credited with reviving the ancient epic format. Though emotionally troubled, Tasso authored a number of other poems, including an extensively revised version of Jerusalem Delivered, retitled Jerusalem Conquered (Gerusalemme Conquista), that eliminated the romantic passages, which he considered distracting to the Christian theme.
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Three Graces (n)
figures of Greek and Roman mythology who symbolize fertility, charm, and beauty and are often associated with Aphrodite (Venus), the goddess of love. |
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Tiffany, Louis Comfort
(1848–1933) decorative arts designer of the early 20th century whose decorative glasswork exhibits elements of the European Art Nouveau aesthetic. |
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tripod (n)
object or piece of furniture supported by three legs and/or feet |
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unifying elements (n)
in art, backgrounds, colors, and/or forms that lend visual coherence, especially to a work consisting of multiple parts, such as a suite |
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Velázquez, Diego
(1599–1660) major 17th-century Spanish Baroque painter who trained in Seville and eventually became painter to the king under Philip IV. Primarily a portraitist, Velázquez painted still lifes, genre images, and history subjects as well. His most famous work is Las Meninas, an enigmatic group portrait of the Spanish royal family that also includes a self-portrait of the artist. |
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Versailles (n)
royal residence southwest of Paris transformed by King Louis XIV from a hunting lodge into a dazzling palace with formal gardens. Every aspect of Versailles, designed by Jules Hardouin-Mansart, Louis le Vau, and Charles le Brun, was contrived to glorify France and the Sun King (Louis XIV), with extensive reliance on themes of light and reflection, best seen in the Hall of Mirrors. |
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Virgil
First-century A.D. Roman poet and author of the epic poem the Aeneid, which tells the tale of the adventures of Rome’s founder, Aeneas. |
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Zurbarán, Francisco
(1598–1664) 17th-century Spanish painter whose works employ powerful realism and, typical of Baroque art, dramatic lighting to create heightened emotional effects. Zurbarán’s compelling images of Catholic saints helped promote Counter-Reformation values. A contemporary of Diego Velázquez, he also served as court painter for King Philip IV. |
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