History of Portraiture
Portraiture is a visual representation of an individual people, distinguished by references to the subject's character, social position, wealth, or profession.
Portraitists often strive for exact visual likenesses. However, although the viewer's correct identification of the sitter is of primary importance, exact replication is not always the goal. Artists may intentionally alter the appearance of their subjects by embellishing or refining their images to emphasize or minimize particular qualities (physical, psychological, or social) of the subject. Viewers sometimes praise most highly those images that seem to look very little like the sitter because these images are
…show more content…
The Romans were expert in rendering individuals. Some scholars have argued that it was the practice of making and keeping death masks of ancestors (worn by survivors in the funeral processions) that accounts for the enormous skill with which Roman portraitists captured the individuality of their subjects. Many portrait busts survive, including images of Roman rulers as well as poignant representations of aged citizens. Especially noteworthy are the mummy portraits from the region of Al Fayyūm in Egypt. Painted during the 2nd century ad, these portraits depict individuals who stare wide-eyed at the viewer. These slightly simplified representations of staring subjects anticipate the severity and frontal orientation of early medieval portraits.
The Renaissance marked a turning point in the history of portraiture. Partly out of interest in the natural world and partly out of interest in the classical cultures of ancient Greece and Rome, portraits—both painted and sculpted—were given an important role in Renaissance society.
In the Netherlands, Jan van Eyck was a leading portraitist; The Arnolfini Marriage (1434, National Gallery, London) is a detailed full-length portrait of a couple. Leading German portrait artists include Hans Holbein the Younger and Albrecht Dürer.
During the baroque and rococo periods (17th century and 18th century, respectively),
SHELDON NODELMAN from E. D’Ambra, ed., Roman Art in Context. NY: Prentice Hall. 1993 pp. 10‐20 Like all works of art. the portrait is a system of signs; it is often an ideogram of “public’ meanings condensed into the image of a human face. Roman portrait sculpture from the Republic through the late Empire-the second century BCE. to the sixth CE -constitutes what is surely the most remarkable body of portrait art ever created. Its shifting montage of abstractions from human appearance and character forms a language in which the history of a whole society can be read. Beginning in the first century B.C., Roman artists invented a new kind of portraiture, as unlike that of the great tradition of Greek
Jan Van Eyck’s The Arnolfini Portrait (1434) is an oil painting on wood, measuring 82.2 cm by 60 cm. It is a small full-length double portrait, which portrays the Italian merchant Giovanni di Nicolao Arnolfini and his wife in their home. It is considered to be a record and sanctification of a marriage contract in the form of a painting. This is seen in the rather formal way Arnolfini holds his wife’s hand and how his other hand is raised, suggesting the occurrence of an oath. A convex mirror resides above the couple’s hands, which is decorated with medallions, show scenes from the Passion of Christ and portray God’s incessant promise of salvation for the two people who are visible in the mirror — they are witnesses of the Arnolfini marriage. The portrait provides clear pictorial evidence of the rank and social status of the subjects. Arnolfini’s wife’s robe is trimmed with ermine fur and is fabricated with an excessive amount of fabric, outlining the couple’s reasonable wealth. Arnolfini’s attire consists of a plaited straw cap and a velvet cloak, which is lined with fur. The absence of gold jewellery and the inadequate chamber size indicate a bourgeois status, however, some of the other objects (stained-glass
Throughout the history of art, there has always been a plethora of portraiture, no matter the time period or the medium whether is be sculptures, paintings or even carvings. Humans have always been fascinated with themselves and the way others look. But it’s not always about vanity, it means so much more and can be conveyed in many different ways. In some cases, the artists moved beyond that of a simple likeness and can instill different emotions in the viewer. That being said, in this essay I will compare and contrast two portraits. The first is an oil painting titled Man in a Red Turban by Flemish painter Jan van Eyck from 1433. The second work of art is Louis XIV by Hyacinthe Rigaud, a French Baroque painter. The portrait is from 1701
Many think that his wife is pregnant, but she is not. She is just holding up her full-skirted dress in a contemporary fashion. Arnolfini came from family of merchants from Lucca living in Bruges. The couple are shown in a nice environment that looks pretty expensive and seem to be wearing nice clothes, which makes them appear to be wealthy. The work is known to be one of the most impressive paintings during the Northern Renaissance because of how detailed it is. Some of the details noticed by many are the little hairs sticking out of the dog, the type of cloth on their clothing, and the material of the clogs in the bottom left-hand corner. There are a lot of questions surrounding the Arnolfini Portrait because Jan van Eyck wrote on the portrait himself that it was made in 1434, but if the portrait was supposed to be of him and his wife, that didn’t make sense. Many believed that this painting may have symbolized that he had moved on and had a new woman in his life to love because his wife had died in
Van Eyck was a Flemish painter from 1390 – 1441. He was very well known for his advanced skill in naturalistic portraiture. He completed the Arnolfini Wedding Portrait in 1434. The portrait depicts Giovanni Arnolfini, a financier for the Medici family, with his second wife.
Jan van Eyck has been one of the more prominent early Netherlandish painters during his time. He has had many famous works, however one of his more interesting and questionable pieces is The Arnolfini Portrait. There is much to be desired in this painting by the great van Eyck. Van Eyck has been a master painter most of his career, but in this painting he is able to show how his excellent painting skills can bring this painting to life. The Arnolfini Portrait, which measures 82 × 59.5 cm (32.3 × 23.4 in) is an oil painting on oak panel dated 1434. This painting is also known by other as The Arnolfini Wedding, The Arnolfini Marriage, The Arnolfini Double Portriat, or Giovanni Arnolfini and his Wife. It is one of the only 15th century
artist’s mark on a photograph in the same way that we can on a painted
Portraiture has been around for many years, dating all the way back to cave drawings. It is an art that has continued to progress and evolve while maintaining the key elements that classify it as portrait making. Despite the fact that as an art it has changed throughout history, portraiture continues to be an integral part of society. Even though the subject matter seems simple and limited, there are infinite amounts of ways a person can be creative when it comes to designing a portrait. There are a multitude of ways a portrait can be created, depending on the tools that are used and the style the artists desires the portrait to be.
These transcripts taught the designers unique techniques for painting and how to obtain a desired effect through simple brush strokes. Carefully adhering to these lost principles, painters rediscovered the process of more lifelike imagery, causing many portraits to seem almost real. Many times, these realistic pictures would be commissioned by the wealthy elite as a symbol of status and success. Famous examples of portraits include Mona Lisa, Arnolfini Wedding, and the Ambassadors. The Renaissance exact and realistic style is most accurately portrayed through the knowledge of classical documents and beautiful
Presenter: Welcome. Welcome, to the national radio, bringing you the latest news, and updates. Today we have a special guest speaker, all the way from France... I am happy to present Mr. Daumier, the famous 19th century painter.
The Renaissance time frame is portrayed by a freshly discovered concentrate on the person. Craftsmanship and culture encompassing the Renaissance time frame was prevalently centered around glorification of the human shape and human capacity. Craftsmanship, for example, painting and model, concentrated on the magnificence of the human shape while the writing celebrated the brightness of mankind and self-intrigue and another accentuation on instruction came about because of another picture of human ability.
Advanced Placement Art History is an Advanced Placement Art History course and exam offered by College Board. AP Art History is designed to allow students to examine major forms of artistic expression relevant to a variety of cultures evident in wide variety of periods from present times into the past. Students acquire an ability to examine works of art critically, with intelligence and sensitivity, and to articulate their thoughts and experiences. The main topic is European Art, with focuses on African, Hindu, South and East Asian, and Islamic Art. Pre-Historic art has been removed from the curriculum. Starting in the 2015-2016 school year, College Board has introduced a new curriculum and exam for students to apply art historical skills
Portraits to me are art in a different sense. Some of my favorite portraits are by Martin Waugh. It is what he calls Liquid Sculpture. He uses high speed photography to capture drops of liquid as the splash into lakes and other bodies of water. To me there is just something so soothing about his work. It is amazing how a tiny drop of liquid can create such a beautiful work of art. His work impresses me, because I never really thought of liquid as art before I saw one of his photos.
Similarly, the image of Madonna Enthroned was painted by Cimabue in Italy during the 13th Century, an interesting period of the country’s religious and art history. It was during the 13th Century that Italy was on the brink of a great revival known as the Renaissance. Cimabue’s work represents the best of the Byzantine Tradition. Cimabue is also the well-known teacher of Giotto, one of the leading artists of the Italian Renaissance. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cimabue
The painting is still being interpreted differently, however one of the interpretations is that the portrait is painted to keep a memory of the wife since many wives died after giving birth at the time. The wife is thought to be pregnant and so a memory of the wife with her husband seemed to be necessary. The couples were of an upper middle class which were able to afford to pay the artist for a portrait and the details of the era were also described in the painting. The clothing, the furniture, religious figures that are present in the mirror for instance give an idea of the important details considered at that ear. Jan van Eyck in other words, used the portrait to describe the couples, to keep a memory of them, and described significant details of that era. He visualized how an upper class family usually is in terms of their houses and clothing. Moreover, the artist uses lightening and shades to emphasize more on the painting and to make it as real as