Artistic Perambulations

I’ve always appreciated art from a purely subjective point of view, depending on whether the oeuvre pleased my limited aesthetic senses or not. Even in my relatively deeper knowledge of the Impressionists, there was a vast ignorance. I could easily identify an Impressionist painting and most of the time, even identify the artist. However, if you asked me to describe the work objectively and analytically, I’d fail completely. So when I was offered the opportunity to take up a course entitled “Initiation to the History of Art” I jumped at the opportunity. I must admit feeling very lost in the first two classes, having absolutely no clue what the professor was rambling about and staring almost morosely at the works she presented. It was only the presence of 2 sessions on Impressionism in the course programme that held me back. Two months, i.e, 8 sessions, later I’m so incredibly glad I stuck with the course, for I now understand and appreciate art better and I can finally talk about it without sounding like a dim-witted blonde gasping about how pretty a painting is, like it was a mannequin on 5th avenue!

We’ve worked our way through Classicism, Rococo, Neo-classicism, Romanticism and Realism, touching briefly on the reflection of the various periods and style on architecture and sculpture before reaching Impressionism. My excitement last week when the professor showed us a slide of Monet’s “Impression of a Sunrise” followed by Renoir’s “Luncheon of a Boating Party” was almost unbridled and I can’t wait to move onto Chagall and Matisse, both artists I know and appreciate, albeit superficially. But even before we reached my favourite artists, I was exposed to works of art that I found myself appreciating; only this time with the appreciation came a certain comprehension of the style.

For instance, this particular work by Fragonard, titled “Le Verrou” (The Lock) which presents a couple in a passionate embrace, exploits a theme frequented by the artists in the Rococo period, i.e. liberty of expression seen here in the exaggerated passion between the couple, the bed in a very obviously dishevelled condition, the choice of the deep reds contrasted with the whites and the symbols of the discarded flower and the apple. Coming on the heels of the classicists, the Rococo artists rebelled against all rules and this liberty of expression is seen in their choice of subjects. A stark contrast to the mythological and allegorical subjects of the classicists, the Rococo artists chose subjects and themes from private lives.

Another work I found myself appreciating for its sheer sensuality and eroticism was Ingres’ “La Grande Odalisque” in which the female form is presented in its voluptuous beauty with an obvious disregard to proportions. Yet it is not ugly for there is a certain sensuality expressed through the use of soft tones, the expression on the subject’s face as well as the smooth, flawless lines of the form. David’s “Madame de Récamier” an intimate yet expressive portrait of a woman reclining on a chaise lounge, dressed in an elegant Roman style is another work I appreciated. Falling under the neo-classical style, the work clearly reflects the return to a certain restraint and respect for the form, a deeper contemplation on beauty coupled with simplicity of form.