Understanding Neoclassical Art: Key Influences and Characteristics

the neoclassical art period reached  its height in the late 18th and early   19th century born in rome and spreading  throughout europe and the united states   this movement was a return to ancient greek and  roman art characteristics and ideals neoclassical  

art was to portray the ideas of simplicity  reason order virtue and civilized society   by the end of this video you'll learn about four  important things that led to the neoclassical art   period as well as the main characteristics of  art during this time for more videos that help  

you learn experience and enjoy art history  make sure you click the subscribe button and   hit the bell icon off to the side where you'll  be notified when i release new videos each week   as i've taught my students and learned  about neoclassicism through my studies  

i've come to realize there are four main things  that led to the neoclassical art movement   i tried to narrow my list down to just three but  i couldn't leave any of these out one a pushback   on the baroque and rococo art movements two the  writings of johann joachim winckelmann three the  

excavations of pompeii and herculaneum in italy  and for the 18th century age of enlightenment the   two preceding art movements to neoclassicism are  baroque and rococo the baroque art movement lasted   approximately 150 years from 1600 to 1750 and was  full of drama emotion and tension the rococo or  

late baroque art movement started in the early  1700s and last until the mid to late 1700s   rococo built off of baroque but had a more fun  sensual and frivolous nature to it rococo also   turned its attention away from the church and  christian themes becoming more hedonistic in a way  

for more on rococo you can watch my video  that covers this movement in more depth   the neoclassical art movement follows  rococo in the late 1700s in many ways it   was a push back to the gaudy frivolous and  over-the-top nature of baroque and rococo  

some of the leading figures to neoclassism  actually fought against the leaders of rococo   the french aristocracy and so as i mentioned at  the beginning neoclassicism is full of simplicity   reason and a return to order and virtue you  can't talk about the neoclassical art movement  

without mentioning the writings of johann joachim  winckelmann who was a german art historian and   archaeologist in fact many people believe he was  the father of art history so thanks wincklemann   his writings from the mid-1700s were a deep dive  into the ideals of roman and greek art he believed  

that art should aim for noble simplicity and calm  grandeur and that the only way for us to become   great is to imitate the ancients these writings  had a huge impact on our return to greek and roman   ideals especially in art and to the simplicity of  the neoclassical art movement in the mid 1730s and  

40s the real excavations of the ancient cities of  pompeii and herculaneum began these excavations   included the discovery of roman art and  architecture and revived the study of greek and   roman art in fact rome was a major stop for the  grand tour which was a traditional trip taken by  

european upper class men once they reach the age  of 21. this stop on the grand tour helped spread   neoclassicism from rome to other parts of europe  finally the neoclassical art period coincided   with the 18th century age of enlightenment this  philosophical movement valued science and reason  

and helped drive the industrial revolution the  ideals of individual liberty religious tolerance   and constitutional governments were pushed and  so neoclassical artists inspired by these ideas   portrayed art that was civilized reasonable  and contributed to a more orderly society  

with the background of these four things that led  up to the neoclassical movement it's a little bit   easier to understand the art and architecture  styles of this time period as well as everything   else already mentioned the characteristics of art  during this time were serious symmetrical orderly  

virtuous and heroic the art often depicted  characteristics from classical history   as well as political philosophical and religious  leaders that were important to the time and the   architecture became more simple less ornate than  baroque and rococo architecture although some may  

find neoclassical art boring i think you can  find a lot of beauty in the classic nature   of the roman and greek art characteristics that  were used in the neoclassical time period but   if you missed some of that drama there were some  artists that were able to bring the intensity and  

drama back into painting just in a more simple  fashion i love jacques louis david's paintings   during the apex of neoclassicism leader of  the movement in france his art was simple   yet dramatic and captivating his artwork  eventually turned into propaganda but  

his craft was incredible and impacted many  students who would go on to produce great art   if you have any questions about the neoclassical  art period make sure you comment below and if   you found this video helpful click that like  button if you want to see how neoclassicism fits  

into the larger timeline of art history you can  download my condensed western art history timeline   linked in the description below and make  sure to click subscribe and hit that   bell icon so you can join me each week  where the art just keeps getting better