| Art and music has always been an integral part of | | | | perspective and their colors were brilliantly |
| any society; no matter how basic and primitive or | | | | polychromatic in their paintings. An important |
| complex and advanced. Art is the cultural output | | | | tenant held by many renaissance artists was that |
| of a society that reflects its attitudes, values, | | | | art must be true to nature. The obsession these |
| morals, and what it considers ideal and beautiful. | | | | artists had with accuracy, creativity and the |
| Art truly is one of the great measures of a | | | | aesthetic ideal led to one of the most important |
| civilization and is a window into what a particular | | | | and beautiful artistic eras of history. |
| culture thought and valued. | | | | The Baroque and Rococo periods immediately |
| The first art forms that we have recorded go | | | | followed the Romantic era, and were full of |
| back to ancient times before the classical eras of | | | | ornamentation and artistic excess. The term |
| Greeks and Romans. Venus of Willendorf is | | | | baroque (from Portuguese barroco) translates into |
| estimated to have been created in 20,000 B.C. | | | | "pearl of irregular form". The Baroque period |
| and is a crude statue which probably represents | | | | produced such artists as Rembrandt and new |
| female fertility. Five thousand years later artistic | | | | uses of shadowing and color became very |
| drawings are created on a cave wall in what is | | | | apparent in paintings. The artistic excess of the |
| now modern-day France. The art shows animals | | | | Baroque was mostly seen in its architecture which |
| moving in their natural environment. The first | | | | was thought of as an inferior overly |
| major artists in which we have an extensive | | | | ornamentation laden copy of the Renaissance |
| amount of work were the Ancient Egyptians. | | | | style. The music of the Baroque period |
| There construction of temples, pyramids, | | | | emphasized "melodies that were broad and sing |
| sphinxes are all amazing for a time 2500 years | | | | able, and harmonies which were rich and full of |
| before Christ. Much of there artistic | | | | Pathos. The Baroque period saw the expansion of |
| accomplishments stand and can be seen today in | | | | the Protestant Reformation and the Catholic |
| museums and the Desert. The most recognized | | | | Counter-Reformation. Artists such as Rembrandt |
| form of ancient art would be the Greek and | | | | van Rign were Protestant and Peter Paul Rubens |
| Roman style which produced stunning temples, | | | | was instrumental in the Catholic response. Great |
| coliseums. The ancients were most noted for the | | | | composers such as Handel and Bach came out of |
| architectural achievements. Not much is known | | | | this period. |
| about ancient music because nothing survived as | | | | Following the excessiveness of the Baroque came |
| record of there achievements. Speculation was | | | | the Classical period which only lasted about fifty |
| that the music was probably folksy and lively | | | | years but produced some of the greatest musical |
| depending on the area in which it was played. The | | | | talent in History. The Classical period was in |
| ancients set the stage for artistic masters to | | | | response to the excessiveness of the Baroque |
| come. | | | | and stressed perfection of form. Great |
| With the coming of Christianity the arts has a | | | | composers such as Franz Joseph Haydn and |
| new patron, and the Christian Church and its | | | | Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart came from this era. |
| theology will become the dominate subject of the | | | | The classical ideal of perfection of form was |
| majority of the artistic and musical creations over | | | | exhibited in art, architecture and music. The |
| the next 1000 years. The influence of | | | | artistic and architectural accomplishments of the |
| Christendom was first observed in the Roman | | | | period are not terribly significant other than it |
| period but not until the Medieval and Romanesque | | | | inspired the Romantic period as a response. New |
| periods did Christianity completely dominate | | | | instruments become commonplace such as the |
| Western art. In music the Church put together | | | | piano, the violin, viola, cello ect... The Classical |
| different monophonic chants such as the | | | | period's emphasis on perfection, led to some of |
| Gregorian chant to celebrate Mass. The | | | | the most beautiful music in history. |
| composers are unknown and there rhythms | | | | The Romantic period saw a great surge in |
| derived from Latin texts. The Gothic period | | | | creativity in the artistic realm and the music just |
| started in 1100AD and continued until 1400AD. | | | | kept on evolving into the beautiful works of |
| The greatest achievements of this period would | | | | Beethoven, Brahms, Mahler and Verdi. The |
| be in architecture. The Gothic Cathedral becomes | | | | romantic era was one of emotion as the world |
| an icon of the Church's power with its new style | | | | was going through crisis and change. The |
| including elements such as the pointed arch, the | | | | Romantic artists emphasized freedom and free |
| pinnacle, flying buttress, nave, and double aisle. | | | | expression. Many of the paintings showed |
| Artwork is almost exclusively controlled by the | | | | revolutionary scenes such as Delacroix's "Liberty |
| church and the era brought forth such | | | | Leading People" painting created in 1831. Following |
| masterpieces as The Annunciation by Simone | | | | the Romantic period was the Impressionist period |
| Martini, Lamination of Christ by Giotto di Bondone. | | | | which was mainly concerned with how light |
| The music of the Gothic era developed into | | | | affected color in painting. A lot of landscapes |
| polyphony and the organum was developed. The | | | | were painted and the artist tried to increase the |
| Gothic era brought to a close the virtual total | | | | Romantic effort to create feeling. Famous |
| control the church had over the arts. | | | | impressionist artists include Monet, Manet, and |
| Art reached completely new heights when it was | | | | Renoir. |
| able to break away from the strict controls of | | | | After the Impressionist movement the |
| the Church in the Renaissance period from | | | | Modernistic movement starts the focus of the |
| 1400-1600. The greatest artists and sculptors in | | | | artist is on creating things that are new and |
| history such as Michelangelo and Leonardo da Vinci | | | | unique in both music and art. Much of the art is |
| came from the Renaissance. Much of the art was | | | | basic and tries to represent emotions and the |
| still religious in nature as shown in many of | | | | events that are going on in our technological |
| Michelangelo's works but artists like Leonardo | | | | society. |
| were breaking away at times from strictly | | | | Art and music throughout the ages has gone |
| religious painting as shown in his Mona Lisa. Artists | | | | through many different stages of development |
| used the same basics as the Gothic artists when | | | | and has had its peaks and downfalls. This class |
| it came to line, space, color and formal | | | | has given me a better understanding of the |
| organization but the humanistic movement of the | | | | history of the arts and what I consider to be |
| renaissance brought a whole new aspect to the | | | | aesthetically pleasing. I look forward to learning |
| arts. Humanism brought a different organization of | | | | more and will continue to develop artistic |
| the basic elements of art as used during the | | | | appreciation as I expose myself to the arts. |
| Gothic period. Renaissance artists used linear | | | | |