Neoclassicism Overview

Enlightenment Philosophy

• Introduction to the Enlightenment

• Joseph Wright of Derby's significant works:

  • A Lecture at the Orrery

  • An Experiment on a Bird in an Air Pump

• Key thinkers:

  • Rousseau and Diderot: Their perspectives on art, society, and politics

  • Political revolutions in France and America

  • Lallemand’s The Storming of the Bastille

Roots of Neoclassicism

• Johann Joachim Winckelmann's influence:

  • Emphasis on imitating Ancient Greece for artistic greatness

• Effects of Pompeii and Herculaneum discoveries

• The Grand Tour's significance with artists:

  • Antonio Carnicero’s View of the eruption of Mount Vesuvius

  • Pierre-Jacques Volaire’s An Eruption of Vesuvius by Moonlight

  • Pompeo Batoni’s Grand Tour portraits

Neoclassicism in Art

Painting

• Anton Mengs’ Parnassus

• Johan Joseph Zoffany’s The Academicians of the Royal Academy

• Joshua Reynolds’ Lady Sarah Bunbury

• Jacques-Louis David’s key works:

  • Madame Récamier

  • The Oath of the Horatii

  • Death of Marat

Sculpture

• Jean-Antoine Houdon’s Voltaire

• Thomas Banks’ The Death of Germanicus

• Antonio Canova’s Cupid and Psyche and Paolina Borghese as Venus Victorious

Aesthetic Theory

• Edmund Burke's views on the Sublime:

  • Sourced from pain and danger; generates strong emotions

Giovanni Battista Piranesi

• Artist known for:

  • Views of Rome

  • Imaginary Prisons series

  • Significant prints and engravings

Recommended Resources

• Insights into Piranesi's architectural and artistic contributions.