Styles and directions of painting. Examples of painting, genres, styles, various techniques and directions What are the styles in art
Style (trends, trends) in art is a historically established community of artistic features in one type of art or simultaneously in several arts, characteristic of different eras and peoples and due to the unity of the ideological and aesthetic aspirations of the creative minority. At present, a number of stable designations have traditionally developed for objectively existing (and existing) trends in European art, the main features of which should be known to every cultured person. In this regard, let us consider the basic terminology, while adhering to the chronological principle.
Romanesque style (from lat. Romanus - Roman) appeared in the X-XIII centuries. in architecture and sculptural decoration. Buildings of the Romanesque style inherit many features of Roman architecture, are distinguished by simplicity and rationality. The thickness and strength of the walls were the main criterion for the beauty of the building. The main architectural buildings of the Romanesque are the knight's castle and the monastery church.
The Gothic style (from It. Gotico - Gothic, barbarian) is associated primarily with religious architecture, sculpture and arts and crafts of the 12th-14th centuries. The main architectural structure of the Gothic style is the cathedral. Gothic cathedrals are characterized by aspiration upward, towards God, an organic connection between architecture and sculpture, lancet arches; windows decorated with multi-colored stained-glass windows, lush decor.
Baroque (from Italian Barocco - strange, bizarre) style in architecture, music, painting, literature, decorative arts of the late 16th-mid 18th centuries. It is characterized by aesthetic affectation, richness of decor, usually curvilinear forms. In music and literature - mannerisms, capriciousness, ornateness, an abundance of decorations. In the art of the Baroque, put at the service of religion, the Jesuits saw a powerful tool for influencing the emotional world of a person and forming new ideas for Europeans about the richness, complexity and variability of the world around them.
Classicism (from Latin classicus - correct, exemplary) style and direction in art and literature of the 17th and early 19th centuries. which marked the return to the ancient heritage as a norm and an ideal model. The main aesthetic postulate of classicism is fidelity to nature, the natural rationality of the world with its objectively inherent beauty, which is expressed in symmetry, proportion, measure, harmony, which should be recreated in art in perfect form.
Rococo (from French rocaille - shell) is a style that occupies, as it were, an intermediate position between baroque and classicism. Developed mainly in France during the time of Louis XV, the style is sometimes called by his name - “Louis XV style”. The defining feature of this style is the desire for elegance, an abundance of decor and the contrast between the external severity of buildings and the sophistication of their interior decoration. Most clearly expressed in architecture, painting, arts and crafts.
Sentimentalism (from French Sentiment - feeling) is an artistic movement of the second half of the 18th century, which developed as a result of disappointment in the positive role of "civilization", "the kingdom of the mind", proclaimed by the ideologists of the Enlightenment. Ideologically, sentimentalism goes back to the famous statement of J.Zh. Rousseau "Reason can err, feeling - never!" Sentimentalism has not developed its own aesthetics and is rather a special frame of mind, melancholy daydreaming, a tendency to solitude, heightened sensitivity. His credo is the rejection of any sophistication and depravity, the so-called. "civilized" society.
Romanticism is a broad ideological and artistic trend in world culture that embraced all types of art and the humanities in the late 18th and early 20th centuries. Romanticism was a reaction to the results of the French Revolution, which marked the capitalist "progress" and the spirit of general bargaining.
The creed of romanticism is "an atypical hero in atypical circumstances" Romantics opposed utilitarianism and the depersonalization of the individual with aspiration for unlimited freedom, pathos of personal and civil independence.
Realism (from lat. realis - real, real) - a style that formed the attitude towards the image of life in the forms of life itself - "a typical hero in typical circumstances." As a creative method, realism manifested itself most fully in the 19th century and was embodied, first of all, in painting and literature.
Naturalism (from lat. Natura - nature) is a creative direction that appeared in the last third of the 19th century. under the influence of the philosophy of positivism O. Comte and G. Spencer. The aesthetics of naturalism, transferring the principles of positivism to the sphere of art, was based on the position that the artist should reflect the world around him without any embellishment, typification, conventions and taboos, with maximum objectivity. Representatives of naturalism claimed to tell “everything ins and outs” about a person, showing special attention to the biological aspects of his life. An extreme manifestation of naturalism, already beyond the bounds of art, is various kinds of porn products, the image of the "dirty" aspects of life and scenes of violence, which have received the apt designation "dirty" among the people.
Modernism (from French Moderne - new, modern) - is a combination of aesthetic schools and trends of the late XIX-XX centuries. (Cubism, Futurism, Expressionism, Constructivism, Fauvism, Dadaism, Abstractionism, etc.), opposing themselves to the art of the past and asserting a new approach to depicting social life.
Postmodernism - (formed in the second half of the twentieth century). It is a special type of worldview, focused on the formation of such a living space, in which all kinds of norms and traditions are denied and the main values are freedom in everything, spontaneity of activity, playfulness, cultural orientation, "deconstruction", "decentralization", absolutization of "novelty". » as a way of assessing the world (R. Barth).
Styles of painting - the topic is very extensive, one might say eternal. People often use terms that they do not quite understand correctly, because of this there is confusion and confusion. That is why, I want to briefly and clearly tell everything I know about the trends in painting. In order not to turn the article into a dull history lesson, I will briefly talk about the most popular and relevant areas today. Styles of painting with illustrations - a convenient and quick way to get acquainted with the most important trends in the visual arts.
Gothic
"Altar of the Merode family". Robert Campin. 1430s.
Gothic- this is a trend in art that has covered all the countries of Western and Central Europe. Then the Gothic was in everything - in sculpture, painting, stained glass, etc. it was used wherever possible, there was a "cultural boom". Such popularity is due to the last step in the evolution of medieval art. The center and main figure in the Gothic style was architecture - high arches, colored stained-glass windows, many details. The Romanesque era could not withstand such an onslaught and remained on the sidelines of history.
Years: 1150 - 1450.
Bartolo di Fredi, Giotto, Jan Polak, Jan van Eyck.
Renaissance (Renaissance)
"Penitent Mary Magdalene". Titian. 1560s.
Renaissance arose on the basis of the fall of the Byzantine Empire and the cultural turmoil that occurred on this occasion in Europe. The Byzantines who were forced to flee, along with cultural ties, brought works of art and libraries to the lands of Europe. Thus, a kind of revival of ancient views took place, but in a modern way. Over the years, many points have been revised and questioned. In general, secular humanism and ideas of prosperity reigned.
Years: 1400 - 1600.
Hieronymus Bosch, Leonardo da Vinci, Titian.
Baroque
"Judith and Holofernes". Caravaggio. 1599.
Baroque- European cultural heritage comes from Italy. It characterizes ironic vicious beauty, unnatural elitism and pretentiousness. The characteristic features of such paintings are high contrast, the tension of the plot, the dynamics of the characters stretched to the limit. The quintessence of the Baroque is considered to be the church of Santa Maria della Vittoria, it is located in Rome.
Years: 1600-1740.
Caravaggio, Rembrandt, Rubens, Jan Vermeer.
Classicism
"The Mercy of Scipio Africanus". Pompeo Batoni. 1772.
Classicism played a huge role in art, as a fundamental trend in painting of the 18th century. From the name itself, everything becomes clear (Latin classicus means exemplary, exemplary).
The artists set themselves the goal of attaching the viewer to the high, and their paintings were a guiding star. High morality, restrained culture and traditional ancient values became the basis of classicism. In the era of classicism in Europe, there was a cultural growth and a reassessment of values, art reached a completely different level.
Years: 1700 - 1800.
Karl Bryullov, Jean-Baptiste Greuze, Nicolas Poussin.
Realism
"Wandering Acrobats". Gustave Dore. 1874
Realism tries with the greatest certainty to convey the mood of the moment, a moment of reality on the canvas. But in turn, he is not limited by clear boundaries, the only rules are that there should not be room in the picture for things that exclude realism. In the course of experiments, at the end of the 18th century, this style was divided into naturalism and impressionism. But, realism managed to survive and it is popular even in modern painting.
Years: 1800 - 1880.
William Bouguereau, Gustave Courbet, Jean-Francois Millet.
Impressionism
"Impression. Rising Sun". Claude Monet. 1872
Impressionism originated in France, this concept was introduced by Louis Leroy. The Impressionists who worked in this style wanted to catch a second impression from every object or moment, they painted right here and now, regardless of form and meaning. The pictures showed exceptionally positive and bright moments and moments. But later, on this basis, disagreements began among the Impressionists, and over time, masters appeared who could be impressed by social problems, hunger, and disease. However, impressionism is a kind and positive style of painting that shows good and bright moments.
Years: 1860 - 1920.
Claude Monet, Edouard Manet, Edgar Degas.
post-impressionism
"Self-Portrait in a Gray Felt Hat III". Vincent Van Gogh. 1887
post-impressionism incorporated many different styles and techniques. European masters with fresh views on painting gave rise to new trends and actively tried to move away from impressionism and realism that were boring then.
Years: 1880 - 1920.
Vincent van Gogh, Paul Gauguin, Roderick O'Conor.
Pointillism
Rio San Trovaso. Venice". Henri Edmond Cross. 1904
Pointillism(point - point) - A stylistic direction in painting, which is the same impressionism, only in a different shell. Instead of jagged strokes, dotted or rectangular shapes were used. Also, the artists refused to mix colors on the palette, instead, pure colors were superimposed on the canvas and mixed directly on the canvas itself without touching each other.
Years: 1885 - 1930.
Henri Edmond Cross, Georges Seurat, Paul Signac.
Modernism
"Butterflies near". Odilon Redon. 1910
Modernism is a common characteristic of all genres and styles in painting of the 1850s-1950s. It includes such trends in painting as Impressionism, Expressionism, Neo- and Post-Impressionism, Fauvism, Cubism, Futurism, Abstract Art, Dadaism, Surrealism and many others. The existence of these styles marks the complete departure of the fine arts from academicism. After leaving academism, it became almost impossible to keep track of all the trends and styles that have been formed and are still being formed.
Years: 1850 - 1950.
Salvador Dali, Kazimir Malevich, Auguste Renoir and many others.
Academicism
Academicism- a direction in art that follows the rules and customs of antiquity and the Renaissance. Academism seeks to impose clear foundations and boundaries, excludes fantasy and creative flight. Instead, the emphasis is on improving the shortcomings, the "roughness" of nature - to hide or eliminate. Improving reality in the direction of beautiful perception is the essence of academicism. Plots are often taken from ancient mythology, biblical and historical motifs are also used.
Years: 1500 - today.
Karl Bryullov, William Bouguereau, Fedor Bruni.
Primitivism
"In the kitchen" Epiphanius Drovnyak. 1940~ year.
Primitivism- the deliberate simplification of the picture to such an extent that it looks like it is the work of a child. Various folk drawings and illustrations can be attributed to primitivism. Only at first glance, the pictures look simple and ridiculous. But if you look closely, you can see the correct proportions and compliance with the rules of the horizon and composition. Most of the famous masters of primitivism and naive art were big fans of the history of their people and their culture. That is why all their paintings are saturated with the color of the area in which they lived. Today, this genre has been transformed into naive art, often with an admixture of symbolism. This is due to the fact that the modern viewer is not ready to perceive primitivism in its purest form.
Years: 1900 - today.
Epiphany Drovnyak, Henri Rousseau, Niko Pirosmanishvili.
Cubism
"Seated woman in a blue dress." Pablo Picasso. 1939
Cubism is a direction of modernism, often used in relation to painting and fine arts. Masters broke their plots into geometric shapes, giving each unique element its own dense sector.
Years: 1906 - 1925.
Pablo Picasso, Fernand Léger, Robert Delaunay.
Surrealism
"The Persistence of Memory". Salvador Dali. 1931
Surrealism - mixing dream with reality. In this style, artists released their dreams to the outside, mixing images from real life with each other, combining the incompatible. Also, personal topics of dreams were touched upon - fears, secret desires, unconscious fantasies, complexes. Everything that a person can see in his dreams. Today, surrealists copy the outer shell, using only beautiful forms, without instilling in them the meaning that was characteristic of the masters of the past.
Years: 1920 - today.
Salvador Dali, Max Ernst, Rene Magritte.
Abstractionism
"Yellow Red Blue" Wassily Kandinsky. 1925
Abstractionism- a direction in art where there was a rejection of the image of reality and the correctness of forms. The main goal is to depict many colorful shapes that together can tell the story of the picture. The homeland of abstract art is considered to be Russia and America.
Years: 1910 - today.
Wassily Kandinsky, Kazimir Malevich, Piet Mondrian.
Expressionism
"Scream". Edvard Munch. 1893
Expressionism sets itself one single task, to convey what the author of the picture felt at the time of its writing. Artists in this style want to express themselves and their feelings, which is why expressionism is the opposite of impressionism, in which the emphasis is on expressing a purely external shell. Expressionists are characterized by a tendency to mysticism, pessimism and despondency.
Years: 1890 - today.
Egon Schiele, Karl Eugen Kael, Jerzy Hulewicz.
Pop Art
"Green Bottles of Coca-Cola". Andy Warhole. 1962
Pop Art— Modern style in art, using the symbols of mass culture and consumer products. Modern technologies helped to manipulate and combine objects, because of this, pop art was often criticized by the guards of the old school. Over time, pop art absorbed many trends in painting.
Years: 1950 - 1980.
Andy Warhol, David Hockney, Robert Rauschenberg.
Minimalism
Gran Cairo. Frank Stella. 1962
Minimalism must minimize the author's interference with the environment. Minimalism denotes only the most important points. The origins lie in constructivism, suprematism, dadaism. It is a very controversial genre of painting, due to the overly minimalist views of some authors of this style. Today, minimalist trends in painting are transforming extremely quickly.
Years: 1960 - today.
Frank Stella, Carl Andre, Saul LeWitt.
hyperrealism
"Fruits". Jacques Boden. 2016
hyperrealism appeared in connection with the popularization of photography, it was interesting for artists to compete with photographers. Hyperrealists create an alternative reality, a realistic illusion.
Years: 1970 - today.
Gnoli, Gerhard Richter, Delkol.
That's all the directions in painting
That's all I could and wanted to say on this topic 😉 In fact, there are many more trends in painting, and they are unintentionally developed literally every day. In this article I wanted to talk about the most popular and influential. If you liked the material, share it on social networks, let's develop art together. Thank you all for your support!
Style is the general direction of the development of art, the representative samples of which are united by the ideological meaning, transmission technique, and characteristic methods of creative activity. Styles in the art of painting were closely intertwined, developed into related trends, existed in parallel, enriching each other.
Picturesque styles and trends were formed under the influence of ideology, political and economic development of society, religion and traditions.
History of development
The history of the development of styles demonstrates the complex cultural evolution of society.
Gothic
It originated in France in the XI-XII centuries. The style developed on the territory of Western, and from the XIII - XIV centuries - in Central Europe. The origin and evolution of this direction were under the significant influence of the church. The Middle Ages is a period of dominance of church power over secular power, so Gothic artists worked with biblical subjects. Distinctive features of the style are: brightness, pretentiousness, dynamism, emotionality, pomposity, inattention to perspective. The picture does not look monolithic - it looks like a mosaic of several actions depicted on canvas.
Renaissance or Revival
Came from Italy in the XIV century. For about 200 years, this direction was dominant and became the basis for the development of Rococo and the Northern Renaissance. Characteristic artistic features of the paintings: a return to the traditions of antiquity, the cult of the human body, interest in details, humanistic ideas. This direction was not focused on religion, but on the secular side of life. The Northern Renaissance of Holland and Germany was different - here the Renaissance was perceived as a renewal of spirituality and the Christian faith that preceded the Reformation. Representatives: Leonardo da Vinci, Raphael Santi, Michelangelo Buonarroti.
Mannerism
Direction in the development of painting of the XVI century. Ideologically opposite to the Renaissance. Artists moved away from the idea of human perfection and humanism towards the subjectivization of art, focusing on the inner meaning of phenomena and objects. The name of the style comes from the Italian word "manner", which fully reflects the essence of mannerism. Representatives: J. Pontormo, J. Vasari, Brozino, J. Duve.
Baroque
A lush, dynamic, luxurious style of painting and culture that originated in Italy in the 16th century. For 200 years, the direction has developed in France, Germany, Spain. Baroque painting is full of bright colors, special attention is paid to details and decorations. The image is not static, emotional, therefore the baroque is considered the most intense and expressive stage in the development of painting.
Classicism
It originated in Western European countries in the 17th century, after 100 years it reached the countries of Eastern Europe. The main idea is a return to the tradition of antiquity. Portraits, landscapes, still lifes are easy to recognize thanks to the dogmatic reproduction, the implementation of clear rules of style. Classicism was reborn into academicism - a style that absorbed the most striking features of antiquity and the Renaissance. N. Poussin, J.-L. David, Russian Wanderers worked in this style.
Romanticism
Replaced classicism in the second quarter of the 19th century. Artistic features: the desire to convey individuality, even if it is imperfect, emotionality, expressiveness of feelings, fantastic images. The art of romantic artists denies the norms and rules of the classical stage in the development of painting. Interest in folk traditions, legends, and national history is being revived. Representatives: F. Goya, T. Gericault, K. Bryullov, E. Delacroix.
Symbolism
The cultural direction of the late XIX - XX centuries, the ideological base was drawn from romanticism. In the first place in creativity was a symbol, and the artist was an intermediary between reality and the fantastic world of creativity.
Realism
Artistic research, which puts the accuracy of the transfer of forms, parameters, shades to the fore. Characterized by naturalness, the accuracy of the embodiment of the inner essence and the outer shell. This style is the most large-scale, popular and multifaceted. Its branches are modern trends - photography and hyperrealism. Representatives: G. Courbet, T. Rousseau, Wanderers, J. Breton.
Impressionism
It originated in the late XIX - early XX century. Homeland - France. The essence of style is the embodiment of the magic of the first impression in the picture. This short moment was conveyed by the artists with the help of short strokes of paint on the canvas. Such pictures are best perceived not at close range. The works of artists are filled with colors and light. Post-Impressionism became a phase in the development of style - it is characterized by a greater attention to form and contours. Artists: O. Renoir, K. Pissarro, K. Monet, P. Cezanne.
Modern
An original, bright style, which became the basis for the formation of many pictorial trends of the 20th century. The direction has collected the features of art of all eras - emotionality, interest in ornaments, plasticity, the predominance of smooth, curvilinear outlines. Symbolism became the basis for development. Modern is ambiguous - it developed in European countries in different ways and under different names.
avant-garde
Artistic styles that are characterized by the rejection of realism, the symbolism of information transfer, the brightness of colors, individualization and freedom of creative design. The avant-garde category includes: surrealism, cubism, fauvism, futurism, expressionism, abstractionism. Representatives: V. Kandinsky, P. Picasso, S. Dali.
Primitivism or naive style
A direction characterized by a simplified depiction of reality.
The listed styles have become the main milestones in the development of painting - they continue to transform into new forms of creative self-expression of artists.
Directions in art are a system of artistic techniques, means of expression, which are designed to express a certain idea, a worldview that is dominant in a certain community at a given period of time. Styles have developed over the past millennium, successively replacing each other. Sometimes a new style arose as a continuation and development of the previous one, sometimes it became the result of a struggle with the ideas of the predecessor.
In some cases, it is so difficult to single out a style that it is rather classified as a direction. So symbolism, cubism can be attributed as an independently formed style, and they can be considered as directions of comprehensive modernism.
Each era gave rise to more than one artistic style. By studying works of art, you can get to know better the time in which this or that artistic style was formed and dominated.
The main trends in art of the 10th - 19th centuries
Romanesque style (X - XIII centuries)
Gothic style (XIII - XVI centuries)
Baroque (XVI - XVIII centuries)
Classicism (XVII - XIX centuries)
Sentimentalism (XVIII century)
Romanticism (XVIII - XIX centuries)
Realism (XIX century)
The main trends in the art of the XX century
Symbolism
Impressionism
Surrealism
Formed in the 1920s of the last century, it is a style of paradoxical forms and allusions, reflecting the combination of dream and reality. In painting, surrealism is clearly reflected in the paintings of Magritte, Ernst, Dali, Matta...
