*Scientific Inquiry & Search for Patterns in Nature
*Focus on Human Right & Social Reform
*Intellectual Movement that moved away from Faith & Religion toward
Science & Reason
Key Points
European Neoclassicism in the visual arts began c. 1760 in opposition to the decadence of Baroque and Rococo styles.
The austerity and sobriety of Neoclassicism echoed the spirit of the French Revolution.
The French painter Nicholas Poussin was a master of the Neoclassical style.
Neoclassicism was especially strong in those areas where classical examples were most abundant, such as in architecture and sculpture. Painting, in contrast, had fewer classical antecedents to reference.
Key Terms
Neoclassicism: Neoclassicism is the name given to Western movements in the decorative and visual arts, literature, theater, music, and architecture that draw inspiration from the “classical” art and culture of Ancient Greece or Ancient Rome.
Rococo: Rococo, also referred to as Late Baroque, is an 18th-century artistic movement and style, which affected several aspects of the arts, including painting, sculpture, architecture, interior design, decoration, literature, music, and theater.
Enlightenment: A philosophical movement in 17th and 18th century Europe; the Age of Enlightenment, or the Age of Reason, emphasized rationalism.
