AP Art History

BAROQUE ART & ARCHITECTURE

THEATRICAL IN LIGHTING & SUBJECT DEPICTION

INFLUENCES ON BAROQUE ART & ARCHITECTURE

1)The Counter Reformation was developed under the Church’s perceived threats from the Protestant movements

2) Materialistic World view

3) Rationalism that stemmed from new discoveries in science, especially questions about humans and our relationship to the universe

Key Ideas

• Art during the Baroque period is influenced by the Counter-Reformation, symbolized the Catholic resurgence (after the Protestant Reformation). 

• Baroque art flourished in Holland and became of the voice to counter Catholic art
• Baroque can be separated in 2 schools: classicists (influenced by Raphael) and naturalists (inspired by Titian).
• Baroque architecture is associated with the grand and majestic royal courts

ELEMENTS OF BAROQUE ART

1) A sense of movement, energy, and tension

2) Strong contrasts of light and  shadow

3)Religious depiction have intense spirituality 

4Grander sense of space - no longer the contained & controlled depictions of  the Renaissance

5) Extreme Realism

6) Emotionalism & Psychological depth

Differences between

Baroque & Renaissance Art

• Baroque art has continuous overlapping of figures and elements where the Renaissance and clear defined planes that recede in depth. Baroque art often has a sweeping diagonal element that crosses many planes.

• • Painterly instead of linear
• • The figures in Baroque art are merged better through chiaroscuro that blends the edges of each form. This creates a mystical union of all the figures/elements. Renaissance art treats each figure in isolation and they appear as discrete objects. Color contrasts, outlines, contours or hard edges contribute to this linearity. 

•   Baroque art uses light (and other   compositional elements) to create meaning instead of for its purely    naturalistic effects or to reveal form.   The light sources often are not natural or there are multiple  sources. The meaning often        emphasizes what will happen in the  moment after that depicted
   
  
  • Baroque has a dirty/ shadowy quality vs. bright and ordered Renaissance depiction of light