Chapter 27BP R h li B h h d Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood,

Photography: Europe and America, 1800 to 1870

Realism did not appeal to all artists; the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood, organized in 1848 in England - wished to create fresh, sincere art, free from the tired artificial academic manner by the successors of Raphael. Appreciated spirituality and idealism art and artisanship of the Middle Ages Appreciated spirituality and idealism, art and artisanship of the Middle Ages and Early Italian and Northern Renaissance. They relied on literary text for inspiration – both paintings and poetry can be characterized by strong attachment to symbolism

fl d b h k d h d h d f l d hInfluenced by John Ruskin and shared his distaste for materialism and the ugliness of the industrialized world. He believed the job of the artist is to observe the reality of nature and not to invent it in a studio—to render what he has seen and understood imaginatively on canvas, free of any rules of composition.The effect of the critical comments was to make the Pre-Raphaelite movement famous and to create a debate about the relationship between modernity, realism and medievalism in the arts.

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Millais entered Royal Academy at age 11Millais entered Royal Academy at age 11

Founder of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood, whose members refused to be limited to the contemporary scenes of the realists

Wished to create fresh and sincere art, free from academic art and influence by Raphael

Praised in Paris’ Exposition Universelle, 1855 (Courbet, Pavilion of Realism)

Based on Shakespeare’s Hamlet – who kills her father, and she goes mad.

P i t d b k d it i S Eli b th Sidd l hi f i d d if f Painted background on site in Surrey; Elizabeth Siddal, his friend and wife of Rossetti modeled in a bathtub

19th century architecture most stylistically diverse in history. European history documented in encyclopedias, each nation came to

value its past as evidence/validity of ambitions and claims to greatness.When old Houses of Parliament burned in 1834, the neo-classical style,

was popular. However, the design was associated with revolution and republicanism while the Gothic style was felt to embody conservative values the commission announced style be Gothic or Elizabethanvalues, the commission announced style be Gothic or Elizabethan.Pugin revered medieval artisans who built great cathedrals with moral

purity and spiritual authenticity. Industrial revolution flooding market with ill-designed commodities – return to old craftsmanship. Not genuinely Gothic – formal axial plan and Palladian regularity beneath

Neo-Gothic façade. Pugn – “Tudo [English Late Gothic} details on a classical body.” Cue Card

Great Britain’s colonial conquests, q ,particularly India, had exposed English culture to broad range of broad range of non-Western artistic styles.Prince regent, Prince regent,

later King George IV asked Nash to design royal l l i pleasure palace in

seaside Brighton.

Islamic domes, minarets, and screens – “Indian Gothic.”Cast-iron skeleton underlies exotic façade – early, if hidden

use in noncommercial construction. Lif i l t i t i t kit h ili Life-size palm trees in cast iron support kitchen ceiling. Prototype for countless playful architectural exaggerations

in European and American resorts. Cue Card

Neo-Baroque –grandeur during era of conspicuous pwealth during age of expansion. Mirrored opulent

lives of privileged.Resembles

Baroque domed central plan central-plan churches. Beaux-Arts – style

flourished, based ,on ideas taught at school of same name in Paris. Classical principles (symmetry, interior

spaces extend radially from central core. Style was so attractive to moneyed

classes that supported arts and theaters classes that supported arts and theaters that it continued until WWI transformed society. Cue Card

Earliest processes were the daguerreotype and the calotype. Daguerre an architect theatrical set designer/painter and a partner Daguerre, an architect, theatrical set designer/painter and a partner created – Diorama. Performances of “living paintings” on painted backdrops and translucent front curtains using a camera obscura. Met Niepce, who in 1826 made a permanent picture of cityscape p , p p y poutside his window by exposing, in a camera obscura, a metal plate covered with light-sensitive coating. The exposure required 8 hours. After Niepce died in 1833, Daguerre made 2 discoveries: latent d l t b i i t i th h h i l l ti development – bringing out image through chemical solutions, considerably shortened exposure time and “fixing” the image –chemically stopping the action of light on the photographic plate.In 1839 less than 3 weeks after Daguerre unveiled his method in In 1839, less than 3 weeks after Daguerre unveiled his method in Paris, Talbot presented “photogenic drawings,” calotypes in London. He made “negative” images by placing objects on sensitized paper and exposed – light-colored silhouettes where objects blocked light.

f bl /Texture of paper blurry/grainy image. Nadar improved calotypes, used glass negatives and albumen (prepared with egg white) printing paper. Wet-plate technology – plate was exposed developed and fixed when wet Finer detail and was exposed, developed and fixed when wet. Finer detail and gradation than calotypes. Had to be prepared and processed on the spot – portable darkroom (wagon, tent, box with light-tight sleeves).

Photography (from Greek photos – light and graphos –writing) suited the age of g) gRealism and shift of patronage away from elite to a broader base of support. Comprehensible images and

lower costs. Challenged place of traditional

modes of painting modes of painting. Delacroix, Ingres, Courbet,

Eakins, and Degas used photography as helpful aid. p g p y pOthers feared it would replace

painstaking work of painters.

Some photographers looked to painting to imbue images with qualities

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Some photographers looked to painting to imbue images with qualities beyond simple reproduction. Each daguerreotype is a unique work; 1st subjects were traditional painting

themes – establish artistic medium.17th century Dutch vanitas still life (like Pieter Claesz), symbolic meanings

of objects – sculptural/architectural fragments, framed print of embrace suggest even art is vanitas and will not endure forever.

Nadar was a French novelist, journalist, enthusiastic balloonist, and caricaturist. Photographic studies for caricatures led Photographic studies for caricatures led

him to open a portrait studio.Captured essence of subject, pose best

suited to personality. p yPhotographed

Delacroix, Daumier, Courbet, and Manet.Daumier made print

after 1862 court case acknowledging photography as an photography as an art form, entitled to copyright protection. Nadar was an

advocate of balloon transportation, produced 1st aerial photographs of Paris photographs of Paris in 1858 from his balloon.

Photographs were objective records of combat deaths of combat deaths. Impresses on

people the high price of war. pUnion soldiers in

foreground with boots stolen and

k t i k d pockets picked, indistinct corpses in distance, suggests suggests innumerable other dead soldiers. Years before

photolithography could reproduce photographs in newspapers. newspapers.

War photographs were exhibited publicly and made an impression newsprint engravings never could. Cue Card

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Photography now advanced enough that it g p y gcan capture moments that human eye cannot

Cameras snap photos at evenly spaced points along a track, giving the effect of things happening in sequence

From England moved to San Francisco; Governor of California – settle a bet if all 4

things happening in sequence

This bridges the gap between photography and movies

From England, moved to San Francisco; Governor of California – settle a bet if all 4 feet of a horse galloping at top speed are off the ground.

Sequential photography – beginning of human and animal motion studies.

Culminated in 1885 at University of Pennsylvania – multiple camera motion studies; published Animal Locomotion in 1887.

Influenced Eakins, Degas, Duchamp.

Presented work with zoopraxiscope project series of images on glass plates onto screen “Persistence of vision” retains what eye sees for a fraction of a second screen. Persistence of vision retains what eye sees for a fraction of a second afterward, merges images – produces illusion of continuous movement.