Definition and Characteristics of Classicism
– Classicism refers to a high regard for classical antiquity in the Western tradition.
– It is an aesthetic attitude based on principles from ancient Greece and Rome.
– Classicism emphasizes form, simplicity, proportion, clarity of structure, and perfection.
– It seeks to appeal to the intellect and restrain emotions.
– Classicism is often present in post-medieval European and European influenced traditions.
Historical Revivals of Classicism
– Classicism had a major revival in Carolingian and Ottonian art during the Late Antique period.
– The Italian Renaissance brought a renewed interest in classical ideals and knowledge.
– Renaissance classicism introduced elements such as mathematics, humanism, and formalism.
– The Renaissance also revived architectural models and techniques from Greek and Roman antiquity.
– The Age of Enlightenment embraced classical ideals and saw the rise of Neoclassicism in the visual arts.
Classicism in Literature, Theatre, and the Fine Arts
– Classicism influenced literature, architecture, art, and music.
– Renaissance writers like Dante, Petrarch, and Shakespeare incorporated classical ideals in their works.
– Tudor drama modeled itself after classical ideals, dividing works into Tragedy and Comedy.
– The classical age was seen as a precursor to academicism in the 19th century.
– The theatre of 17th century French playwrights followed the rules of Greek classical theatre.
– Renaissance painting and sculpture renewed classical forms, motifs, and subjects.
– Leon Battista Alberti and Raphael played significant roles in the development of classical art.
– Nicolas Poussin and Charles Le Brun represented more rigid classicism in the 17th century.
– Neoclassicism emerged in the 18th and 19th centuries.
– Classicism in the fine arts spread throughout Europe during the 17th century.
Classicism in Architecture
– Classicism in architecture developed during the Italian Renaissance.
– It emphasizes symmetry, proportion, geometry, and regularity of parts.
– Classical architecture is influenced by the architecture of Classical antiquity, particularly Ancient Rome.
– It is characterized by orderly arrangements of columns, pilasters, and lintels, as well as the use of arches, domes, niches, and aedicules.
– Classicism spread to other Italian cities, France, Germany, England, Russia, and other countries.
Modern Interpretations of Classicism
– The 20th century saw a range of interpretations of classicism in the arts and sciences.
– Classicism was used by those who rejected or embraced changes in the political and social world.
– Modern movements in art aligned with light, space, and formal coherence were considered classical.
– In philosophy, classicism is used to refer to a preference for rationality over emotionalism.
– Classicism continues to be a subject of debate and interpretation in contemporary society. Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Classicism
Classicism, in the arts, refers generally to a high regard for a classical period, classical antiquity in the Western tradition, as setting standards for taste which the classicists seek to emulate. In its purest form, classicism is an aesthetic attitude dependent on principles based in the culture, art and literature of ancient Greece and Rome, with the emphasis on form, simplicity, proportion, clarity of structure, perfection, restrained emotion, as well as explicit appeal to the intellect. The art of classicism typically seeks to be formal and restrained: of the Discobolus Sir Kenneth Clark observed, "if we object to his restraint and compression we are simply objecting to the classicism of classic art. A violent emphasis or a sudden acceleration of rhythmic movement would have destroyed those qualities of balance and completeness through which it retained until the present century its position of authority in the restricted repertoire of visual images." Classicism, as Clark noted, implies a canon of widely accepted ideal forms, whether in the Western canon that he was examining in The Nude (1956).
Classicism is a force which is often present in post-medieval European and European influenced traditions; however, some periods felt themselves more connected to the classical ideals than others, particularly the Age of Enlightenment, when Neoclassicism was an important movement in the visual arts.
