History and development of romanticism in painting. School encyclopedia Romanticism general characteristics of the style

Romanticism, having replaced the Age of Enlightenment and passing through sentimentalism, established itself in European culture at the end of the 18th and first half of the 19th centuries.

This ideological and artistic direction was opposite to classicism and the Enlightenment. And the harbinger of romanticism was sentimentalism. The birthplace of romanticism is Germany.

Philosophy of Romanticism

Romanticism affirmed the cult of nature, feelings and the natural in man. But, you may object, this is also what sentimentalism asserted. So what is the difference between them?
Yes, the protest against lack of spirituality and selfishness is already reflected in sentimentalism. Romanticism expresses this rejection most acutely. Romanticism in general is a more complex and contradictory phenomenon than sentimentalism. If in sentimentalism the ideal is the soul of a common man, which sentimentalists see not only equal to the soul of an aristocrat, but sometimes higher and nobler, then romanticism is interested not only in virtue, but also in evil, which it even tries to ennoble; he is also interested in the dialectic of good and evil in man (remember the main character of M.Yu. Lermontov’s novel “A Hero of Our Time”).

M. Vrubel. Illustration for Lermontov’s novel “Hero of Our Time.” Duel between Pechorin and Grushnitsky

Romantic poets began to use images of angels, especially fallen ones, in their works. For example, interest in the image of a demon: several poems and the poem “Demon” by Lermontov; a cycle of paintings dedicated to the demon by M. Vrubel.

M. Vrubel “The Seated Demon”
The Romantics sought to unravel the mystery of human existence, turning to nature, trusting their religious and poetic feelings. But at the same time, romanticism even tries to rethink religion.
The romantic hero is a complex, passionate personality, with a deep but contradictory inner world - this is a whole universe. M.Yu. Lermontov said so in his novel: “The history of the human soul, even the smallest soul, is almost more interesting and useful than the history of an entire people.” The characteristic features of romanticism were an interest in strong and vivid feelings, all-consuming passions, and the secret movements of the soul.
Another feature of romanticism is its interest in folklore, myth, and fairy tales. In Russian romanticism, especially popular genres are the ballad and romantic drama. Thanks to Zhukovsky's translations, Russian readers became acquainted with ballads, I.V. Goethe, F. Schiller, W. Scott, and after that many poets turned to the ballad genre: A.S. Pushkin (“Song of the Prophetic Oleg”, “The Drowned”), M.Yu. Lermontov (“Airship”, “Mermaid”), A.K. Tolstoy and others. And another genre of literature has established itself in Russia, thanks to V. Zhukovsky - elegy.
Romantics were interested in various historical eras, their uniqueness, as well as exotic and mysterious countries and circumstances. The creation of the genre of historical novel is also the merit of romanticism. The founder of the historical novel is W. Scott, but this genre is further developed in the works of F. Cooper, A. Vigny, V. Hugo and others.
And another feature of romanticism (by no means the only one) is the creation of its own, special world, more beautiful and real than reality. The romantic hero lives in this world, passionately defending his freedom and believing that he does not obey the rules of the outside world, but only his own rules.
During the era of romanticism, literature flourished. But, unlike the literature of sentimentalism, this literature did not fence itself off from social and political problems.

I.K. Aivazovsky, I.E. Repin “Pushkin’s Farewell to the Sea” (1877)
A significant place in the work of the romantics (in all types of art) is occupied by landscape - first of all, the sea, mountains, sky, stormy elements with which the hero has complex relationships. Nature can be akin to the passionate nature of a romantic hero, but it can also resist him, turn out to be a hostile force with which he is forced to fight.

I. Aivazovsky “The Ninth Wave” (1850). State Russian Museum (St. Petersburg)
In different countries, the fate of romanticism had its own characteristics.

Romanticism in painting

T. Gericault

Many artists from different European countries painted in the style of romanticism. But for a long time, romanticism was in a struggle with classicism. And only after the appearance of Theodore Gericault’s painting “The Raft of the Medusa,” which was considered innovative, adherents of the academic style recognized romanticism as a new artistic direction in art, although the painting was initially received with disapproval. But it was this picture that marked the beginning of French romanticism. The traditions of classicism were strong in France, and the new direction had to overcome opposition.

T. Gericault “The Raft of the Medusa” (1819). Canvas, oil. 491 x 716 cm. Louvre (Paris)
The plot of the film is the story of the frigate "Medusa", which, due to the incompetence of the captain, crashed off the coast of Senegal in 1816. 140 passengers and crew members tried to escape by landing on the raft. Only on the 12th day they were picked up by the brig Argus, but only 15 people survived. In 1817, two of them, engineer Correard and surgeon Henri Savigny, would write a book about this tragedy.
Theodore Gericault, like many others, was shocked by what happened to Medusa. He talks with eyewitnesses of the event, makes sketches of the executed and dying, and writes hundreds of sketches of the raging sea. And although the painting is distinguished by its monochrome color, its main advantage is the deep psychologism of the situation depicted on the canvas.
Another leader of the romantic trend in European painting was the French painter and graphic artist Eugene Delacroix.

Eugene Delacroix "Self-Portrait" (1837)
His painting “Liberty Leading the People” (1830) was created based on the July Revolution of 1830, which put an end to the Restoration regime of the Bourbon monarchy.
The woman depicted in the center of the picture symbolizes freedom. On her head is a Phrygian cap (a symbol of freedom or revolution), in her right hand is the flag of Republican France, in her left is a gun. The bare chest symbolizes the dedication of the French of that time, who went bare-chested against the enemy. Around Liberty is a worker, a bourgeois, a teenager, who symbolize the unity of the French people during the July Revolution. Some art historians and critics suggest that the artist depicted himself as a man in a top hat to the left of the main character.

O. Kiprensky “Self-portrait” (1828)
Orest Adamovich Kiprensky (1782-1836) - famous Russian artist, graphic artist and painter, master of portraiture.

O. Kiprensky “Portrait of A.S. Pushkin" (1827). Canvas, oil. 63 x 54 cm. State Tretyakov Gallery (Moscow)
This is perhaps the most famous portrait of Pushkin, commissioned from the artist by Pushkin’s friend, Delvig. On the canvas, Pushkin is depicted waist-deep, with his arms crossed on his chest. A checkered Scottish plaid is draped over the poet’s right shoulder—it is with this detail that the artist denotes Pushkin’s connection with Byron, the idol of the era of romanticism.

K. Bryullov “Self-portrait” (1848)
The work of the Russian artist K. Bryullov is classified as academic, but some of his paintings are the pinnacle of late Russian romanticism, with their sense of tragedy and conflict in life, interest in strong passions, extraordinary themes and situations, and in the destinies of huge human masses.

K. Bryullov “The Last Day of Pompeii” (1830-1833). Canvas, oil. 465.5 x 651 cm. State Russian Museum (St. Petersburg)
Bryullov combined in the picture dramatic action, romantic lighting effects and sculptural, classically perfect plasticity of figures.
The painting depicts the famous eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD. e. and the destruction of the city of Pompeii near Naples. “The Last Day of Pompeii” illustrates the romanticism of Russian painting, mixed with idealism, increased interest in plein air and gravitating towards similar historical subjects. The deep psychologism characteristic of romanticism helps to see a personality in each character: respectable and selfless (a group of people in the lower right corner of the picture carrying an elderly man), greedy (a figure in white carrying someone’s property stolen on the sly), loving (the young man on the right side painting, trying to save his beloved), devotee (mother hugging her daughters in the lower left corner of the painting), etc.
The artist's image in the left corner of the painting is a self-portrait of the author.
And here is the artist's brother, Bryullov Alexander Pavlovich, was a representative of romanticism in architecture (although he was also an artist).

A. Bryullov “Self-portrait” (1830)
He created projects for buildings in St. Petersburg and its environs.

The building of the Mikhailovsky Theater was also built according to the design of A. Bryullov.

Orthodox Church of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul in the village of Pargolovo (now the territory of St. Petersburg)

Romanticism in music

M. Wodzinskaya “Portrait of F. Chopin” (1835)

Having developed in the 1820s, romanticism in music captured the entire 19th century. and is represented by a whole galaxy of talented composers, of whom it is even difficult to single out one or more, so as not to offend others. Therefore, we will try to name as many names as possible. The most prominent representatives of romanticism in music are Franz Schubert, Franz Liszt, as well as the late romantics Anton Bruckner and Gustav Mahler (Austria-Hungary); Ludwig van Beethoven (partly), Johannes Brahms, Richard Wagner, Anna Maria Weber, Robert Schumann, Felix Mendelssohn (Germany); Frederic Chopin (Poland); Niccolo Paganini, Vincenzo Bellini, early Giuseppe Verdi (Italy); A. A. Alyabyev, M. I. Glinka, A. S. Dargomyzhsky, M.A. Balakirev, N.A. Rimsky-Korsakov, M.P. Mussorgsky, A.P. Borodin, Ts.A. Cui, P. I. Tchaikovsky (Russia).

J. Kriehuber “Portrait of R. Schumann” (1849)
Romantic composers tried to express the depth and richness of a person’s inner world with the help of musical means. The music becomes more prominent and individual. Song genres are being developed, including ballads.

P.I. Chaikovsky
Romantic music, like other types of romantic art, is characterized by a deep interest in the human personality, the predominance of a personal tone in the music. Often musical works had a touch of autobiography, which brought special sincerity to the music. For example, many of Schumann's piano works are connected with the story of his love for Clara Wieck. Wagner emphasized the autobiographical nature of his operas. The music of Chopin, who expressed his longing for his homeland (Poland) in his mazurkas, polonaises, and ballads, can also be called autobiographical. P.I., who deeply loved Russia and Russian nature. Tchaikovsky paints pictures of nature in many of his works, and the cycle of piano pieces “The Seasons” is entirely dedicated to it.

Romanticism in literature

Brothers Grimm: Wilhelm and Jacob

Romanticism first arose in Germany, among the writers and philosophers of the Jena school. This is a group of figures of the romantic movement who gathered in 1796 in the university city of Jena (brothers August Wilhelm and Friedrich Schlegel, Ludwig Tieck, Novalis). They begin to publish the Athenaeum magazine, where they formulate their own aesthetic program of romanticism. Subsequently, German romanticism was distinguished by its interest in fairy-tale and mythological motifs (the works of the brothers Wilhelm and Jacob Grimm, Hoffmann).

R. Westall "Portrait of Byron"
A prominent representative of English romanticism is D.G. Byron, who, in the words of A.S. Pushkin was “clothed in dull romanticism and hopeless egoism.” His work is imbued with the pathos of struggle and protest against the modern world, glorifying freedom and individualism.
English romanticism includes the works of Shelley, John Keats, and William Blake.

Prosper Merimee
Romanticism became widespread in other European countries. In France, its representatives are Chateaubriand, J. Stael, Lamartine, Victor Hugo, Alfred de Vigny, Prosper Merimee, George Sand. In Italy - N.U. Foscolo, A. Manzoni. In Poland - Adam Mickiewicz, Juliusz Słowacki and others, in the USA - Washington Irving, Fenimore Cooper, Edgar Allan Poe, Henry Longfellow and others.

Adam Mickiewicz

Romanticism in Russian literature

K. Bryullov “Portrait of V. Zhukovsky”

Romantic poets include K. N. Batyushkov, E. A. Baratynsky, N. M. Yazykov. The early poetry of A. S. Pushkin is within the framework of romanticism. The poetry of M. Yu. Lermontov, who was called the “Russian Byron,” is considered the pinnacle of Russian romanticism.

P. Zabolotsky. “Portrait of M.Yu. Lermontov in the mentique of the Life Guards Hussar Regiment" (1837)
Personality and soul are the main realities of existence for Lermontov, the study of personality and the human soul is the main theme of his works. Exploring the origins of good and evil, Lermontov comes to the conclusion that both good and evil exist not outside a person, but within him. Therefore, it is impossible to hope that a person will change for the better as a result of changing the world. Hence the poet’s almost complete absence of calls to fight for social justice. Lermontov’s main attention is to the human soul and his spiritual path.
The philosophical lyrics of F. I. Tyutchev complete romanticism in Russia.

F. I. Tyutchev (1860-1861). Photo by S. Levitsky
F.I. Tyutchev did not consider himself a poet (he served as a diplomat), but all his poetry is autobiographical and full of philosophical reflections about the world and man in it, about the contradictions that torment the human soul, about the meaning of life and death.

Be silent, hide and hide
And your feelings and dreams -
Let it be in the depths of your soul
They get up and go in
Silently, like stars in the night, -
Admire them - and be silent.

How can the heart express itself?
How can someone else understand you?
Will he understand what you live for?
A spoken thought is a lie.
Exploding, you will disturb the keys, -
Feed on them - and be silent.

Just know how to live within yourself -
There is a whole world in your soul
Mysteriously magical thoughts;
They will be deafened by the outside noise,
Daylight rays will disperse, -
Listen to their singing - and be silent!..
_______________
* Silence! (lat.)

We have already said more than once that an artist, poet or composer does not always work in one particular artistic style. In addition, the artistic style does not always fit into a certain time period. Thus, features of any artistic style can be found at any time. Sometimes it’s fashion (for example, just recently the Empire style has suddenly become popular again), sometimes it’s the artist’s need for just this way of self-expression.

1.1 Main features of romanticism

Romanticism - (French romantisme, from the medieval French romant - novel) is a direction in art that was formed within the framework of a general literary movement at the turn of the 18th-19th centuries. in Germany. It has become widespread in all countries of Europe and America. The highest peak of romanticism occurred in the first quarter of the 19th century.

The French word romantisme goes back to the Spanish romance (in the Middle Ages, this was the name for Spanish romances, and then a chivalric romance), the English romantic, which turned into 18th century. in romantique and then meaning “strange”, “fantastic”, “picturesque”. At the beginning of the 19th century. Romanticism becomes the designation of a new direction, opposite to classicism.

Entering into the antithesis of “classicism” - “romanticism,” the movement suggested the opposition of the classicist demand for rules to romantic freedom from rules. The center of the artistic system of romanticism is the individual, and its main conflict is the individual and society. The decisive prerequisite for the development of romanticism were the events of the Great French Revolution. The emergence of romanticism is associated with the anti-enlightenment movement, the reasons for which lie in disappointment in civilization, in social, industrial, political and scientific progress, the result of which was new contrasts and contradictions, leveling and spiritual devastation of the individual.

The Enlightenment preached the new society as the most “natural” and “reasonable”. The best minds of Europe substantiated and foreshadowed this society of the future, but reality turned out to be beyond the control of “reason,” the future became unpredictable, irrational, and the modern social order began to threaten human nature and his personal freedom. Rejection of this society, protest against lack of spirituality and selfishness is already reflected in sentimentalism and pre-romanticism. Romanticism expresses this rejection most acutely. Romanticism also opposed the Age of Enlightenment in verbal terms: the language of romantic works, striving to be natural, “simple”, accessible to all readers, was something opposite to the classics with its noble, “sublime” themes, characteristic, for example, of classical tragedy.

Among the late Western European romantics, pessimism in relation to society acquires cosmic proportions and becomes the “disease of the century.” The heroes of many romantic works are characterized by moods of hopelessness and despair, which acquire a universal human character. Perfection is lost forever, the world is ruled by evil, ancient chaos is resurrected. The theme of the “terrible world”, characteristic of all romantic literature, was most clearly embodied in the so-called “black genre” (in the pre-romantic “Gothic novel” - A. Radcliffe, C. Maturin, in the “drama of rock”, or “tragedy of rock” - Z. Werner, G. Kleist, F. Grillparzer), as well as in the works of Byron, C. Brentano, E. T. A. Hoffmann, E. Poe and N. Hawthorne.

At the same time, romanticism is based on ideas that challenge the “terrible world” - above all, the ideas of freedom. The disappointment of romanticism is a disappointment in reality, but progress and civilization are only one side of it. Rejection of this side, lack of faith in the possibilities of civilization provide another path, the path to the ideal, to the eternal, to the absolute. This path must resolve all contradictions and completely change life. This is the path to perfection, “towards a goal, the explanation of which must be sought on the other side of the visible” (A. De Vigny). For some romantics, the world is dominated by incomprehensible and mysterious forces that must be obeyed and not try to change fate (Chateaubriand, V.A. Zhukovsky). For others, “world evil” caused protest, demanded revenge and struggle (early A.S. Pushkin). What they had in common was that they all saw in man a single essence, the task of which is not at all limited to solving everyday problems. On the contrary, without denying everyday life, the romantics sought to unravel the mystery of human existence, turning to nature, trusting their religious and poetic feelings.

A romantic hero is a complex, passionate personality, whose inner world is unusually deep and endless; it is a whole universe full of contradictions. Romantics were interested in all passions, both high and low, which were opposed to each other. High passion is love in all its manifestations, low passion is greed, ambition, envy. The romantics contrasted the life of the spirit, especially religion, art, and philosophy, with the base material practice. Interest in strong and vivid feelings, all-consuming passions, and secret movements of the soul are characteristic features of romanticism.

We can talk about romance as a special type of personality - a person of strong passions and high aspirations, incompatible with the everyday world. Exceptional circumstances accompany this nature. Fantasy, folk music, poetry, legends become attractive to romantics - everything that for a century and a half was considered as minor genres, not worthy of attention. Romanticism is characterized by the affirmation of freedom, the sovereignty of the individual, increased attention to the individual, the unique in man, and the cult of the individual. Confidence in a person’s self-worth turns into a protest against the fate of history. Often the hero of a romantic work becomes an artist who is capable of creatively perceiving reality. The classicist “imitation of nature” is contrasted with the creative energy of the artist who transforms reality. A special world is created, more beautiful and real than the empirically perceived reality. It is creativity that is the meaning of existence; it represents the highest value of the universe. Romantics passionately defended the creative freedom of the artist, his imagination, believing that the genius of the artist does not obey the rules, but creates them.

Romantics turned to various historical eras, they were attracted by their originality, attracted by exotic and mysterious countries and circumstances. Interest in history became one of the enduring achievements of the artistic system of romanticism. He expressed himself in the creation of the genre of the historical novel, the founder of which is considered to be W. Scott, and the novel in general, which acquired a leading position in the era under consideration. Romantics reproduce in detail and accurately the historical details, background, and flavor of a particular era, but romantic characters are given outside of history; they, as a rule, are above circumstances and do not depend on them. At the same time, the romantics perceived the novel as a means of comprehending history, and from history they went to penetrate into the secrets of psychology, and, accordingly, of modernity. Interest in history was also reflected in the works of historians of the French romantic school (A. Thierry, F. Guizot, F. O. Meunier).

It was in the era of Romanticism that the discovery of the culture of the Middle Ages took place, and the admiration for antiquity, characteristic of the previous era, also did not weaken at the end of the 18th - beginning of the 18th century. XIX centuries The diversity of national, historical, and individual characteristics also had a philosophical meaning: the wealth of a single world whole consists of the totality of these individual features, and the study of the history of each people separately makes it possible to trace, as Burke put it, uninterrupted life through new generations succeeding one after another.

The era of Romanticism was marked by the flourishing of literature, one of the distinctive properties of which was a passion for social and political problems. Trying to comprehend the role of man in ongoing historical events, romantic writers gravitated toward accuracy, specificity, and authenticity. At the same time, the action of their works often takes place in settings that are unusual for a European - for example, in the East and America, or, for Russians, in the Caucasus or Crimea. Thus, romantic poets are primarily lyricists and poets of nature, and therefore in their work (as well as in many prose writers), landscape occupies a significant place - first of all, the sea, mountains, sky, stormy elements with which the hero is associated complex relationships. Nature can be akin to the passionate nature of a romantic hero, but it can also resist him, turn out to be a hostile force with which he is forced to fight.

Unusual and vivid pictures of nature, life, way of life and customs of distant countries and peoples also inspired the romantics. They were looking for the traits that constitute the fundamental basis of the national spirit. National identity is manifested primarily in oral folk art. Hence the interest in folklore, the processing of folklore works, the creation of their own works based on folk art.

The development of the genres of the historical novel, fantastic story, lyric-epic poem, ballad is the merit of the romantics. Their innovation was also manifested in lyrics, in particular, in the use of polysemy of words, the development of associativity, metaphor, and discoveries in the field of versification, meter, and rhythm.

Romanticism is characterized by a synthesis of genders and genres, their interpenetration. The romantic art system was based on a synthesis of art, philosophy, and religion. For example, for a thinker like Herder, linguistic research, philosophical doctrines, and travel notes serve the search for ways to revolutionize culture. Much of the achievements of romanticism were inherited by realism of the 19th century. – a penchant for fantasy, the grotesque, a mixture of high and low, tragic and comic, the discovery of “subjective man.”

In the era of romanticism, not only literature flourished, but also many sciences: sociology, history, political science, chemistry, biology, evolutionary doctrine, philosophy (Hegel, D. Hume, I. Kant, Fichte, natural philosophy, the essence of which boils down to the fact that nature - one of the garments of God, “the living garment of the Divine”).

Romanticism is a cultural phenomenon in Europe and America. In different countries, his fate had its own characteristics.

1.2 Romanticism in Russia

By the beginning of the second decade of the 19th century, romanticism occupied a key place in Russian art, revealing more or less fully its national identity. It is extremely risky to reduce this uniqueness to any trait or even a sum of traits; What we see is rather the direction of the process, as well as its pace, its acceleration - if we compare Russian romanticism with the older “romanticisms” of European literature.

We have already observed this acceleration of development in the prehistory of Russian romanticism - in the last decade of the 18th century. - in the first years of the 19th century, when there was an unusually close interweaving of pre-romantic and sentimental tendencies with the tendencies of classicism.

The revaluation of reason, hypertrophy of sensitivity, the cult of nature and natural man, elegiac melancholy and epicureanism were combined with moments of systematism and rationality, especially manifested in the field of poetics. Styles and genres were streamlined (mainly through the efforts of Karamzin and his followers), and there was a struggle against excessive metaphors and floridity of speech for the sake of its “harmonic accuracy” (Pushkin’s definition of the distinctive feature of the school founded by Zhukovsky and Batyushkov).

The speed of development also left its mark on the more mature stage of Russian romanticism. The density of artistic evolution also explains the fact that in Russian romanticism it is difficult to recognize clear chronological stages. Literary historians divide Russian romanticism into the following periods: the initial period (1801 - 1815), the period of maturity (1816 - 1825) and the period of its post-October development. This is an approximate diagram, because at least two of these periods (the first and third) are qualitatively heterogeneous and they are not characterized by at least a relative unity of principles that distinguished, for example, the periods of Jena and Heidelberg romanticism in Germany.

The romantic movement in Western Europe - primarily in German literature - began under the sign of completeness and integrity. Everything that was separated strived for synthesis: in natural philosophy, and in sociology, and in the theory of knowledge, and in psychology - personal and social, and, of course, in artistic thought, which united all these impulses and, as it were, gave them new life .

Man sought to merge with nature; personality, individual - with the whole, with the people; intuitive knowledge - with logical; the subconscious elements of the human spirit - with the highest spheres of reflection and reason. Although the relationship between opposing moments sometimes seemed conflicting, the tendency towards unification gave rise to a special emotional spectrum of romanticism, multi-colored and variegated, with a predominance of a bright, major tone.

Only gradually did the conflicting elements develop into their antinomy; the idea of ​​the desired synthesis dissolved in the idea of ​​alienation and confrontation, the optimistic mood gave way to a feeling of disappointment and pessimism.

Russian romanticism is familiar with both stages of the process - both the initial and the final; however, at the same time he forced the general movement. The final forms appeared before the initial forms reached their peak; the intermediate ones crumpled or fell off. Compared to the background of Western European literature, Russian romanticism looked at the same time both less and more romantic: it was inferior to them in richness, ramifications, and breadth of the overall picture, but superior to them in the certainty of some final results.

The most important socio-political factor that influenced the formation of romanticism is Decembrism. The refraction of Decembrist ideology into the plane of artistic creativity is an extremely complex and lengthy process. Let us not, however, lose sight of the fact that it acquired precisely artistic expression; that Decembrist impulses were clothed in very specific literary forms.

Often “literary Decembrism” was identified with a certain imperative external to artistic creativity, when all artistic means were subordinated to an extra-literary goal, which, in turn, stemmed from Decembrist ideology. This goal, this “task” was allegedly leveled or even pushed aside “syllable features or genre features.” In reality, everything was much more complicated.

The specific character of Russian romanticism is clearly visible in the lyrics of this time, i.e. in the lyrical attitude to the world, in the basic tone and perspective of the author’s position, in what is commonly called the “image of the author.” Let's look at Russian poetry from this angle in order to get at least a quick idea of ​​its diversity and unity.

Russian romantic poetry has revealed a fairly wide range of “images of the author,” sometimes converging, sometimes, on the contrary, polemicizing and contrasting with each other. But always the “image of the author” is such a condensation of emotions, moods, thoughts, or everyday and biographical details (the lyrical work seems to contain “scraps” of the author’s line of alienation, more fully represented in the poem), which stems from opposition to the environment. The connection between the individual and the whole has broken down. The spirit of confrontation and disharmony blows over the author's image even when in itself it seems uncloudedly clear and whole.

Pre-romanticism knew mainly two forms of expressing conflict in lyrics, which can be called lyrical oppositions - the elegiac and epicurean form. Romantic poetry developed them into a series of more complex, deep and individually differentiated ones.

But, no matter how important the above forms are in themselves, they, of course, do not exhaust the entire wealth of Russian romanticism.

At the turn of the 18th and 19th centuries, European and, including American, culture experienced a birth that was completely different from the period of reflection and philosophy of the Enlightenment, the stage of Romanticism. Gradually interspersing from Germany into the culture and art of England, France, Russia and other European countries, Romanticism enriched the artistic world with new colors, storylines and the boldness of the nude.

The name of the fresh movement was born from the close interweaving of several meanings of monophonic words from different countries - romantisme (France), romance (Spain), romantic (England). Subsequently, the name of the movement took root and has survived to this day as romantique — something picturesquely strange, fantastically beautiful, existing only in books, but not in reality.

general characteristics

Romanticism replaces the Age of Enlightenment and coincides with the industrial revolution, marked by the appearance of the steam engine, steam locomotive, steamship, photography and factory outskirts. If the Enlightenment is characterized by the cult of reason and civilization based on its principles, then romanticism affirms the cult of nature, feelings and the natural in man.

It was in the era of romanticism that the phenomena of tourism, mountaineering and picnics took shape, designed to restore the unity of man and nature. The image of a “noble savage”, armed with “folk wisdom” and not spoiled by civilization, is in demand. That is, the romanticists wanted to show an unusual person in unusual circumstances. In short, the romanticists opposed progressive civilization.

Romanticism in painting

The depth of their own personal experiences and thoughts — that’s what painters convey through their artistic image, which is made using color, composition and accents. Various European countries had their own characteristics in the interpretation of the romantic image. All this is connected with the philosophical current, as well as the socio-political situation, to which art was the only living response. Painting was no exception.

Germany at that time was fragmented into small duchies and principalities and was experiencing severe public turmoil. The painters did not depict titanic heroes, did not make monumental canvases; in this case, enthusiasm was evoked by the deep spiritual world of man, moral quests, his greatness and beauty. Therefore, romanticism in German painting is represented to the greatest extent in landscapes and portraits.

The traditional standard of this genre is the Works of Otto Runge. In the portraits of this painter, through the treatment of facial features and eyes, through the contrast of shadow and light, the artist’s zeal is conveyed to demonstrate the inconsistency of personality, its depth and power of feeling. Thanks to the landscape, the images of trees, birds and flowers are exaggerated and to a lesser extent mind-blowing. Otto Runge also tried to discover the diversity of the human personality, its similarity with nature, unidentified and different.

Self-portrait "The three of us", 1805, Philipp Otto Runge

In France, romanticism in painting developed according to different principles. Stormy social life, as well as revolutionary upheavals, are manifested in painting by the painters’ inclination to depict mind-blowing and historical subjects, also with “nervous” excitement and pathos, which were achieved by dazzling color contrast, some chaos, expression of movements, as well as spontaneity of compositions.

In the works of T. Gericault, romantic ideas are most clearly represented. The painter created a pulsating depth of emotion, using light and color professionally, depicting a sublime impulse towards freedom and struggle.

"Epsom Derby", 1821, Theodore Géricault

“Officer of the mounted rangers of the imperial guard, going on the attack,” 1812

The era of Romanticism was also reflected in the paintings of artists who exposed inner fears, impulses, love and hatred in clear contrasts of light, shadow and halftones. The whitewashed bodies of G.I. Fusli along with the phantasmagoria of fictional monsters, the naked touching female bodies of E. Delacroix against the backdrop of gloomy debris and smoke, paintings painted with the magical power of the brush of the Spanish painter F. Goya, the freshness of the calm and the gloom of the storm of I. Aivazovsky — pulled from the depths of the centuries of Gothic and Renaissance brought to the surface what was previously so skillfully masked by generally accepted canons.

Nightmare, 1781, Johann Heinrich Fusli

Liberty Leading the People, 1830, Eugene Delacroix

Rainbow, Ivan Aivazovsky

If the painting of the 13th and 14th centuries was stingy with emotions, and in the subsequent three hundred years of the formation of the art of the Early and High Renaissance, with its overcoming of religiosity and blind faith in something else, or the Enlightenment period, which put an end to the “witch hunt,” then the artistic representation on the canvases of Romanticism allowed look into a world different from the real one.

To convey passions, artists resorted to the use of rich colors, bright strokes and saturation of paintings with “special effects”.

Biedermeier

One of the branches of romanticism in painting is the style Biedermeier. The main feature of Biedermeier is idealism. In painting, everyday scenes predominate, while in other genres the paintings are of a chamber nature. Painting seeks to find features of idyllic attractiveness in the world of a small person. This tendency is rooted in the peculiarities of German national life, primarily the burghers.

Bookworm, ok. 1850, K. Spitzweg

One of the most prominent representatives of Biedermeier painting, Carl Spitzweg, painted eccentric philistines, as they were called in Germany, philistines, as he himself was.

Of course, his heroes are limited, these are the little people of the province, watering roses on the balcony, postmen, cooks, clerks. There is humor in Spitzweg's paintings; he laughs at his characters, but without malice.

Gradually, the concept of “Biedermeier” spread to fashion, applied art, graphics, interior design, and furniture. In applied art, painting of porcelain and glass receives the greatest development. By 1900, the word also came to mean "the good old days."

Biedermeier — the style is provincial, although metropolitan artists also worked in this style, in Berlin and Vienna. Biedermeier also penetrated into Russia. His influence is in the works of Russian masters, A. G. Venetsianov and V. A. Tropinin. The expression “Russian Biedermeier” exists, although it sounds ridiculous.

Sleeping shepherd, 1823-24, A. G. Venetsianov

Family portrait of the Counts Morkovs, 1813, V. A. Tropinin

In Russia, Biedermeier is Pushkin's times. Biedermeier fashion — the fashion of Pushkin’s times. This is a jacket, vest and top hat for men, a cane, tight trousers with straps. Sometimes — a tailcoat. Women wore dresses with narrow waists, wide necklines, wide bell-shaped skirts, and hats. Things were simple, without complex decorations.

Interiors in the Biedermeier style are characterized by intimacy, balanced proportions, simplicity of shape and light colors. The premises were light and spacious, which is why the interior was perceived as moderately simple, but psychologically comfortable. The walls of rooms with deep window niches were painted white or other light colors and covered with embossed striped wallpaper. The pattern on the window curtains and furniture upholstery was the same. These fabric interior parts were colored and contained designs depicting flowers.

The concept of a “clean room” appears, that is, a room that was not used on weekdays. This usually closed “Sunday room” served only for receiving guests. Furniture painted in warm colors and wall watercolors, engravings, as well as a large number of decorations and souvenirs added additional comfort to the residential interior. As with style preferences, the practical Biedermeier selects only those pieces of furniture that correspond to his idea of ​​functionality and comfort. Never before has furniture so fully met its purpose as in this era - decorativeness fades into the background.

At the beginning of the 20th century, Biedermeier began to be assessed negatively. He was understood as “vulgar, bourgeois.” He really had such features as intimacy, intimacy, sentimentality, poeticization of things, which led to such an assessment.

Romanticism in literature

Romanticism also opposed the Age of Enlightenment in verbal terms: the language of romantic works, striving to be natural, “simple”, accessible to all readers, was something opposite to the classics with its noble, “sublime” themes, characteristic, for example, of classical tragedy.

Romantic hero- a complex, passionate personality, whose inner world is unusually deep and endless; it is a whole universe full of contradictions. Romantics were interested in all passions, both high and low, which were opposed to each other. High passion — love in all its manifestations, low — greed, ambition, envy. Interest in strong and vivid feelings, all-consuming passions, and secret movements of the soul are characteristic features of romanticism.

Among the late Western European romantics, pessimism towards society acquires cosmic proportions and becomes the “disease of the century.” The heroes of many romantic works (F.R. Chateaubriand, A. Musset, J. Byron, A. Vigny, A. Lamartine, G. Heine, etc.) are characterized by moods of hopelessness and despair, which acquire a universal human character. Perfection is lost forever, the world is ruled by evil, ancient chaos is resurrected. The theme of the “terrible world”, characteristic of all romantic literature, was most clearly embodied in the so-called “black genre”, as well as in the works of Byron, C. Brentano, E. T. A. Hoffman, E. Poe and N. Hawthorne.

At the same time, romanticism is based on ideas that challenge the “terrible world”—primarily the ideas of freedom. The disappointment of romanticism is a disappointment in reality, but progress and civilization are only one side of it. Rejection of this side, lack of faith in the possibilities of civilization provide another path, the path to the ideal, to the eternal, to the absolute. This path must resolve all contradictions and completely change life. This is the path to perfection, “towards a goal, the explanation of which must be sought on the other side of the visible” (A. De Vigny).

For some romantics, the world is dominated by incomprehensible and mysterious forces that must be obeyed and not try to change fate (poets of the “lake school”, Chateaubriand, V.A. Zhukovsky). For others, “world evil” caused protest, demanded revenge and struggle. (J. Byron, P. B. Shelley, S. Petofi, A. Mickiewicz, early A. S. Pushkin). What they had in common was that they all saw in man a single essence, the task of which is not at all limited to solving everyday problems. On the contrary, without denying everyday life, the romantics sought to unravel the mystery of human existence, turning to nature, trusting their religious and poetic feelings.

By the way, it is thanks to Zhukovsky that Russian literature includes one of the favorite genres of Western European romantics — ballad. Thanks to Zhukovsky's translations, Russian readers became acquainted with the ballads of Goethe, Schiller, Burger, Southey, and W. Scott. “The translator in prose is a slave, the translator in verse is a rival”, these words belong to Zhukovsky himself and reflect his attitude towards his own translations.

After Zhukovsky, many poets turned to the ballad genre - A.S. Pushkin ( Song about Prophetic Oleg, Drowned), M.Yu. Lermontov ( Airship, Mermaid), A.K. Tolstoy ( Vasily Shibanov) and etc.

It originated at the end of the 18th century, but reached its greatest prosperity in the 1830s. From the beginning of the 1850s, the period began to decline, but its threads stretched throughout the 19th century, giving the basis to such movements as symbolism, decadence and neo-romanticism.

The emergence of romanticism

The birthplace of the movement is considered to be Europe, in particular England and France, which is where the name of this artistic movement - “romantisme” – comes from. This is explained by the fact that romanticism of the 19th century arose as a consequence of the Great French Revolution.

The revolution destroyed the entire pre-existing hierarchy and mixed up society and social strata. The man began to feel lonely and began to seek solace in gambling and other entertainment. Against this background, the idea arose that all life is a game in which there are winners and losers. The main character of every romantic work is a person who plays with fate, with fate.

What is romanticism

Romanticism is everything that exists only in books: incomprehensible, incredible and fantastic phenomena, at the same time associated with the affirmation of personality through its spiritual and creative life. Mainly the events unfold against the backdrop of expressed passions, all the heroes have clearly demonstrated characters and are often endowed with a rebellious spirit.

Writers of the Romantic era emphasize that the main value in life is a person’s personality. Each person is a separate world full of amazing beauty. It is from there that all inspiration and sublime feelings are drawn, and also a tendency towards idealization appears.

According to novelists, the ideal is an ephemeral concept, but nevertheless has the right to exist. The ideal is beyond everything ordinary, therefore the main character and his ideas are directly opposed to everyday relationships and material things.

Distinctive features

Features of romanticism lie in the main ideas and conflicts.

The main idea of ​​almost every work is the constant movement of the hero in physical space. This fact seems to reflect the confusion of the soul, his continuously ongoing reflections and at the same time changes in the world around him.

Like many artistic movements, romanticism has its own conflicts. Here the whole concept is built on the complex relationship of the protagonist with the outside world. He is very self-centered and at the same time rebels against base, vulgar, material objects of reality, which one way or another manifests itself in the character’s actions, thoughts and ideas. The most clearly expressed in this regard are the following literary examples of romanticism: Childe Harold - the main character from Byron's "Childe Harold's Pilgrimage" and Pechorin - from Lermontov's "A Hero of Our Time".

If we summarize all of the above, it turns out that the basis of any such work is the gap between reality and the idealized world, which has very sharp edges.

Romanticism in European literature

European romanticism of the 19th century is remarkable in that most of its works have a fantastic basis. These are numerous fairy-tale legends, short stories and stories.

The main countries in which romanticism as a literary movement manifested itself most expressively are France, England and Germany.

This artistic phenomenon has several stages:

1. 1801-1815. The beginning of the formation of romantic aesthetics.
2. 1815-1830. The formation and flourishing of the movement, the definition of the main postulates of this direction.
3. 1830-1848. Romanticism takes on more social forms.

Each of the above countries made its own special contribution to the development of this cultural phenomenon. In France, the romantic ones had a more political overtones; the writers were hostile towards the new bourgeoisie. This society, according to French leaders, destroyed the integrity of the individual, her beauty and freedom of spirit.

Romanticism has existed in English legends for quite a long time, but until the end of the 18th century it did not stand out as a separate literary movement. English works, unlike French ones, are filled with Gothic, religion, national folklore, and the culture of peasant and working-class societies (including spiritual ones). In addition, English prose and lyrics are filled with travel to distant lands and exploration of foreign lands.

In Germany, romanticism as a literary movement was formed under the influence of idealistic philosophy. The foundations were individuality and those oppressed by feudalism, as well as the perception of the universe as a single living system. Almost every German work is permeated with reflections on the existence of man and the life of his spirit.

Europe: examples of works

The following literary works are considered the most notable European works in the spirit of romanticism:

Treatise “The Genius of Christianity”, stories “Atala” and “Rene” by Chateaubriand;

Novels “Dolphine”, “Corinna, or Italy” by Germaine de Stael;

The novel "Adolphe" by Benjamin Constant;

The novel “Confession of a Son of the Century” by Musset;

Roman "Saint-Mars" by Vigny;

Manifesto "Preface" to the work "Cromwell", the novel "Notre Dame" by Hugo;

The drama "Henry III and His Court", a series of novels about the musketeers, "The Count of Monte Cristo" and "Queen Margot" by Dumas;

Novels “Indiana”, “The Wandering Apprentice”, “Horace”, “Consuelo” by George Sand;

Manifesto "Racine and Shakespeare" by Stendhal;

The poems "The Ancient Mariner" and "Christabel" by Coleridge;

- “Eastern Poems” and “Manfred” by Byron;

Collected Works of Balzac;

The novel "Ivanhoe" by Walter Scott;

The fairy tale “Hyacinth and Rose”, the novel “Heinrich von Ofterdingen” by Novalis;

Collections of short stories, fairy tales and novels by Hoffmann.

Romanticism in Russian literature

Russian romanticism of the 19th century arose under the direct influence of Western European literature. However, despite this, it had its own characteristic features, which were traced back in previous periods.

This artistic phenomenon in Russia fully reflected the hostility of progressives and revolutionaries towards the ruling bourgeoisie, in particular, towards its way of life - unbridled, immoral and cruel. Russian romanticism of the 19th century was a direct consequence of rebellious sentiments and anticipation of turning points in the country's history.

In the literature of that time, two directions are distinguished: psychological and civil. The first was based on the description and analysis of feelings and experiences, while the second was based on propaganda of the fight against modern society. The common and main idea of ​​all novelists was that a poet or writer had to behave in accordance with the ideals that he described in his works.

Russia: examples of works

The most striking examples of romanticism in Russian literature of the 19th century are:

The stories “Ondine”, “The Prisoner of Chillon”, the ballads “The Forest King”, “The Fisherman”, “Lenora” by Zhukovsky;

Works “Eugene Onegin”, “The Queen of Spades” by Pushkin;

- “The Night Before Christmas” by Gogol;

- “Hero of Our Time” by Lermontov.

Romanticism in American Literature

In America, the direction received a slightly later development: its initial stage dates back to 1820-1830, the subsequent one - to 1840-1860 of the 19th century. Both stages were exceptionally influenced by civil unrest both in France (which served as the impetus for the creation of the United States) and directly in America itself (the war of independence from England and the war between North and South).

Artistic movements in American romanticism are represented by two types: abolitionist, which advocated liberation from slavery, and eastern, which idealized plantation.

American literature of this period is based on a rethinking of knowledge and genres captured from Europe and mixed with the unique way of life and pace of life on the still new and little-explored continent. American works are richly flavored with national intonations, a sense of independence and the struggle for freedom.

American romanticism. Examples of works

The Alhambra series, the stories "The Phantom Bridegroom", "Rip Van Winkle" and "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" by Washington Irving;

The Last of the Mohicans by Fenimore Cooper;

The poem “The Raven”, the stories “Ligeia”, “The Gold Bug”, “The Fall of the House of Usher” and others by E. Alan Poe;

Gorton's novels The Scarlet Letter and The House of the Seven Gables;

Melville's novels Typee and Moby Dick;

The novel "Uncle Tom's Cabin" by Harriet Beecher Stowe;

Poetically translated legends “Evangeline”, “The Song of Hiawatha”, “The Matchmaking of Miles Standish” by Longfellow;

Whitman's Leaves of Grass collection;

Essay "Woman in the Nineteenth Century" by Margaret Fuller.

Romanticism as a literary movement had a fairly strong influence on musical, theatrical art and painting - just remember the numerous productions and paintings of those times. This happened mainly due to such qualities of the movement as high aesthetics and emotionality, heroism and pathos, chivalry, idealization and humanism. Despite the fact that the age of romanticism was quite short-lived, this did not in any way affect the popularity of books written in the 19th century in subsequent decades - works of literary art from that period are loved and revered by the public to this day.

Romanticism as a movement in painting was formed in Western Europe at the end of the 18th century. Romanticism reached its heyday in the art of most Western European countries in the 20s and 30s. 19th century.

The term “romanticism” itself originates from the word “novel” (in the 17th century, novels were literary works written not in Latin, but in languages ​​derived from it - French, English, etc.). Later, everything incomprehensible and mysterious began to be called romantic.

As a cultural phenomenon, romanticism was formed from a special worldview generated by the results of the Great French Revolution. Disillusioned with the ideals of the Enlightenment, the romantics, striving for harmony and integrity, created new aesthetic ideals and artistic values. The main object of their attention were outstanding characters with all their experiences and desire for freedom. The hero of romantic works is an extraordinary person who, by the will of fate, finds himself in difficult life circumstances.

Although romanticism arose as a protest against the art of classicism, it was in many ways close to the latter. Romantics were partly such representatives of classicism as N. Poussin, C. Lorrain, J. O. D. Ingr.

The romantics introduced unique national features into painting, that is, something that was lacking in the art of the classicists.
The largest representative of French romanticism was T. Gericault.

Theodore Gericault

Theodore Gericault, the great French painter, sculptor and graphic artist, was born in 1791 in Rouen into a wealthy family. His talent as an artist manifested itself quite early. Often, instead of attending classes at school, Gericault sat in the stable and drew horses. Even then, he sought not only to transfer the external features of animals onto paper, but also to convey their disposition and character.

After graduating from the Lyceum in 1808, Gericault became a student of the then famous master of painting Carl Vernet, who was famous for his ability to depict horses on canvas. However, the young artist did not like Vernet's style. Soon he leaves the workshop and goes to study with another, no less talented painter than Vernet, P. N. Guerin. Having studied with two famous artists, Gericault nevertheless did not continue their traditions in painting. His real teachers should most likely be considered J. A. Gros and J. L. David.

Gericault's early works are distinguished by the fact that they are as close to life as possible. Such paintings are unusually expressive and pathetic. They show the author’s enthusiastic mood when assessing the world around him. An example is the painting entitled “Officer of the Imperial Horse Chasseurs during an Attack,” created in 1812. This painting was first seen by visitors to the Paris Salon. They accepted the work of the young artist with admiration, appreciating the talent of the young master.

The work was created during that period of French history when Napoleon was at the zenith of his glory. His contemporaries idolized him, a great emperor who managed to conquer most of Europe. It was in this mood, under the impression of the victories of Napoleon’s army, that the picture was painted. The canvas shows a soldier galloping on horseback to attack. His face expresses determination, courage and fearlessness in the face of death. The whole composition
unusually dynamic and emotional. The viewer gets the feeling that he himself becomes a real participant in the events depicted on the canvas.

The figure of the brave soldier will appear more than once in the works of Gericault. Among such images, the heroes of the paintings “Carabinieri Officer”, “Cuirassier Officer Before an Attack”, “Portrait of a Carabinieri”, “Wounded Cuirassier”, created in 1812-1814, are of particular interest. The last work is remarkable in that it was presented at the next exhibition held at the Salon in the same year. However, this is not the main advantage of the composition. More importantly, it showed the changes that had occurred in the artist’s creative style. If his first canvases reflected sincere patriotic feelings, then in his works dating back to 1814, pathos in the depiction of heroes gives way to drama.

Such a change in the artist’s mood was again associated with the events taking place in France at that time. In 1812, Napoleon was defeated in Russia, due to which he, who was once a brilliant hero, acquired among his contemporaries the fame of an unsuccessful military leader and an arrogant proud man. Gericault embodies ideal disappointment in the painting “The Wounded Cuirassier.” The canvas depicts a wounded warrior trying to quickly leave the battlefield. He leans on a saber - a weapon that, perhaps just a few minutes ago, he held, raised high in the air.

It was Géricault’s dissatisfaction with Napoleon’s policies that dictated his entry into the service of Louis XVIII, who took the French throne in 1814. Pessimistic sentiments were also associated with the fact that after Napoleon’s second seizure of power in France (the Hundred Days period), the young artist left his native country with Bourbons. But even here he was disappointed. The young man could not calmly watch as the king destroyed everything that had been achieved during Napoleon's reign. In addition, under Louis XVIII, the feudal-Catholic reaction intensified, the country rolled back faster and faster, returning to the old state structure. A young, progressive-minded person could not accept this. Very soon, the young man, having lost faith in his ideals, leaves the army led by Louis XVIII and again takes up brushes and paints. These years cannot be called bright or anything remarkable in the artist’s work.

In 1816, Gericault went on a trip to Italy. Having visited Rome and Florence and studied the masterpieces of famous masters, the artist became interested in monumental painting. His attention is especially occupied by Michelangelo's frescoes that decorated the Sistine Chapel. At this time, Gericault created works that, in their scale and majesty, were in many ways reminiscent of the paintings of High Renaissance painters. Among them, the most interesting are “The Abduction of a Nymph by a Centaur” and “The Man Overthrowing the Bull.”

The same features of the manner of the old masters are visible in the painting “Running of Free Horses in Rome”, written around 1817 and representing competitions of riders at one of the carnivals taking place in Rome. The peculiarity of this composition is that it was compiled by the artist from previously made natural drawings. Moreover, the nature of the sketches differs markedly from the style of the entire work. If the first are scenes describing the life of the Romans - the artist’s contemporaries, then the overall composition contains images of courageous ancient heroes, as if emerging from ancient narratives. In this, Gericault follows the path of J. L. David, who, to give the image heroic pathos, clothed his heroes in ancient forms.

Soon after painting this painting, Gericault returned to France, where he became a member of the opposition circle formed around the painter Horace Vernet. Upon arrival in Paris, the artist was especially interested in graphics. In 1818, he created a number of lithographs on a military theme, among which the most significant was “Return from Russia.” The lithograph depicts defeated soldiers of the French army wandering across a snowy field. The figures of crippled and war-weary people are depicted in a lifelike and truthful manner. There is no pathos or heroic pathos in the composition, which was characteristic of Gericault’s early works. The artist strives to reflect the real state of affairs, all the disasters that the French soldiers abandoned by their commander had to endure in a foreign land.

In the work “Return from Russia” the theme of man’s struggle with death was first heard. However, here this motif is not expressed as clearly as in the later works of Gericault. An example of such paintings is the painting called “The Raft of the Medusa.” It was painted in 1819 and exhibited at the Paris Salon that same year. The canvas depicts people struggling with the raging water elements. The artist shows not only their suffering and torment, but also their desire to emerge victorious in the battle with death at all costs.

The plot of the composition is dictated by an event that occurred in the summer of 1816 and excited all of France. The then famous frigate “Medusa” hit a reef and sank off the coast of Africa. Of the 149 people on the ship, only 15 were able to escape, among whom were the surgeon Savigny and the engineer Correar. Upon arrival at home, they published a small book telling about their adventures and happy salvation. It was from these memories that the French learned that the misfortune happened due to the fault of the inexperienced captain of the ship, who got on board thanks to the patronage of a noble friend.

The images created by Gericault are unusually dynamic, flexible and expressive, which was achieved by the artist through long and painstaking work. In order to truthfully depict terrible events on canvas, to convey the feelings of people dying at sea, the artist meets with eyewitnesses of the tragedy, spends a long time studying the faces of emaciated patients being treated in one of the hospitals in Paris, as well as sailors who managed to escape after shipwrecks. At this time, the painter created a large number of portrait works.

The raging sea, as if trying to swallow a fragile wooden raft with people, is also filled with deep meaning. This image is unusually expressive and dynamic. Just like the human figures, it was copied from life: the artist made several sketches depicting the sea during a storm. While working on the monumental composition, Gericault more than once turned to previously prepared sketches in order to fully reflect the nature of the elements. That is why the picture makes a huge impression on the viewer, convincing him of the realism and truthfulness of what is happening.

"The Raft of the Medusa" presents Géricault as a remarkable master of composition. For a long time, the artist thought about how to arrange the figures in the picture in order to most fully express the author's intention. Several changes were made along the way. The sketches preceding the painting indicate that initially Géricault wanted to depict the struggle of people on the raft with each other, but later abandoned such an interpretation of the event. In the final version, the canvas represents the moment when already desperate people see the Argus ship on the horizon and stretch out their hands to it. The last addition to the painting was a human figure placed at the bottom, on the right side of the canvas. It was she who was the final touch of the composition, which after that acquired a deeply tragic character. It is noteworthy that this change was made when the painting was already on display at the Salon.

With its monumentality and heightened emotionality, Géricault’s painting is in many ways reminiscent of the work of the High Renaissance masters (mostly Michelangelo’s “The Last Judgment”), whom the artist met during a trip to Italy.

The painting “The Raft of the Medusa,” which became a masterpiece of French painting, was a huge success in opposition circles, who saw in it a reflection of revolutionary ideals. For the same reasons, the work was not accepted among the highest nobility and official representatives of the fine arts of France. That is why at that time the painting was not purchased by the state from the author.

Disappointed with the reception given to his creation in his homeland, Gericault goes to England, where he presents his favorite work to the British. In London, art connoisseurs received the famous painting with great delight.

Gericault becomes close to English artists, who captivate him with their ability to sincerely and truthfully depict reality. Géricault devotes a series of lithographs to the life and everyday life of the capital of England, among which the most interesting are the works called “The Great English Suite” (1821) and “The Old Beggar Dying at the Door of the Bakery” (1821). In the latter, the artist depicted a London tramp, whose image reflected the impressions the painter received while studying the life of people in the working-class neighborhoods of the city.

The same cycle included such lithographs as “The Blacksmith of Flanders” and “At the Gates of the Adelphin Dockyard,” which present the viewer with a picture of the life of ordinary people in London. Interesting in these works are the images of horses, heavy and heavy. They are noticeably different from those graceful and graceful animals that were painted by other artists - contemporaries of Gericault.

While in the capital of England, Gericault created not only lithographs, but also paintings. One of the most striking works of this period was the canvas “Racing at Epsom,” created in 1821. In the painting, the artist depicts horses running at full speed, and their feet do not touch the ground at all. The master uses this cunning technique (the photograph proved that such a position of the horses’ legs while running is impossible; this is the artist’s imagination) to give the composition dynamism, to create in the viewer the impression of the lightning-fast movement of the horses. This feeling is enhanced by the accurate rendering of the plasticity (postures, gestures) of human figures, as well as the use of bright and rich color combinations (red, bay, white horses; rich blue, dark red, white-blue and golden-yellow jockey jackets) .

The theme of horse racing, which had long attracted the attention of the painter with its special expression, was repeated more than once in the works created by Géricault after completing work on “The Epsom Races”.

By 1822, the artist left England and returned to his native France. Here he creates large canvases similar to the works of Renaissance masters. Among them are “The Negro Trade”, “Opening the Doors of the Inquisition Prison in Spain”. These paintings remained unfinished - death prevented Gericault from completing the work.

Of particular interest are the portraits, the creation of which by art historians dates back to the period from 1822 to 1823. The history of their painting deserves special attention. The fact is that these portraits were commissioned by a friend of the artist, who worked as a psychiatrist in one of the clinics in Paris. They were supposed to become a kind of illustrations demonstrating various human mental illnesses. This is how the portraits “Crazy Old Woman”, “Madman”, “Madman Imagining Himself a Commander” were painted. For the master of painting, it was important not so much to show the external signs and symptoms of the disease, but to convey the internal, mental state of the sick person. On the canvases, tragic images of people appear in front of the viewer, whose eyes are filled with pain and sorrow.

Among the portraits of Gericault, a special place is occupied by the portrait of a black man, currently in the collection of the Rouen Museum. A determined and strong-willed man looks at the viewer from the canvas, ready to fight to the end with forces hostile to him. The image is unusually bright, emotional and expressive. The man in this picture is very similar to those strong-willed heroes who were previously shown by Géricault in large compositions (for example, in the canvas “The Raft of the Medusa”).

Gericault was not only a master of painting, but also an excellent sculptor. His works in this art form at the beginning of the 19th century represented the first examples of romantic sculptures. Among such works, the unusually expressive composition “Nymph and Satyr” is of particular interest. The images frozen in motion accurately convey the plasticity of the human body.

Theodore Gericault died tragically in 1824 in Paris, falling from a horse. His early death was a surprise to all the famous artist’s contemporaries.

Gericault's work marked a new stage in the development of painting not only in France, but also in world art - the period of romanticism. In his works, the master overcomes the influence of classicist traditions. His works are unusually colorful and reflect the diversity of the natural world. By introducing human figures into the composition, the artist strives to reveal a person’s inner experiences and emotions as fully and clearly as possible.

After Gericault's death, the traditions of his romantic art were taken up by the artist's younger contemporary, E. Delacroix.

Eugene Delacroix

Ferdinand Victor Eugene Delacroix, a famous French artist and graphic artist, a successor to the traditions of romanticism established in the work of Gericault, was born in 1798. Without completing his education at the Imperial Lyceum, in 1815 Delacroix entered training with the famous master Guerin. However, the young painter’s artistic methods did not meet the teacher’s requirements, so seven years later the young man left him.

Studying with Guerin, Delacroix devoted a lot of time to studying the work of David and the masters of painting of the Renaissance. He considers the culture of antiquity, the traditions of which David followed, to be fundamental for the development of world art. Therefore, Delacroix’s aesthetic ideals were the works of poets and thinkers of Ancient Greece; among them, the artist especially highly valued the works of Homer, Horace and Marcus Aurelius.

Delacroix's first works were unfinished canvases, where the young painter sought to reflect the struggle of the Greeks with the Turks. However, the artist lacked the skill and experience to create an expressive painting.

In 1822, Delacroix exhibited his work entitled “Dante and Virgil” at the Paris Salon. This canvas, unusually emotional and bright in color, is in many ways reminiscent of Gericault’s work “The Raft of the Medusa.”

Two years later, another painting by Delacroix, “The Massacre on Chios,” was presented to the audience at the Salon. It was here that the artist’s long-standing plan to show the struggle of the Greeks with the Turks was embodied. The overall composition of the picture consists of several parts that form separately placed groups of people, each of them has its own dramatic conflict. Overall, the work gives the impression of deep tragedy. The feeling of tension and dynamism is enhanced by the combination of smooth and sharp lines that form the figures of the characters, which leads to a change in the proportions of the person depicted by the artist. However, it is precisely because of this that the picture acquires a realistic character and life-like persuasiveness.

Delacroix’s creative method, fully expressed in “The Massacre at Chios,” is far from the classicist style then accepted in official circles in France and among representatives of the fine arts. Therefore, the young artist’s painting was met with harsh criticism at the Salon.

Despite the failure, the painter remains true to his ideal. In 1827, another work appeared dedicated to the theme of the struggle of the Greek people for independence - “Greece on the ruins of Missolonghi.” The figure of a determined and proud Greek woman depicted on the canvas here personifies unconquered Greece.

In 1827, Delacroix executed two works that reflected the master’s creative searches in the field of means and methods of artistic expression. These are the paintings “The Death of Sardanapalus” and “Marino Faliero”. In the first of them, the tragedy of the situation is conveyed in the movement of human figures. Only the image of Sardanapalus himself is static and calm here. In the composition “Marino Faliero” only the figure of the main character is dynamic. The rest of the heroes seemed frozen in horror at the thought of what was about to happen.

In the 20s XIX century Delacroix completed a number of works, the plots of which were taken from famous literary works. In 1825, the artist visited England, the homeland of William Shakespeare. In the same year, under the influence of this journey and the tragedy of the famous playwright Delacroix, the lithograph “Macbeth” was made. In the period from 1827 to 1828, he created the lithograph “Faust”, dedicated to Goethe’s work of the same name.

In connection with the events that took place in France in 1830, Delacroix painted the painting “Liberty Leading the People.” Revolutionary France is presented in the image of a young, strong woman, powerful, decisive and independent, boldly leading the crowd, in which the figures of a worker, a student, a wounded soldier, a Parisian gamen stand out (an image that anticipated Gavroche, who later appeared in V. Hugo’s Les Miserables ).

This work was noticeably different from similar works by other artists who were interested only in the truthful transmission of this or that event. The paintings created by Delacroix were characterized by high heroic pathos. The images here are generalized symbols of the freedom and independence of the French people.

With the coming to power of Louis Philippe, the bourgeois king, the heroism and sublime feelings preached by Delacroix found no place in modern life. In 1831, the artist undertook a trip to African countries. He visited Tangier, Meknes, Oran and Algiers. At the same time, Delacroix visits Spain. The life of the East literally fascinates the artist with its rapid flow. He creates sketches, drawings and a range of watercolor works.

After visiting Morocco, Delacroix painted canvases dedicated to the East. The paintings in which the artist shows horse races or battles of Moorish horsemen are unusually dynamic and expressive. In comparison, the composition “Algerian Women in Their Chambers,” created in 1834, seems calm and static. It does not have the rapid dynamism and tension characteristic of the artist’s earlier works. Delacroix appears here as a master of color. The color scheme used by the painter fully reflects the bright diversity of the palette, which the viewer associates with the colors of the East.

The canvas “Jewish Wedding in Morocco,” painted around 1841, is characterized by the same slowness and regularity. A mysterious oriental atmosphere is created here thanks to the artist’s accurate rendering of the uniqueness of the national interior. The composition seems surprisingly dynamic: the painter shows how people move up the stairs and enter the room. The light entering the room makes the image look realistic and convincing.

Eastern motifs were still present in Delacroix’s works for a long time. Thus, at the exhibition organized at the Salon in 1847, out of the six works he presented, five were dedicated to the life and way of life of the East.

In the 30-40s. In the 19th century, new themes appeared in Delacroix’s work. At this time, the master creates works of historical themes. Among them, the paintings “Mirabeau’s Protest against the Dissolution of the Estates General” and “Boissy d’Anglas” deserve special attention. The sketch of the latter, shown in 1831 at the Salon, is a striking example of compositions on the theme of a popular uprising.

The paintings “The Battle of Poitiers” (1830) and “The Battle of Taibourg” (1837) are dedicated to the image of the people. The dynamics of the battle, the movement of people, their fury, anger and suffering are shown here with all realism. The artist strives to convey the emotions and passions of a person, overcome by the desire to win at any cost. It is the figures of people that are the main ones in conveying the dramatic nature of the event.

Very often in Delacroix's works, the winner and the vanquished are sharply opposed to each other. This is especially clearly visible in the canvas “The Capture of Constantinople by the Crusaders,” painted in 1840. In the foreground is a group of people overcome by grief. Behind them is a delightful, enchanting landscape. Figures of victorious horsemen are also placed here, whose menacing silhouettes contrast with the mournful figures in the foreground.

The Capture of Constantinople by the Crusaders presents Delacroix as a remarkable colorist. Bright and saturated colors, however, do not enhance the tragic principle, the exponents of which are mournful figures located close to the viewer. On the contrary, the rich palette creates the feeling of a holiday organized in honor of the winners.

No less colorful is the composition “Trajan’s Justice,” created in the same 1840. The artist’s contemporaries recognized this painting as one of the best among all the artist’s paintings. Of particular interest is the fact that during the work the master experiments in the field of color. Even his shadows take on a variety of shades. All colors of the composition correspond exactly to nature. The execution of the work was preceded by the painter’s long observations of changes in shades in nature. The artist wrote them down in his diary. Then, using the records, scientists confirmed that the discoveries made by Delacroix in the field of tonality were fully consistent with the doctrine of color that was born at that time, the founder of which was E. Chevreuil. In addition, the artist compares his discoveries with the palette used by the Venetian school, which for him was an example of painting skill.

Among Delacroix's paintings, portraits occupy a special place. The master rarely turned to this genre. He painted only those people with whom he had known for a long time, whose spiritual development took place before the artist’s eyes. Therefore, the images in the portraits are very expressive and deep. These are the portraits of Chopin and Georges Sand. The canvas dedicated to the famous writer (1834) depicts a noble and strong-willed woman who delights her contemporaries. The portrait of Chopin, painted four years later, in 1838, presents a poetic and spiritual image of the great composer.

An interesting and unusually expressive portrait of the famous violinist and composer Paganini, painted by Delacroix around 1831. Paganini’s musical style was in many ways similar to the artist’s painting method. Paganini's work is characterized by the same expression and intense emotionality that were characteristic of the painter's works.

Landscapes occupy a small place in Delacroix's work. However, they turned out to be very significant for the development of French painting in the second half of the 19th century. Delacroix's landscapes are marked by a desire to accurately convey light and the elusive life of nature. Vivid examples of this are the canvases “Sky”, where a sense of dynamics is created thanks to snow-white clouds floating across the sky, and “The Sea Visible from the Shores of Dieppe” (1854), in which the painter masterfully conveys the gliding of light sailing ships on the surface of the sea.

In 1833, the artist received an order from the French king to paint the hall in the Bourbon Palace. Work on the creation of the monumental work lasted for four years. When executing the order, the painter was guided primarily by the fact that the images were extremely simple and concise, understandable to the viewer.
Delacroix's last work was the painting of the Chapel of the Holy Angels in the Church of Saint-Sulpice in Paris. It was executed in the period from 1849 to 1861. Using bright, rich colors (pink, bright blue, lilac, placed on an ash-blue and yellow-brown background), the artist creates a joyful mood in the compositions, evoking a feeling in the viewer enthusiastic rejoicing. The landscape, included in the painting “The Expulsion of Iliodor from the Temple” as a kind of background, visually increases the space of the composition and the premises of the chapel. On the other hand, as if trying to emphasize the enclosed space, Delacroix introduces a staircase and a balustrade into the composition. The figures of people placed behind it seem almost flat silhouettes.

Eugene Delacroix died in 1863 in Paris.

Delacroix was the most educated among the painters of the first half of the 19th century. Many of the subjects of his paintings are taken from the literary works of famous masters of the pen. An interesting fact is that most often the artist painted his characters without using a model. He sought to teach the same to his followers. According to Delacroix, painting is something more complex than a primitive copying of lines. The artist believed that art, first of all, lies in the ability to express the mood and creative intent of the master.

Delacroix is ​​the author of several theoretical works devoted to issues of color, method and style of the artist. These works served as a beacon for painters of subsequent generations in the search for their own artistic means used to create compositions.