Classicism in the architecture of Western Europe lesson notes. Lesson summary on the topic “classicism in the architecture of Western Europe” (grade 11)

Classicism is a stylistic trend in European art, the most important feature of which was the appeal to ancient art as a standard and reliance on the traditions of the harmonious ideal of the High Renaissance. “…. . Let's leave the Italians the empty tinsel with its false gloss. What matters most is the meaning; but in order to come to it, you will have to overcome obstacles and paths, strictly adhere to the intended path: Sometimes the mind has only one road... “The theorist of early classicism was the poet Nicolas Boileau (1636 -1711) “love thought in poetry,” that is, emotions are subordinate to reason. "Poetic art. » Nicola Boileau

Architecture of classicism - “Strict style” Characteristic features: Appeal to the forms of ancient architecture - the Greek order system, strict symmetry, clear proportionality of parts and their subordination to the general plan. Simplicity and clarity of forms. Calm harmony of proportions. Preference for straight lines. Unobtrusive decor that follows the outline of the object. Simplicity and nobility of finishing. Practicality and expediency. Bolshoi Theater in Warsaw.

XVII century - XVII century France. Urban planning. - creation of a large urban ensemble with development carried out according to a single plan. New cities arise as settlements near the palaces of the rulers of France. - cities are designed in the form of a square or rectangle in plan. Inside them, a strictly regular rectangular or radial ring system of streets with a city square in the center is planned. - old medieval cities are being rebuilt on the basis of new principles of regular planning. - Large palace complexes are being built in Paris - the Luxembourg Palace and the Palais Royal (1624, architect J. Lemercier). Salomon de Bros Luxembourg Palace in Paris 1615 -1621 Jacques Lemercier Palais Royal Paris 1624 -1645

One of the outstanding architectural structures of this time was the residence of the French kings on the outskirts of Paris - the Palace of Versailles. Versailles was built under the leadership of Louis XIV in 1661. France. The main creators were the architects Louis Levo and Jules Hardouin-Mansart, the master of landscape art Andre Le Nôtre (1613 -1700) and the artist Charles Lebrun, who participated in the creation of the interiors of the palace.

Versailles is a village 24 kilometers from Paris. It was originally chosen by King Louis XIII to build a modest hunting castle. The king wanted to indulge here in his favorite passion - hunting. His son, Louis XIV, was also an avid hunter, but he had much more ambitious plans for this place. Dissatisfied with his other palaces (including the Louvre and the Tuileries), in 1660 he decided to rebuild Versailles into a luxurious palace and park ensemble. Everything here had to amaze with its splendor and scale - after all, the king wanted, in the end, the entire royal court to be located here.

Features of the ensemble construction are a strictly ordered centralized system. The ensemble of the royal palace at Versailles was built in several stages, starting from the first half of the 17th century. , and it received its completion in 1679. Three wide straight radial avenues of the city converge on the Palace of Versailles, located on a hill (dominance), forming a trident. The middle trident avenue leads to the center of Paris (Avenue de Paris), the other two lead to the royal palaces of Saint-Cloud (Avenue de Saint-Cloud) and Sceaux (Avenue de Saux), as if connecting the main country residence with the regions of the country.

the plan of Versailles includes an extended main palace; two front yards; one-story Grand Trianon palace; three avenues radiating from the main palace; alleys; swimming pools; channels; fountains. The center of the entire architectural layout of Versailles is the royal palace.

Interiors of the Grand Palace Mirror Gallery Theater of Versailles Queen's Staircase The premises of the palace were distinguished by luxury and variety of decoration. Expensive finishing materials (mirrors, hammered bronze, precious woods), widespread use of decorative painting and sculpture - all this is designed to create the impression of stunning splendor. In the Mirror Gallery, thousands of candles were lit in shining silver chandeliers and a noisy, colorful crowd of courtiers filled the palace enfilades, reflected in the tall mirrors.

Allegorical compositions on mythological themes glorifying the reign of the “Sun King” Louis XIV Golden lampshade in the mirror gallery. Charles Lebrun.

The King's Bedroom The Queen's Bedroom The King's bedroom is located in the central part of the palace and faces the rising sun with its windows. The balcony overlooked the Park of Versailles.

The Park of Versailles served as a magnificent “stage area” for colorful and magnificent spectacles - fireworks, illuminations, balls, performances, masquerades. From the palace the terraces of the Versailles Park go down and the alleys move away towards the Grand Canal. Fountains, sculptural groups, and relief compositions complete the decoration of the park. Sculptural groups form complex and beautiful combinations with a variety of fountains and pools.

Andre Le Nôtre, from the family of royal gardeners, will forever go down in history as one of the best masters of landscape art. In addition to Versailles, he created, for example, the Tuileries Park in Paris, the gardens of the Chantilly Castle, Marly near London and Vaux-le-Vicomte, which was commissioned by the Minister of Finance Fouquet. Seeing this park, Louis XIV was delighted and offended that his subject had a garden that even the king did not have. Therefore, Fouquet was soon arrested, and Le Nôtre received an order to create a truly royal park, like no other in the world.

“Fountain of Latona” - decorated with sculptures of the goddess Latona with Apollo and Diana, seated on concentrically placed pools in the form of a pyramid.

An example of mature French classicism of the 17th century. is the Louvre - a royal palace in Paris. Stretching 173 m in length, decorated on two floors with a massive colonnade and risalits protruding in the middle and at the corners of the façade in the form of classical porticoes, it gives the impression of power and stern grandeur, expressing the idea of ​​​​the inviolability of law and order.

In the middle of the 18th century. classicism in France is experiencing its rebirth. The surge of increased interest in antiquity is reinforced by the discovery of remarkable monuments of artistic culture during excavations of ancient cities that were once buried during a volcanic eruption. Neoclassicism A prominent representative of his views on classicism found a “new” classicism in architecture is Jacques-Angie's expression in the Petit Trianon - the country palace of the French king in Gabriel. Versailles, which rather resembles a small mansion. Gazebo in Petit Trianon. Tall columns of the Corinthian order, placed on the plinth, unite the two floors. The building has a flat roof ending in a balustrade. Strict harmony and simplicity are combined in it with a feeling of calm dignity.

Place de la Concorde. Jean Ange Gabriel. Place Louis XV 1759 -1779. Paris. New urban planning tasks put forward by time are embodied in Gabriel’s work. The square, rectangular in plan, is connected to the city by the rays of three alleys. It is surrounded on two sides by the green areas of the Tuileries Gardens and the Champs Elysees, and on the third by the river. The ensemble is closed by two buildings, with wings covering the square on the fourth side.

Empire (from the French empire - empire) is a style in architecture and art that completes the evolution of classicism. Empire is a monumental style that developed in France during the heyday of Napoleon's empire (1799 -1815). The main trend of that time was total imitation of the art forms of late Rome. The Empire style is solemn, official, and sometimes theatrical. It manifested itself most clearly in the design of the residences of Napoleon and his retinue, from where it quickly penetrated into the aristocratic environment of France and the courts of the largest European monarchs. Pierre Francois Monard, Charles Percier. Throne room (fragment). 1807. Fontainebleau Castle

Jacob Desmalter. Bedroom of Empress Josephine. 1804. Malmaison Palace by Francois Moens. Napoleon's bedroom / 1808/ Fontainebleau Castle

Austerlitz Bridge. The length of the bridge is 200 m, width - 32 m. Named in honor of the victory won by the army of Napoleon I over Russian and Austrian troops on December 2, 1805 near the village of Austerlitz. The ornaments decorating the bridge are engraved with the names of French military leaders killed at the Battle of Austerlitz. Paris is divided into two parts by the Seine River. 38 bridges are thrown across it, the distance between them is about half a kilometer.

Jules Hardouin-Mansart Place des Invalides in Paris Started in 1684 Place Vendôme 1687 -1720 Jules Hardouin-Mansart, Liberal Bruant Ensemble of the Invalides in Paris Jules Hardouin-Mansart Cathedral of the Invalides 1679 -1706 Question: In residential architecture, the name of Mansart is immortalized by an element he invented. Which one?

In 1630, François Mansart introduced into the practice of building urban housing a high, broken roof shape using an attic for housing. The device, which received the name “attic” after the author’s name.

Homework Ch. 7, creative workshop pr3 p73 Compare the design of the interior decoration (interiors) of the Francisco I gallery in Fontainebleau and the Mirror Gallery of Versailles.

Classicism is a movement in European art that replaced the pompous Baroque in the mid-17th century. His aesthetics were based on the ideas of rationalism. Classicism in architecture is an appeal to examples of ancient architecture. It originated in Italy and quickly found followers in other European countries.

Andrea Palladio and Vincenzo Scamozzi

Andrea Palladio (1508-1580) was the son of a stonemason. He himself had to continue the hard work of his father. But fate turned out to be favorable to him. A meeting with the poet and humanist J. J. Trissino, who recognized great talent in young Andrea and helped him get an education, was the first step on the path to his fame.

Palladio had excellent instincts. He realized that the customers were tired of the splendor of the Baroque, they no longer wanted to add luxury to the show, and he offered them what they were striving for, but could not describe. The architect turned to the heritage of antiquity, but did not focus on physicality and sensuality, as the masters of the Renaissance did. His attention was attracted by the rationalism, symmetry and restrained elegance of the buildings of Ancient Greece and Rome. The new direction was named after its author - Palladianism; it became a transition to the classicism style in architecture.

Vicenzo Scamozzi (1552-1616) is considered Palladio's most talented student. He is called the "father of classicism." He completed many projects designed by his teacher. The most famous of them are the Teatro Olimpico, which for many years became a model for the construction of theaters around the world, and Villa Capra, the first private house in the history of architecture, created according to the rules of an ancient temple.

Canons of classicism

Palladio and Scamozzi, who worked at the end of the 16th and beginning of the 17th centuries, anticipated the emergence of a new style. Classicism in architecture finally took shape in France. Its characteristic features are easier to understand by comparing them with the features of the Baroque style.

Classicism in Western European architecture

The Latin word classicus ("exemplary") gave the name to the new style - classicism. In European architecture, this direction took a leading position for more than 100 years. It supplanted the Baroque style and paved the way for the emergence of the Art Nouveau style.

English classicism

Italy was the birthplace of classicism. From there it spread to England, where Palladio's ideas found widespread support. Indigo Jones, William Kent, Christopher Wren became adherents and continuers of the new direction in art.

Christopher Wren (1632-1723) taught mathematics at Oxford, but turned to architecture quite late, at 32 years old. His first buildings were Sheldonian University in Oxford and Pembroke Chapel in Cambridge. When designing these buildings, the architect deviated from some of the canons of classicism, giving preference to Baroque freedom.

A visit to Paris and communication with French followers of the new art gave his work a new impetus. After the great fire in 1666, it was he who was tasked with rebuilding the center of London. After this, he earned fame as the founder of national English classicism.

French classicism

Masterpieces of classicism occupy a significant place in French architecture. One of the earliest examples of this style is the Luxembourg Palace, built according to de Brosse's design especially for Marie de' Medici. The tendencies of classicism were fully manifested during the construction of the palace and park ensembles of Versailles.

Classicism made significant adjustments to the planning structure of French cities. Architects did not design individual buildings, but entire architectural ensembles. Parisian Rivoli Street is a striking example of development principles that were new for that time.

A galaxy of talented craftsmen made a significant contribution to the theory and practice of the classicism style in French architecture. Here are just a few names: Nicolas François Mansart (Mazarin Hotel, Val-de-Grâce Cathedral, Maisons-Laffite Palace), François Blondel (Saint-Denis Gate), Jules Hardouin-Mansart (Place des Victories and Louis the Great ensembles).

Features of the classicism style in Russian architecture

It should be noted that in Russia classicism became widespread almost 100 years later than in Western Europe, during the reign of Catherine II. Its specific national features in our country are connected with this:

1. At first he had a pronounced imitative character. Some masterpieces of classicism in Russian architecture are a kind of “hidden quote” from Western architectural ensembles.

2. Russian classicism consisted of several very different movements. At its origins were foreign masters, representatives of different schools. Thus, Giacomo Quarenghi was a Palladian, Wallen-Delamot was a supporter of French academic classicism. Russian architects also had a special understanding of this direction.

3. In different cities, the ideas of classicism were perceived differently. He established himself easily in St. Petersburg. Entire architectural ensembles were built in this style, and it also influenced the planning structure of the city. In Moscow, which consisted entirely of urban estates, it did not become so widespread and had relatively little impact on the general appearance of the city. In provincial cities, only a few buildings were built in the classicist style, mainly cathedrals and administrative buildings.

4. In general, classicism in Russian architecture took root painlessly. There were objective reasons for this. The recent abolition of serfdom, the development of industry and the rapid growth of the urban population posed new challenges for architects. Classicism offered cheaper and more practical development projects compared to Baroque.

Classicism style in the architecture of St. Petersburg

The first St. Petersburg buildings in the classicist style were designed by foreign masters invited by Catherine II. Special contributions were made by Giacomo Quarenghi and Jean Baptiste Vallin-Delamot.

Giacomo Quarenghi (1744 -1817) was a representative of Italian classicism. He is the author of more than a dozen beautiful buildings, which today are inextricably linked with the image of St. Petersburg and its environs. The Academy of Sciences, the Hermitage Theater, the English Palace in Peterhof, the Catherine Institute of Noble Maidens, the pavilion in Tsarskoe Selo - this is not a complete list of his creations.

Jean Baptiste Vallin-Delamott (1729-1800), French by birth, lived and worked in Russia for 16 years. Gostiny Dvor, the Small Hermitage, the Catholic Church of Catherine, the building of the Academy of Arts and many others were built according to his designs.

The originality of Moscow classicism

St. Petersburg in the 18th century was a young, rapidly growing city. Here there was a place for the inspiration of architects to roam. General plans for its development were drawn up, with clear, level streets decorated in the same style, which later became harmonious architectural ensembles.

With Moscow the situation was different. Before the fire of 1812, she was scolded for the disorder of the streets, characteristic of medieval cities, for the multi-styled style, for the predominance of wooden buildings, for the “barbaric”, in the opinion of the enlightened public, vegetable gardens and other liberties. “It was a city not of houses, but of fences,” historians say. Residential buildings were located in the depths of households and were hidden from the eyes of people walking along the street.

Of course, neither Catherine II nor her descendants dared to demolish all this to the ground and begin to build the city according to new urban planning rules. A soft redevelopment option was chosen. Architects were tasked with constructing individual buildings that organized large urban spaces. They were to become the architectural dominants of the city.

Founders of Russian classicism

Matvey Fedorovich Kazakov (1738-1812) made a great contribution to the architectural appearance of the city. He never studied abroad, we can say that he created the actual Russian classicism in architecture. With their buildings with colonnades, pediments, porticos, domes, and restrained decor, Kazakov and his students sought, to the best of their ability, to streamline the chaos of Moscow streets, to even them out a little. His most significant buildings include: the Senate building in the Kremlin, the house of the Assembly of the Nobility on Bolshaya Dmitrovka, the first building of Moscow University.

An equally significant contribution was made by Kazakov’s friend and like-minded person, Vasily Ivanovich Bazhenov (1735-1799). Its most famous building is the Pashkov House. The architect brilliantly played with its location (on Vagankovsky Hill) in the layout of the building, resulting in an impressive example of classicism architecture.

The classicism style maintained its leading position for more than a century, and enriched the architectural appearance of the capitals of all European states.

Baroque is associated with the Catholic Church, even the early name of this architecture sounded like “Jesuit style”. More restrained classicism was more suitable for Protestant countries, although France, along with England, was one of the countries where the style was born.

If Gothic expressed mysticism, Baroque - expression, then classicism is the embodiment of rationalism. Andrea di Pietro, who received the pseudonym Palladio(1508-1580), wrote four books about architecture, where he outlined the principles of architectural composition that he himself formulated. Appeal to the forms of ancient architecture as a standard of harmony, simplicity, rigor, logical clarity and monumentality was the dictate of the time and attracted many Italian architects, just remember Brunelleschi. But Palladio turned out to be faithful to the principles of antiquity to a much greater extent.

The architecture of classicism as a whole is characterized by regularity of layout and clarity of volumetric form. The harmony of the building is based on high stylobates and large orders. A stylobate in ancient architecture is the lower part of a building, the base on which a colonnade stands. Palladio called the order, symmetrical axial compositions and restraint of decoration the main features of the classical structure.

Classicism had national characteristics. Inigo Jones in England was closer to Palladio's models. In France, the influence of Italian Baroque and local Gothic traditions turned out to be stronger in the work of Nicolas François Mansart.

Inigo Jones(1573-1652) built the royal palace at Greenwich, decorated with a spiral "tulip-shaped" staircase rising directly to the oculus, covered with a glass frame. The Wilton estate gives the most complete idea of ​​Jones's style. A number of Jones's architectural finds were copied by J. Cameron at Tsarskoe Selo in Russia. Another follower of Palladio Christopher Wren(1632-1723) studied the orientation of the pillars of Stonehenge and formulated the idea of ​​strict orientation of city streets according to the cardinal directions. He is the author of the current version of St. Paul's Cathedral in Covent Garden. William Kent(1684-1748) laid the foundations of the English landscape park.

French architect Nicolas Francois Mansarou(1598-1666) was responsible for the development of a new type of urban dwelling for the nobility - a “hotel” - with a cozy and comfortable layout, including a vestibule, a main staircase, and a number of enfiladed rooms, often enclosed around a courtyard. A special feature of Mansar hotels is their high roofs, under which additional living space was located. The Maisons-Laffite Palace near Paris is an exemplary creation of the architect.

Mansart's innovation went hand in hand with his unceremonious attitude towards the construction budget. Over time, even the king of France found it unaffordable. Therefore, the design competition for the construction of Versailles was won by Louis Levo. He came up with the idea of ​​a freely formed living space of enfilade rooms due to numerous interior doors that can be opened or closed at the will of the owners (first used in the Lambert Hotel project), which became a characteristic feature of urban buildings of the 18th-20th centuries. Levo is the chief architect of Versailles.

Classical architecture appears to have emerged from distinct but interrelated developments that radically changed the relationship between man and nature. The first was an unexpected increase in man's ability to control nature: by the middle of the 17th century. this ability went far beyond the technical capabilities of the Renaissance.

The second was a fundamental revolution in the nature of human consciousness, which occurred as a result of changes in the structure of society, which led to the emergence of a new cultural formation, equally satisfying the lifestyles of both the fading aristocracy and the growing bourgeoisie. While technological advances created new infrastructure and increased productivity, changes in human consciousness brought new categories of knowledge and a historical way of thinking that was so reflective that it questioned its own authenticity.

Classicism was an expression of philosophical rationalism, the ideology and art of a new class - the bourgeoisie. The concept of classicism was the use of ancient form-formation systems in architecture, which, however, were filled with new content. The aesthetics of simple ancient forms and a strict order were put in contrast to the randomness and lack of rigor of the architectural and artistic manifestations of the worldview of the moribund aristocracy.

Classicism stimulated archaeological research, which led to amazing discoveries and new knowledge about advanced ancient civilizations. The results of the archaeological expeditions, summarized in extensive scientific research, laid the theoretical foundations of the movement, whose participants considered ancient culture to be the pinnacle of perfection in the art of construction, an example of absolute and eternal beauty. The popularization of ancient forms was facilitated by numerous albums containing images of architectural monuments.

Art history understands the term "classic" in the narrowest sense, Greek art in the period between the archaic style and Hellenism, i.e. approximately V-IV centuries. BC e. In a somewhat less narrow sense, this concept includes the art of Greek and Roman antiquity, which worked according to strict rules. The personification of classicist architecture is the front side of a Greek or Roman temple with a triangular pediment or portico with columns; the block-shaped body of the structure is divided only by pilasters and cornices. Orders of columns not only decorate the wall, but also support a system of beams. Along with garlands, urns and rosettes, classic palmettes and meanders, beads and ionics are also used as simple decoration. The character of architecture in most cases remained dependent on the tectonics of the load-bearing wall and the vault, which became flatter. The portico becomes an important plastic element, while the walls outside and inside are divided by small pilasters and cornices. In the composition of the whole and details, volumes and plans, symmetry prevails. The color scheme is characterized by light pastel tones. White color, as a rule, serves to identify architectural elements that are a symbol of active tectonics. The interior becomes lighter, more restrained, the furniture is simple and light, while the designers used Egyptian, Greek or Roman motifs.

At the forefront of the development of classicist architecture was primarily France during the Napoleonic period. Then Protestant Germany and England, as well as Russia, influenced by European movements. Rome became one of the main theoretical centers of classicism.

The emergence of classicism

The emergence of classicism is associated with Italy, which was the center of ideological and theoretical research in the field of the formation of new principles in architecture and art. It was in Italy and mainly in Rome that the main monuments of antiquity were concentrated, which over the centuries have not ceased to influence architects. At the same time, it would be wrong to consider in isolation from other European countries the ideological processes that emerged in Italy. At this time, in the middle of the 18th century, in all European countries, and especially strongly in France and England, there was a strengthening of the elements of capitalism in the economy and, accordingly, a strengthening of the bourgeoisie in the political life of states. The growing bourgeoisie is fighting in the ideological sphere. The ideological basis of the bourgeois class was the philosophy of enlightenment, and in the field of art there was a search for a new style that was supposed to reflect its goals and ideals.

Naturally, the bourgeoisie, when creating its own culture, sought to rely on the past and use the culture of past eras. The forms of ancient art most closely corresponded to bourgeois ideas about the new style being created; The latter was based on antiquity. Ancient art and ancient architecture became the subject of study, borrowing, and imitation. The growing interest in antiquity strengthened the negative attitude towards the Baroque.

A second “circle” of studying and mastering the ancient heritage was taking place: the first was associated with the Renaissance - the time of the first awakening of bourgeois self-awareness, the period of struggle against medieval ideas about the world, when the humanistic intelligentsia turned to ancient culture.

To create a new - classicist style, many philosophical works of this time, publications of research results in the field of ancient culture, as well as the excavations of Pompeii that began in 1748, which expanded the understanding of Roman art, were of great importance. Among the general theoretical works, it should be noted “Speeches on Art” (1750) by J.-J. Rousseau, who preached naturalism and naturalness in art.

The ideological leader of classicism was Winkelmann- founder of art history as a science, author of the works “Thoughts on Imitating Greek Art” and “History of the Arts of Antiquity,” published in the 1750-1760s and gaining all-European fame. He is considered the founder of scientific archaeology. His interpretation of the essence of Greek art as " noble simplicity and calm majesty" defines the ideal of beauty of “archaeological classicism”.

The largest representative of European enlightenment, Lessing, with his treatise “Laocoon” (1766), also contributed to strengthening the position of classicism. All their activities were largely connected with Rome. For the dissemination of ideas and forms of classicism, perspective painting (paintings by Pannini, later compositions by Hubert Robert), as well as famous etchings on ancient themes by the famous Italian architect and engraver D.-B. Piranesi, which began to be published in series starting in the 1740s, and became widely known in Europe.

The expansion of technical knowledge based on the achievements of science in the 17th and 18th centuries immediately gave impetus to numerous projects for the construction of roads and canals, as well as to the establishment of new technical educational institutions, such as the School of Bridges and Roads, founded in 1747. Change way of thinking contributed to the flourishing of the humanities during the Enlightenment. The first works on modern sociology, aesthetics, history and archeology appeared: “On the Spirit of Laws” by Montesquieu (1748), “Aesthetics” by Baumgarten (1750), “The Age of Louis XIV” by Voltaire (1751), “History of Ancient Art” by I. I. Winkelman (1764).

Urban planning and classicism architecture

The most significant urban planning concepts and their implementation in nature at the end of the 18th and first half of the 19th centuries are associated with classicism. During this period, new cities, parks, and resorts were founded. A new organization of settlement, aimed at overcoming social inequality and creating a new social harmony, was proposed at the end of the 19th century by utopian socialists. Projects of residential communes and phalansteries (implemented, however, in very small numbers) retained the image and spatial features characteristic of classicism.

The result of the architectural theories of the Enlightenment, outlined and repeated in many treatises of the late 18th century, can be succinctly defined as follows: the scope of urban planning in the complete absence of architectural masterpieces. Our judgment may seem superficial. Indeed, there were architects who did not want to create masterpieces. Architecture for them was not an expression and statement of a certain concept of the world, religious or political ideals. Her mission is to serve the community. Construction, decorum, and typology are necessarily subordinated to this task. Since the life of society is changing very quickly, it is necessary to meet new requirements and new types of buildings, that is, to build not only a church or a palace, but a middle-income residential building, a hospital, a school, a museum, a port, a market, and so on.

From a monument building they come to a building that expresses a certain social function; the unity of such functions creates an urban organism, and its structure is the coordination of these functions. Since social coordination is based on the principles of rationality, urban plans become more rational, that is, they follow clear rectangular or radial geometric patterns that consist of wide and straight streets, large square or circular areas. The idea of ​​the relationship between human society and nature is expressed in the city by the introduction of wide areas of greenery, most often parks near palaces or gardens of former monasteries that became state-owned after the revolution.

Reducing architecture only to the fulfillment of urban planning tasks entails simplification and typification of its forms.

Classicism in the architecture of Western Europe

Let's leave it to the Italians

Empty tinsel with its false gloss.

The most important thing is the meaning, but in order to get to it,

We'll have to overcome obstacles and paths,

Follow the designated path strictly:

Sometimes the mind has only one path...

You need to think about the meaning and only then write!

N. Boileau. "Poetic Art".

Translation by V. Lipetskaya

This is how one of the main ideologists of classicism, the poet Nicolas Boileau (1636-1711), taught his contemporaries. The strict rules of classicism were embodied in the tragedies of Corneille and Racine, the comedies of Moliere and the satires of La Fontaine, the music of Lully and the painting of Poussin, the architecture and decoration of the palaces and ensembles of Paris...

Classicism was most clearly manifested in works of architecture focused on the best achievements of ancient culture - the order system, strict symmetry, clear proportionality of the parts of the composition and their subordination to the general concept. The “strict style” of classicism architecture, it seemed, was intended to visually embody its ideal formula of “noble simplicity and calm grandeur.” In the architectural structures of classicism, simple and clear forms and calm harmony of proportions dominated. Preference was given to straight lines and unobtrusive decor that followed the contours of the object. Simplicity and nobility of decoration, practicality and expediency were evident in everything.

Based on the ideas of Renaissance architects about the “ideal city,” the architects of classicism created a new type of grandiose palace and park ensemble, strictly subordinated to a single geometric plan. One of the outstanding architectural structures of this time was the residence of the French kings on the outskirts of Paris - the Palace of Versailles.

"Fairytale Dream" of Versailles

Mark Twain, who visited Versailles in the mid-19th century.

“I scolded Louis XIV, who spent 200 million dollars on Versailles when people did not have enough for bread, but now I have forgiven him. It's incredibly beautiful! You look, stare and try to understand that you are on earth, and not in the Gardens of Eden. And you are almost ready to believe that this is a hoax, just a fairy-tale dream.”

Indeed, the “fairy-tale dream” of Versailles still amazes today with the scale of its regular layout, the magnificent splendor of its facades and the brilliance of its decorative interiors. Versailles became the visible embodiment of the ceremonial official architecture of classicism, expressing the idea of ​​a rationally organized model of the world.

One hundred hectares of land in an extremely short time (1666-1680) were turned into a paradise intended for the French aristocracy. The architects Louis Levo (1612-1670), Jules Hardouin-Mansart (1646-1708) and Andre Le Nôtre(1613-1700). Over the course of a number of years, they rebuilt and changed a lot in its architecture, so that currently it is a complex fusion of several architectural layers, absorbing the characteristic features of classicism.

The center of Versailles is the Grand Palace, to which three converging access avenues lead. Situated on a certain hill, the palace occupies a dominant position over the area. Its creators divided the almost half-kilometer length of the facade into a central part and two side wings - risalit, which give it a special solemnity. The facade is represented by three floors. The first, serving as a massive base, is decorated with rustication following the example of Italian palaces-palazzos of the Renaissance. On the second, front, there are high arched windows, between which there are Ionic columns and pilasters. The tier crowning the building imparts a monumental appearance to the palace: it is shortened and ends with sculptural groups, giving the building a special elegance and lightness. The rhythm of windows, pilasters and columns on the facade emphasizes its classical severity and splendor. It is no coincidence that Moliere said about the Grand Palace of Versailles:

“The artistic decoration of the palace is so in harmony with the perfection that nature gives it that it can well be called a magic castle.”

The interiors of the Grand Palace are decorated in Baroque style: they are replete with sculptural decorations, rich decor in the form of gilded stucco moldings and carvings, many mirrors and exquisite furniture. The walls and ceilings are covered with colored marble slabs with clear geometric patterns: squares, rectangles and circles. Picturesque panels and tapestries on mythological themes glorify King Louis XIV. Massive bronze chandeliers with gilding complete the impression of wealth and luxury.

The halls of the palace (there are about 700 of them) form endless enfilades and are intended for ceremonial processions, magnificent celebrations and masquerade balls. In the largest formal hall of the palace, the Mirror Gallery (length 73 m), the search for new spatial and lighting effects was clearly demonstrated. The windows on one side of the hall corresponded with mirrors on the other. In sunlight or artificial lighting, four hundred mirrors created an exceptional spatial effect, conveying a magical play of reflections.

The decorative compositions of Charles Lebrun (1619-1690) in Versailles and the Louvre were striking in their ceremonial pomp. The “method of depicting passions” he proclaimed, which involved pompous praise of high-ranking persons, brought the artist dizzying success. In 1662, he became the king's first painter, and then the director of the royal tapestry manufactory (hand-woven carpet-pictures, or tapestries) and the head of all decorative work at the Palace of Versailles. In the Mirror Gallery of the palace, Lebrun painted

a gilded lampshade with many allegorical compositions on mythological themes, glorifying the reign of the “Sun King” Louis XIV. The piled-up pictorial allegories and attributes, bright colors and decorative effects of Baroque clearly contrasted with the architecture of classicism.

The king's bedroom is located in the central part of the palace and faces the rising sun. It was from here that there was a view of three highways diverging from one point, which symbolically reminded of the main focus of state power. From the balcony, the king could see all the beauty of Versailles Park. Its main creator, Andre Le Nôtre, managed to combine elements of architecture and landscape art. Unlike landscape (English) parks, which expressed the idea of ​​unity with nature, regular (French) parks subordinated nature to the will and plans of the artist. The Versailles Park amazes with its clarity and rational organization of space; its drawing was precisely verified by the architect using compasses and a ruler.

The alleys of the park are perceived as a continuation of the halls of the palace, each of them ends with a reservoir. Many pools have a regular geometric shape. In the pre-sunset hours, the smooth water mirrors reflect the rays of the sun and the bizarre shadows cast by bushes and trees trimmed in the shape of a cube, cone, cylinder or ball. The greenery forms either solid, impenetrable walls, or wide galleries, in artificial niches of which sculptural compositions, herms (tetrahedral pillars topped with a head or bust) and numerous vases with cascades of thin streams of water are placed. The allegorical plasticity of the fountains, made by famous masters, is intended to glorify the reign of the absolute monarch. The “Sun King” appeared in them either in the guise of the god Apollo or Neptune, riding out of the water in a chariot or resting among the nymphs in a cool grotto.

The smooth carpets of lawns amaze with their bright and variegated colors with intricate patterns of flowers. The vases (there were about 150 thousand of them) contained fresh flowers, which were changed in such a way that Versailles was in constant bloom at any time of the year. The paths of the park are sprinkled with colored sand. Some of them were lined with porcelain chips sparkling in the sun. All this splendor and lushness of nature was complemented by the smells of almond, jasmine, pomegranate and lemon, spreading from the greenhouses.

There was nature in this park

As if lifeless;

As if with a pompous sonnet,

We were fiddling with the grass there.

No dancing, no sweet raspberries,

Le Nôtre and Jean Lully

In the gardens and dances of disorder

They couldn't stand it.

The yew trees froze, as if in a trance,

The bushes leveled the line,

And they curtsied

Memorized flowers.

V. Hugo Translation by E. L. Lipetskaya

N. M. Karamzin (1766-1826), who visited Versailles in 1790, spoke about his impressions in “Letters of a Russian Traveler”:

“Enormousness, perfect harmony of parts, the action of the whole: this is what even a painter cannot depict with a brush!

Let's go to the gardens, the creation of Le Nôtre, whose brave genius everywhere placed proud Art on the throne, and threw humble Nature, like a poor slave, at his feet...

So, do not look for Nature in the gardens of Versailles; but here at every step Art captivates the eyes...”

Architectural ensembles of Paris. Empire style

After the completion of the main construction work in Versailles, at the turn of the 17th-18th centuries, Andre Le Nôtre began active work on the redevelopment of Paris. He carried out the layout of the Tuileries Park, clearly fixing the central axis on the continuation of the longitudinal axis of the Louvre ensemble. After Le Nôtre, the Louvre was finally rebuilt and the Place de la Concorde was created. The major axis of Paris gave a completely different interpretation of the city, meeting the requirements of greatness, grandeur and pomp. The composition of open urban spaces and the system of architecturally designed streets and squares became the determining factor in the planning of Paris. The clarity of the geometric pattern of streets and squares linked into a single whole will for many years become a criterion for assessing the perfection of the city plan and the skill of the city planner. Many cities around the world will subsequently experience the influence of the classic Parisian model.

A new understanding of the city as an object of architectural influence on humans finds clear expression in the work on urban ensembles. In the process of their construction, the main and fundamental principles of classicism urban planning were outlined - free development in space and an organic connection with the environment. Overcoming the chaos of urban development, architects sought to create ensembles designed for free and unobstructed views.

Renaissance dreams of creating an “ideal city” were embodied in the formation of a new type of square, the boundaries of which were no longer the facades of certain buildings, but the space of adjacent streets and neighborhoods, parks or gardens, and the river embankment. Architecture strives to connect in a certain ensemble unity not only buildings directly adjacent to each other, but also very distant points of the city.

Second half of the 18th century. and the first third of the 19th century. in France mark a new stage in the development of classicism and its spread in European countries - neoclassicism. After the Great French Revolution and the Patriotic War of 1812, new priorities appeared in urban planning, in tune with the spirit of their time. They found their most vivid expression in the Empire style. It was characterized by the following features: ceremonial pathos of imperial grandeur, monumentality, appeal to the art of imperial Rome and Ancient Egypt, and the use of attributes of Roman military history as the main decorative motifs.

The essence of the new artistic style was very accurately conveyed in the significant words of Napoleon Bonaparte:

“I love power, but as an artist... I love it in order to extract sounds, chords, harmony from it.”

Empire style became the personification of the political power and military glory of Napoleon, and served as a unique manifestation of his cult. The new ideology fully corresponded to the political interests and artistic tastes of the new time. Large architectural ensembles of open squares, wide streets and avenues were created everywhere, bridges, monuments and public buildings were erected, demonstrating the imperial grandeur and power of power.

For example, the Austerlitz Bridge commemorated Napoleon's great battle and was built from Bastille stones. At Place Carrousel was built triumphal arch in honor of the victory at Austerlitz. Two squares (Concord and Stars), located at a considerable distance from each other, were connected by architectural perspectives.

Church of Saint Genevieve, erected by J. J. Soufflot, became the Pantheon - the resting place of the great people of France. One of the most spectacular monuments of that time was the column of the Grand Army on Place Vendôme. Likened to the ancient Roman column of Trajan, it was supposed, according to the plans of the architects J. Gondoin and J. B. Leper, to express the spirit of the New Empire and the thirst for greatness of Napoleon.

In the bright interior decoration of palaces and public buildings, solemnity and stately pomp were especially highly valued; their decor was often overloaded with military paraphernalia. The dominant motifs were contrasting combinations of colors, elements of Roman and Egyptian ornaments: eagles, griffins, urns, wreaths, torches, grotesques. The Empire style manifested itself most clearly in the interiors of the imperial residences of the Louvre and Malmaison.

The era of Napoleon Bonaparte ended by 1815, and very soon they began to actively eradicate its ideology and tastes. From the “disappeared like a dream” Empire, all that remained were works of art in the Empire style, clearly demonstrating its former greatness.

Questions and tasks

1.Why can Versailles be considered an outstanding work?

How the urban planning ideas of 18th century classicism found their practical embodiment in the architectural ensembles of Paris, for example, Place de la Concorde? What distinguishes it from the Italian baroque squares of Rome in the 17th century, such as Piazza del Popolo (see p. 74)?

2. What is the expression of the connection between Baroque and classicism architecture? What ideas did classicism inherit from Baroque?

3. What are the historical background for the emergence of the Empire style? What new ideas of his time did he strive to express in works of art? What artistic principles does he rely on?

Creative workshop

1. Give your classmates a correspondence tour of Versailles. To prepare it, you can use video materials from the Internet. The parks of Versailles and Peterhof are often compared. What do you think are the grounds for such comparisons?

2. Try to compare the image of the “ideal city” of the Renaissance with the classic ensembles of Paris (St. Petersburg or its suburbs).

3. Compare the design of the interior decoration (interiors) of the Francis I gallery in Fontainebleau and the Mirror Gallery of Versailles.

4. Get acquainted with the paintings of the Russian artist A. N. Benois (1870-1960) from the series “Versailles. The King's Walk" (see p. 74). How do they convey the general atmosphere of the court life of the French king Louis XIV? Why can they be considered as a kind of symbolic paintings?

Topics of projects, abstracts or messages

“The formation of classicism in French architecture of the 17th–18th centuries”; “Versailles as a model of harmony and beauty of the world”; “A walk through Versailles: the connection between the composition of the palace and the layout of the park”; “Masterpieces of Western European Classicism Architecture”; “Napoleonic Empire style in French architecture”; “Versailles and Peterhof: comparative experience”; “Artistic discoveries in the architectural ensembles of Paris”; “The squares of Paris and the development of the principles of regular city planning”; “Clarity of composition and balance of volumes of the Cathedral of the Invalides in Paris”; “Place de la Concorde is a new stage in the development of urban planning ideas of classicism”; “The harsh expressiveness of the volumes and the sparse decor of the Church of Saint Genevieve (Pantheon) by J. Soufflot”; “Features of classicism in the architecture of Western European countries”; "Outstanding architects of Western European classicism."

Books for further reading

Arkin D. E. Images of architecture and images of sculpture. M., 1990. Kantor A. M. et al. Art of the 18th century. M., 1977. (Small history of arts).

Classicism and Romanticism: Architecture. Sculpture. Painting. Drawing / ed. R. Toman. M., 2000.

Kozhina E. F. Art of France in the 18th century. L., 1971.

LenotreJ. Daily life of Versailles under the kings. M., 2003.

Miretskaya N.V., Miretskaya E.V., Shakirova I.P. Culture of the Enlightenment. M., 1996.

Watkin D. History of Western European architecture. M., 1999. Fedotova E.D. Napoleonic Empire style. M., 2008.

When preparing the material, the text of the textbook “World Artistic Culture. From the 18th century to the present” (Author G. I. Danilova).