Jack Witt Art 200X Blog

Science and Art in the Classical Era      The Classical Era brought major changes in art, science, and politics. This blog will focus on the advances made in the two former items. Some very clever and influential scientific minds were born in this decade. The relaxed attitude that people were attaining at this time encouraged these minds to develop their ideas, and spread their discoveries.    Highlights of the Classical Art World There were two styles of art that were prominent during the Classical Era. These are Rococo and Neoclassical. Rococo began in the early 1700s, was most popular around 1775, and was replaced by Neoclassical art around 1785. The Rococo style was very fun and pretty, with pastel colors, angelic figures, and themes devoid of violence and negativity. A type of painting that was popular among Rococo artists was the fete galante. This particular style can be seen below. It focused on people in fancy dress enjoying peaceful settings, such as g...

Baroque Art What are we Seeing in this Piece?      Today, I present a stunning piece of baroque art done by the famous Rembrandt. Below, you see "The Storm on the Sea of Galilee". It depicts a part of the Bible where Christ and his disciples are on the storming sea of Galilee. Done in 1633, this work is a strong representation of the trademark contrast of light and dark and drama that Baroque art is so well-known for.     There is both peace and chaos in this work. Everything we see contrasts these, as the light shines of the fearful faces of the disciples, and Christ, who is at peace, is in the dark. The wave crashing over the side also adds emotion and depth to what we see and feel in this piece. Art Elements     The rays of light raining down from the sky give us both line work and contrast. Their lines run perpendicular to those created by the boat's mast and rigging. The contrast is between these rays and the darkness of the clouds and water. Thes...

 Who is the Artist? When I hear the word "Renaissance", I aways think of a favorite artist of mine, Leonardo da Vinci. His works are always intriguing to me, as they often have a layer of mystery to them and convey strong emotion through technical mastery. Da Vinci (1452-1519)was an artist of the Italian Renaissance. I was browsing his work, and "Head of a Woman", another name is "La Scapigliata" (Brittanica), jumped out at me.                         Image source Analysis of the Work When I saw this piece of art for the first time, I saw a calm face that looked both happy and sad at the same time. Her expression is serene, graceful, and calm. The fact that da Vinci was able to create expressions that could be read in so many ways, even by a single viewer, is awe-inspiring. If you observe some of his other faces, the " Mona Lisa " for example, it becomes evident that he often masterfully created fa...