Marc Chagall

Chagall is a prominent 20th century artist that inspired and influenced much of modern art. He stayed close to his Jewish roots and Picasso declared that after Matisse and Chagall pass, there wouldn't be an artist who knows color as well. I can see that especially in the painting of the blue house.

His paintings are characterized with quirky motifs, especially the ghostly floating forms. He had a clear longing for his home, after living in France, Germany, and the US, and one can suppose that had an impact in the information communicated through his art.

There is melody and a certain kind of dreamy happiness in his work. Even in expressing dramatic scenes, there is still a folky sort of calming, happy feeling.

Beautiful stuff. Another good one to understand better.

Paul Cezanne

I didn't realize Cezanne was post-impressionism like Van Gogh (I didn't realize Van Gogh was either until very recently). He was the "father of us all" according to Picasso and Matisse because he layed the foundation for the drastic change in art of the 20th century. He was caught between the Impressionists and the new lines of modern art.

I came across this quote on wikipedia and could not think of a better possible way to articulate his visual style.

"He used planes of colour and small brushstrokes that build up to form complex fields, at once both a direct expression of the sensations of the observing eye and an abstraction from observed nature. The paintings convey Cézanne's intense study of his subjects, a searching gaze and a dogged struggle to deal with the complexity of human visual perception."

I think that is an amazing way to describe artistic technique.

Cezanne's quote below made me tear up. I don't know why I am so emotional. Weird.

"I want to make of impressionism something solid and lasting like the art in the museums."

It's pretty amazing to think of someone on the brink of something. Following his heart. Not knowing for sure if he will succeed but knowing he is driven to keep trying. And to know now, with reflections on history aiding us, that it was an overwhelming success, is really cool to me.

His early work is characterized by heavy figures in nature and his later work has a matured lighter feel. His work also has a architectural feel to it. Beautiful stuff. I am finding that the art that I've grown up around, mom's paintings and older relative's paintings are akin to post-impressionism, and have really inspired my technique.

FUN

Benvenuto Cellini

Cellini is one of the most important artists in the movement of Mannerism. He was a goldsmith, sculptor, and musician, and wrote a famous (entertaining) autobiography.

His first works were silver casket, candlesticks, and vase for a bishop. I saw one of his most distinguished sculptures in Florence of Perseus holding the head of Medusa. It was a really neat sculpture section of Loggia dei Lanz. Justin and I just stumbled upon it walking around. It has some really amazing sculptures, but we didn't really know how significant some of them were at the time. It's good to know now.

Mary Cassatt

Mary Cassatt was born in to a weathy family in 1844. She was trained at Pennsylvania's Academy of Fine Arts but was unhappy with the schooling there. She later went to France and studied under Ecole des Beaux Arts masters.

Her work portrays the social and private lives of children with some very intimate portrayals of mother and child. Some of the compositions of her mother and child paintings are reminiscent of Renaissance masters, but within her own modern context. She exhibited among some of the Impressionists and was inspired by artists like Degas.

I think these are really beautiful and serene. I think my favorite is "Under the Horse Chestnut Tree." I love the palette and the flat color. The angle of the mother's face and the line looking up to her face forms a really nice line.

Good stuff.

Caravaggio

Caravaggio is a very prominent figure in the Baroque period of art. In fact, my ISMs book has a section dedicated to Caravaggism. He was trained under a Master who was trained under Titian.

His emotional realism is characterized by dramatic use of lighting. His practice of Chiaroscuro was what made the style definitive.

He lived a somewhat tumultuous life. He was know to fight and get in a lot of brawls. One of these brawls led to the death of a young man. He was forced to flee Rome for Naples.

Really beautiful paintings. His realism is the kind that I would like to combine with abstraction in order to refine my own style.

Antonio Canova

Canova is from the period of neoclassicism after the Baroque period's theatrical access. It was a return to a classical refinement in art.

Canova was celebrated at a young age and was very sought out after. His humble upbringing evidently left him sensitive toward supporting his artist friends.

His sculptures are known for very delicately portraying nudes and human flesh in marble.