2012-2013 JDSP Teacher Resource Packet - Milwaukee Art Museum

and then spread throughout northern Europe. Greek and Roman art, science, and literature
all were rediscovered, and these grew tremendously during the Renaissance.
The major breakthroughs were the change from tempera paint on wood panels and fresco
on plaster walls to oil paint on stretched canvas; the use of perspective, giving weight and
depth to form; the use of light and shadow, as opposed to simply drawing lines; and
pyramidal composition in paintings.
European Baroque artists filled their paintings with action, drama, and emotion. Whether
the image was a religious subject, mythological theme, battle, hunt, or portrait, Baroque
artists gave drama to the ordinary scenes they depicted in their artwork.
Realism and Naturalism (1830s–1870 CE)
In the 1800s, the Industrial Revolution caused many social and economic problems. There
was growing concern among artists and writers about the plight of ordinary persons at
home and at work. The concern was reflected in the style of art that became popular in the
mid-nineteenth century. Realism/Naturalism implied a desire to depict things accurately and
objectively. Artists limited themselves to the facts of the modern world as they personally
experienced them; only what they could see or touch was considered real. They painted
real life: everyday problems, work, etc. They were interested in the matter of subject rather
than style.
These artists handled their brushes and painted in ways that brought more textures and
visual interest to their paintings. The invention of the camera gave them the possibility of
working from a photograph, an entirely new concept during this time. The Realists’ desire to
paint in the open air and interest in how light affected one’s perception of a scene paved
the way for Impressionism.
Impressionism (1860s–1880s CE)
The European Impressionists began in the tradition of Realism. They favored subjects that
appeared informal and spontaneous. However, it was the manner in which they painted,
and not the subject matter, that defines Impressionism.
The Impressionists adapted some of the science of optics researched in the nineteenth
century. They understood that when we look at something, we see not the object itself, but
light reflected from the object. To capture this optical sensation, Impressionists worked
outdoors on small canvases and painted with small brushstrokes. In doing so, they were
able to produce a feeling of spontaneity rather than of posed studio effects. They created
bright paintings with brilliant colors that almost shimmer in their intensity, and which paved
the way for abstract art.
Abstraction (late 1900s–1940s CE)
Abstraction applies to art that looks as if it contains no recognizable forms from the physical
world. All the artist gives us to focus on are colors, lines, shapes, values, forms, textures,
spaces, and materials. Abstractionists carefully painted and arranged colors and cleanly
outlined geometric shapes. These artists explored new ways to combine the elements of art
(line, shape, color, form, texture, value, and space) in non-objective paintings and
sculptures to express feelings; they distorted shapes and rearranged parts, reconstructing
© 2012 Milwaukee Art Museum 700 N. Art Museum Dr. Milwaukee, WI 53202
JDSP – Teacher Packet
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