Neoclassical Art and Architecture

Neoclassicism, an 18th century art and architecture movement, looked to Greek and Roman art for models of harmony, idealized realism, and reason and drew on Enlightenment thinking. Neoclassical art, therefore, closely resembles the art of classical antiquity.
Neoclassical Literature
• Neoclassical playwrights turned to subjects based on classical myths and adhered to classical unities of time, place, and action. Neoclassical theater was characterized by grandiosity and opulence; this was reflected in everything from the wardrobe to the motions and gestures of the characters on the stage.
• Neoclassical theater featured either "the heroic tragedy" or "the comedy of manners" as tragedy and comedy were not mixed. The use of women actors in Neoclassical plays was a new convention that allowed playwrights to focus on the tragic interplay between men and women.
Romanticism
Romanticism was the early 19th century reaction to the rational formulas of Neoclassicism. Romantic artists stressed passion, emotion, and exotic settings with dramatic action. There was a focus on heroic subject matters employing intense colors and loose brush strokes.
The Romantic Period
• Romanticism was a break from the intellectual framework of the Enlightenment and was a shift to a more expressive mode that emphasized the boldly heroic, the individual, the imagination, and the irrational. Romantic artists stressed passion, emotion, and exotic settings with dramatic action.
• The dashing English poet and adventurer, Lord Byron, provided a living model for Romantic heroism. The Byronic hero was an exceptional and gifted loner, perhaps misunderstood, who was driven to follow personal passion rather than traditional societal expectations.
Romanticism in Art
• Romantic visual artists mirrored the movement as a whole by celebrating the wild and irrational aspects of humanity. They stressed passion, emotion, and exotic settings with dramatic action. There was a focus on heroic subject matters