The Depiction of War in Classical Art

Topics: Pablo Picasso, Neoclassicism, Guernica Pages: 2 (595 words) Published: November 8, 2008
The act of war has been depicted in art since the beginning of human cultural development. Three famous works spanning the neoclassical, romantic and post-impressionism periods have expressed a wide range of emotion by the artists when visually describing both the honor and horror of war. “The Oath of the Horatii” by Jacques-Louis David, “The Third of May 1808, the Execution of the Defenders of Madrid” by Francisco Goya, and “Guernica” by Pablo Picasso are three unique works that consist of a wide array of artistic elements to show what their creators thought about war.

“The Oath of the Horatii” is a neoclassical painting by Jacques-Louis David that depicts the act of war in a patriotic and heroic perspective. Because a revolution in France was looming at the door, David created the painting in part to urge people to pledge loyalty to the state. In an ironic twist, while the Horatii brothers and their father stand solemn and unemotional, on the right are two women weeping from the fact that one of the women is the sister of the enemy Curiatii brothers and yet the wife of one of the Horatii brothers, while the other women is a sister to the three Horatii brothers and the fiancé of one of the Curiatii. The women cry and are allowed to show emotion, but the brothers do not because it is their duty to fight and die heroically for their country. Aside from the subject matter, Jacque-Louis David also used many physical techniques in his artwork to portray his feelings for the war. The background is bland in color and deemphasized in order to highlight the importance of the characters, and the painting as a whole is not very vivid in order to emphasize the fact that the message being brought forth by the painting is in actuality more important than the painting itself.

The second important work of art portraying war is not from the neoclassical period, but the romantic, and it is “The Third of May 1808, the Execution of the Defenders of Madrid” by Francisco Goya. In...
Continue Reading

Please join StudyMode to read the full document

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • The Depictions of War Through Time Essay

    ...Sarah Prather 11/30/2012 Art 252 The Depictions of War through Time Works of art have depicted many narratives of war. Most of these images describe the events of war but also in describing the war they also show the general attitudes. Attitudes of this have been changing as wars have advanced from the power of kingdoms to antiwar views. Many of these changes took place as artists started to gain creative freedom. Four images that express the depictions of war through time are an Ancient Greek Amphora dating back to 530 B.C., The Third of May 1808 by Francisco Goya, Guernica by Pablo Picasso and Famine Victim in a Feeding Center by James Nachtwey. The black figures amphora is an early example of historical narrative. This amphora shows two foot soldiers with spears and shields prepared to battle. They wear the Corinthian helmets that are characterized by the cut outs around the eyes. This amphora dates back to 530 B.C. During this time the depiction of war shows glory and status. This amphora shows the elegant battle scenes the two soldiers poised about to strike. Many amphora’s like this one have afforded great pleasure to an aristocratic class that placed considerable emphasis on military valor and athletic competition. The soldier and his armor was a status symbol of serving ones city. As for the...

    Read More
    863 Words 4 Pages
  • Essay on Comparing Ancient and Classical Art

    ... Comparing Ancient and Classical Art ARTS/230 Comparing Ancient and Classical Art Ancient and classical art comes in all different shapes and sizes of visual experience. In this paper we explore into the making and design of two unique architectural buildings, Stonehenge and The Great Stupa at Sanchi. These two fascinating buildings were built in different eras from BCE to CE and yet have many similarities, and as well carry distinct differences between the cultural values and the purpose they were intended. This paper will also focus on the area’s region and the functions these two artifacts carry in our culture in the present day. The Stonehenge is located in Wiltshire, England. The Stonehenge is made up of many different size stones. The heal stone alone is 16ft tall, weighing 35 tons. When the sun sets, this stone casts a shadow towards the main circle of stones. There are two smaller stones known as the “Avenue”, which are lined up and these also cast a shadow in the direction of the circle. There are 2 stones that follow the “Avenue”, that stand next to each other, almost like an entrance to the outer circle of stones. The two stones are known as the “slaughter stone”. The slaughter stones were believed to be a place of human sacrifice. The main circle of stones are known as “The Sarsen Circle”. These stones are set in a circle and supported by tenon...

    Read More
    1327 Words 5 Pages
  • Art History

    ...witness a decade in which journalism expanded and pushed new boundaries. The 1970’s displayed the country’s dependence upon newspapers as a primary source of their daily information, along with a shift in government coverage. Two of the decade’s biggest stories came early on with the New York Times’ reporting of the Pentagon Papers in 1971 and the Washington Post’s coverage of Watergate scandal between 1972 and 1976.1 The 70’s displayed a trend of younger journalists with higher ideals. Instead of simply covering the news on the government with blind-eye objectivity, journalists began actively seeking ways to analyze and expose any type of dishonesty in its actions.2 The Pentagon Papers scandal turned the American public against the Vietnam War and exposed the U.S. Government for its lies and false promises over the past decade.3 Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein’s reporting of the Watergate scandal is considered one of the high points in American investigative journalism. By using a variety of sources and interrogating U.S. government officials inside the White House and the FBI, Woodward and Bernstein published numerous stories showing proof of am illegal presidential cover-up and “dirty trick” politics.4 The Watergate scandal demonstrated how new technology began to aid the delivery of the news in the 1970’s. Television, for example, began to take off, as people were now able to easily see and believe the news in a timely fashion, rather than simply...

    Read More
    1167 Words 5 Pages
  • Essay on The Art of War: Goya and Picasso

    ...The Art of War: Goya and Picasso War is hell. Literally. In an instant, in the blink of an eye, the world as we know it is torn apart and shredded. Normality explodes into atrocity as we see the depths of depravity that man can sink to. Even though their reasons for painting the pictures are different, Goya’s Third of May, 1808, and Picasso’s Guernica are testaments to the violence of war using specific events and symbolic features as their vehicle while their representations and styles are different. Goya and Picasso both depicted actual events, though their reasons for painting the scene were greatly different. Goya requested official permission to paint the events of the Third of May, 1808 six years after the executions in response to a challenge about his sympathies during the French occupation (Grove). In 1808, Spain had been conquered by Napoleon, which was a welcome change as the citizens thought France would bring about reforms (Stockstad 954). On May 2, it was rumored that the French planned to kill the royal family and the people rioted. Hundreds of Spaniards were executed before dawn the next morning (Stockstad 954). Picasso, on the other hand, was commissioned to create a painting for the Spanish Pavilion of the 1937 World's Fair (Stoner). On April 27th, 1937, the Basque village in northern Spain was chosen for bombing practice by Hitler's burgeoning war machine, and the...

    Read More
    1292 Words 4 Pages
  • Essay about ART `

    ...Running head: ACCREDITATION AUDIT CASE STUDY/ TRACER PATIENT TASK Accreditation Audit Case Study/ Tracer Patient Task III Crystal Shanaman WGU Accreditation Audit Case Study/ Tracer Patient Task III A1. At Nightingale Community Hospital, our value regarding safety is “we believe that excellence begins with providing a safe environment. We put our patients first as we seek to exceed the expectations of our customers with superior service, outstanding clinical care and unsurpassed responsiveness.” (Nightingale Community Hospital, 2007, p. 2) In order to achieve excellence in safety, we often preform safety checks. One of these checks recently preformed was of a 67 year old patient who presented for a hysterectomy. She ended up with complications and subsequent treatment for these complications, all care was provided by Nightingale Community Hospital. Mistakes were made with this patients care and corrective actions will be taken. It is cases like these we strive to correct, in order to become “the hospital of choice for patients, employees, physicians, volunteers, and the community.” (Nightingale Community Hospital, p. 3) In order to learn and grow from the mistakes made with our tracer patient, we must identify specific mistakes made and develop a corrective action plan to address the improvements we are going to make. According to the information provided by our tracer patient’s worksheet, it was determined the patient presented...

    Read More
    1486 Words 8 Pages
  • Art Of WAR Essay

    ...Book Report: “The Art of War” Name: Chapman, Cameron L. Rank: Cpl Unit:PMO, H&S BN, BCO Date: 19 May 2015 Book: “The Art of War” Author: Sun Tzu The book “The Art Of War” is about looking into the leaderships point of view on tactics and war-fighting skills, such as management of troops. This book was written in view of military commanders and tactics they used to win wars and battles. In this book report I will be giving incite on the positive and negative decisions on the leadership and ingratiating on the authors strategies in getting the advantage to win by positional and organizational advantage, troop moral, and adapting and overcoming environment. The Most effective part of the book is when The Author discusses the ways to win by Positional and Organizational advantages. When placing and moving troops it is better to place them in the more strategic places in a organized fashion that is more favorable to give you the advantage. This gives commanders a chance to create situations in which troops are positioned and ready to face adversity. When Leadership does This they need to have the foreknowledge of advantages during war such as the preparations, arriving early, amount of troops, and logistics on the enemy. However when it all boils down to it its about “knowing yourself and knowing your enemy and their capabilities.”...

    Read More
    836 Words 3 Pages
  • The Art of War Essay

    ...THE ART OF WAR REACTION PAPER Sun Tzu, the author of The Art of War, wrote one of the oldest and famous books to be written in history. The Art of War, is a Chinese military treatise that has become more than just for military use, it’s utilized in almost all aspects of today’s world. Businesses, sports, politics, education, and so many more have interpreted The Art of War and used it in their everyday lives. The Art of War portrays fighting as a guide serving a dual purpose, suggesting that strategy is not just useful for fighting but for achieving success in life. There are many quotes by Sun Tzu that relates my personal struggles and accomplishments over the course of my life. “Can you imagine what I would do if I could do all I can?” (Tzu) Sun Tzu is saying so many people never allow themselves to reach their full potential or to obtain all that they can. The possibilities are endless. If you were able to achieve one thing, why stop? Keep going until you have it all. Throughout my life, everyday has been one challenge after another. At the age of 12, I fell into peer pressure, made bad friends who did bad things and started to steal hundreds of dollars from my own mother. My grades started to drop from a 95 to a 67 average. The day I got caught stealing money from my mother was the slap in the face that I needed. The look on...

    Read More
    1452 Words 4 Pages
  • The Art of War Essay

    ...The Art of War - a brief analysis The Art of War is one of the oldest and most successful books on military strategy. It composed of 13 chapters, each of which is based on philosophy, used the idea of philosophy to observe the war, discussed and find out the general rule of war. Though it is very short, it devoted to one aspect of warfare. The Art of War has a perfect logic system. These 13 chapters, no matter more or less will influence the main idea. Just like the first chapter is Laying Plans, it explores the five fundamental factors and seven elements that define a successful outcome. The second chapter is Waging War, this part is not like the warfare that we think like today, it explains how to understand the economy of war and how success requires making the winning play, which in turn, requires limiting the cost of competition and conflict. After the sufficient preparation, what we need is stratagem, so there are Attack by Stratagem, Tactical Dispositions, Energy, Weak Points and Strong, Maneuvering and Variation of Tactics chapters, all of them are focus on essentials of warfare. In the end of the book, it talks about The Army on the March, Terrain, The Nine Situations, The Attack by Fire and The Use of Spies, each of them is specific stratagem. As a military strategy book, it’s full of sagacious idea, and is it not...

    Read More
    1456 Words 5 Pages

Popular Essays

Become a StudyMode Member

Sign Up - It's Free