European Art: 19th Century Wall, Essay Example

The experiences that were perceived during the visit to the Norton Simon Museum in Pasadena, CA will be detailed.  The perception of the European nineteenth century art exhibit will be discussed.  The architecture of the Norton Simon Museum will be detailed.  The exhibit areas will be reviewed.  Two of the prints in the European nineteenth centuryexhibit will be compared and contrasted.  The reasons for the preference of the two art works in the European nineteenth century art exhibitwill be explored.

One

On the outside of the Norton Simon Museum is a garden.  Auguste Rodin’s The Thinker is one of the more prominent sculptures that are perceived in the primary entrance of the Norton Simon Museum.  The Sculpture Garden had a lavish pond that contained diverse varieties of water lilies.  In addition, the Sculpture Garden at the Norton Simon Museum has beautiful trees, flowers and plants.  The winding paths delegated an exhilarating background for the museum’s sculptures.  The area is similar to my neighborhood with regards to the manicured trees and well-kept areas.  The building’s location is effective with regards to conveying the environment in which the NortonSimon Museum is located (Norton Simon Museum 1).

Two

The building is located in a residential zone.  The building has a residential perspective.  Three walls are curved and the building is chimera in its form.  There are thousands of deep brown tiles that reflect light and the hues of the tiles.  This characteristic is reminiscent of the elaborately designed homes in the Pasadena area.  The lighting that is inside the building conveyselegance and intimacy (Norton Simon Museum 1).

Three

The illuminating factor inthe European nineteenth century art exhibit is the digital art wall.  The wall enables the visitors to select from over one hundred works of art.  The digital wall displays the art work on a three dimensional façade of the room.  The lighting of the digital wall is well lit.  The paintings are initially displayed on a black background.  As one of the pieces of European nineteenth century art work is selected, the digital wall enables the viewing of the artwork with all of its details (Norton Simon Museum 1).

Four

The initial reaction that I perceived was awe.  I found it amazing that the technology was able to blend and display the nineteenth century European art in its detail.  The lighting facilitated the appreciation of the distinct hues that were contained in the paintings.  The neighboring visitors were also amazed and time had to be taken to views each of the nineteenth century European works of art (Norton Simon Museum 1).

Five

Ten of the artworks that were reviewed were the following: Head of a Woman with Veil by Jean Louis Forain.  This is a profile portrait of a woman that was composed between 1878 and 1880.  The colors are vivid and the detail of the rouge on the woman’s face is elaborately detailed.  The second artwork that was viewed is Vase of Lilacs, Roses and Tulips.  This painting was produced by Gustave Courbet.  It demonstrates a variety of colors that provide realism with regards to the various conditions of the lilacs, roses and tulips that are contained in the vase.  This painting was dated 1883.  The third painting that was viewed is titled: Woman combing her hair before aMirror.  This painting was released by Edward Degas in 1877.  It demonstrates the use of light and shadows that was popularized by Degas and the painters of the nineteenth century in Europe.  The fourth painting is:Saltimbanques Resting, which was painted in 1870 by Honoré Daumier.  The fifth painting was titled:Nude.This painting was developed by Pierre- Auguste Renoir in 1872.   It demonstrates the use of hues and light in order to provide the details with regards to the female form (Norton Simon Museum 1).

The sixth painting that was viewed ids titled: Young Woman with a Rose.  The painter is Achille- Jacques- Jean- Marie Devéria and it was pained around 1850.  This painting has the realism of a photograph.  The expressions and the female form are beautifully captured.   The seventh painting is titled: Dancers in the Wings.  This painting was produced by Edward Degas, circa 1876- 1878.  It portrays the young lady dancing.  There is interplay of light and shadows that provide substantial detail to the painting (Norton Simon Museum 1).

The eighth painting is titled: Rebecca at the Well.  It was painted by Jean – BaptisteCamille Carot between the years of 1838 to 1839.  The painting has details that make it look as if it were a photograph.  The colors and the shadows provide a perception of realism.  The ninth painting that was viewed is titled; Dancer (Battement in Secord Position) by Edward Degas, 1874.  This is a sketch that uses the elements of shadows and light in order to provide realism to the dancer’s outstretched form.  The final painting that was reviewed is titled: Young Woman in Black by Pierre- Auguste Renoir.  The painting dates from circa 1875 to 1877.  It is a full faced portrait that demonstrates the most substantial characteristics in the eyes and the flower that is placed in the young woman’s hair (Norton Simon Museum 1).

Six

Jean Louis Forain was an impressionist who was strongly influenced by Degas and Manet.  The painting titled:Head of a Woman with Veildemonstrates a remarkable style.  The expression of the woman is captured by the rouge hues that are present in her cheeks and chin.  The light colored background in Forain’s work adds to the ability of appreciating the model’s expression. The veil adds a mystique to the artwork.  Jean- Louis Forain’s life (1852- 1931) enabled him to be influenced by the great impressionists (Brethell et al. 168; Ruff and Valdés- Fourain 13).   The painting:Head of a Woman with Veil is represented as profile painting.  The second artwork that is to be compared is:Young Woman in Black by Pierre- Auguste Renoir (1841- 1919) (Brodskaya 4).  This is a full face portrait.  Although it does not showthe same deep rouge expression in the cheeks as the painting by Forain, the picture demonstrates an image of movement in the eyes.  The flower in the young woman’s hair in Renoir’s painting adds a nice contrast to the dark colors (Norton Simon Museum 1).

Seven

The two works are similar in their impressionist style.  The two portraits are oil on canvas. In Renoir’s portrait is full faced and the expression of the young woman is captured in the twinkle of her eyes.  The Renoir work is more austere and more expressive than Forain’s Woman in Black with Veil(Norton Simon Museum 1).

Eight

The reason that these two works were chosen is that they demonstrate the variations in the perspective of impressionism.  The work of Forain demonstrates the expression with the rouge on the facial aspects of the woman.  The rendering by Renoir demonstrates expression in a different manner by capturing the twinkle in the young woman’s eye.  The two works demonstrate the influence of Degas and Manet who were some of the foremost impressionist in European 19^th century art (Norton Simon Museum 1; Brethell et al. 168).

Works Cited

Brethell,  Richard,  Françoise Forster- Hahn, Duncan Robinson and Janis Tomlinson. The Robert Lehman collection: Nineteenth and twentieth century European drawings. New York, NY: Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2002. Print.

Brodskaya, Nathalia. Renoir. USA: Confidential Concepts, 2011. Print.

Norton Simon Museum.”European art: 19^th century wall.”Norton Simon Museum, 2014. Web 18 November 2014. http://http://www.nortonsimon.org/european-art-19th-century-wall/

Ruff, Theodore and Florence Valdés- Forain. Jean- Louis Forain: The impressionist years: The Dixon Gallery and Gardens collection. USA: Dixon Gallery and Gardens, 1995. Print.