The Painting of the Sabines, Essay Example

I have chosen to discuss “The Painting of the Sabines” by Jacques-Louis David for this opinion paper. Jacques-Louis David once said, “In painting the picture my desire was to represent the customs of antiquity with such an exactitude that the Greeks and the Romans, had they seen my work, would not have found me a stranger to their customs”, however although the style used in this painting reflects a style that would have been used by the ancient Greeks and Romans, this topic is an unlikely choice for this ancient time period. As such, there are many similarities and differences between Jacques-Louis David’s painting and one that would have been created by the ancient Romans and Greeks, and David is erroneous in believing that these people would not have found him a “stranger to their customs”.

One of the major similarities between David’s painting during the Renaissance and ancient Greek and Roman art is the fascination and exposure of the human body. The clothing worn by the ancient Greeks and Romans emphasized this and many of the well-known sculptures created by then depict strong human figures wearing even less than expected. “The Painting of the Sabines” follows this fascination of the human body, which can be observed by studying the warriors. While their bodies are well-defined and strong like the typical Greek or Roman statue figure, they are different somewhat. First of all, there is some degree of censorship in this painting. The parts of the body that can be construed as offensive are mostly hidden, while in an ancient Greek or Roman figure, these body parts would be pronounced. Furthermore, this painting focuses almost exclusively on the male form rather than the female. While the male form was a more usual topic for a Greek or Roman piece of art, in a situation where a Greek or Roman artist attempted to depict a rape scene, they would certainly ensure that the nudity was truer to life. The women are mostly clothed, with the exception of one standing in the front and center. Even though this woman’s breasts are slightly exposed, they are not detailed and turn downwards as to hide them even though they are clearly present.

A major difference between the David piece and art that would have been created by the ancient Greeks and Romans is the topic and how it is shown. While the ancient Greeks and Romans would not avoid portraying war or sexual scenes altogether, they would do so in a different manner. One of the major purposes of the war scenes were to establish glory of a people. A rape scene would oppose that glory and the topic of a war-like scene would be done in a way that shows victory, strength, or valor. Secondly, orgies were common in Greek and Roman cultures and would not be purposely avoided as a topic in art. However, there are very few images that attempt to depict rape in its occurrence because this is an act of violence rather than an act of pleasure. Rape certainly occurred in these two cultures, but the purpose of their art was not to document such things. Rather, it was to make them appear strong and to tell stories of their lives that could be passed down to future generations. Therefore, it was desirable to avoid topics that would make them look bad to future generations.

Another difference between David’s painting and ancient Greek and Roman art is the use of spacing between characters. Ancient Greeks and Romans typically depicted their characters slightly away from one another so that each individual could be emphasized. This is even done in figures where there are two individuals interacting and when there is a large group. This again emphasizes the appreciation of the human body. David’s painting fails to uphold this tradition, and the group shown in his painting appears to be clustered. Even though this is a truer to life way to depict the scene according to Renaissance ideals, it is likely that a Greek or Roman artist would have decided to focus on only two individuals in the work with the assumption that other people were involved. An example of this would be a scene where only one soldier and one Sabine woman are portrayed, and they alone would be expected to convey the message to the viewer.

David certainly believes that his painting fits in with the culture of the ancient Greeks and Romans, but this is because he is doing so in retrospect. The rape of the Sabines is certainly a story from ancient Roman history, and he believes that by capturing this image in the form of a painting, he is paying tribute to ancient Roman art. While he does this in his own perspective, it is unlikely that the ancient Greeks and Romans would have approved if they had seen it. This piece of art is clearly an adaptation of Greek and Roman history and literature, but it is done in a manner that is unique to the Renaissance.