Module 4 : ‘Art for Art’s Sake’
 
Lecture 9 : Modern Art, French Revolution and Freedom of Expression, What is Modern Art
 

Under the shadow of French Revolution creative community including artists, poet, writer, philosopher, musicians, etc. spearheaded to liberating their freedom of expression. Some of them took political attitudes and added to their own pleas for ‘justice’ to the appeals of the revolutionary ideals. The Romantic Movement became the most powerful philosophy to rediscover their ideals. Goethe, Byron, Keats, Beethoven and Wagner took part along with painters and sculptures. Violence, passionate feelings, and a love of individual liberty were all part of the Romantic ideals. Exploration of the ‘romantic spirit’ of the natural world was expressed through the creative writings of Wordsworth and the great English and French landscape paintings of the 19th C.

http://personalinterpretations.files.wordpress.com/2011/12/goya-executions-of-the-third-of-may-1808.jpg
http://www.gailgastfield.com/pageart/ancient.jpg
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cc/Eug%C3%A8ne_Delacroix_-_La_libert%C3%A9_guidant_le_peuple-2.jpg/1280px-Eug%C3%A8ne_Delacroix_-_La_libert%C3%A9_guidant_le_peuple-2.jpg
http://www.oilpainting-frame.com/upload1/file-admin/images/new12/Jean%20Auguste%20Dominique%20Ingres-494893.jpg
Plate 2A Execution of 3rd May
2B Ancient Days
2C Delacroix’s The Liberty
2D Ingres’s Turkish Bath
(Source:https://www.google.co.in/search?hl=en&q=romantic+period+paintings&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.r_
qf.&bpcl=39967673&biw=1318&bih=600&um=1&ie=UTF-8&tbm=isch&source=og&sa=N&tab=wi&ei=XPX
OUKzlC4nPrQfPz4HYAw
; December 17, 2012) 

Romanticism to Realism and Impressionism opened up the new virtue of creative expressions. Francisco Goya (plate 2A), 1746-1877, The Executions of the 3rd May 1808, William Blake’s (plate 2B) Ancient Days 1757-1827, Eugene Delacroix (plate 2C) 1798-1863, Dominique Ingres (1780-1867), etc. were engaged in expressing the spirit of romantic ideals. Each artist has applied their own choice of expressions. Goya’s reality based on fact, William Blake’s mystic philosophy, Delacroix’s novelty in spirit of liberation and Ingres’s social statement of Turkish Bath have took opportunity to explore various avenues of artistic creativity.