Art History Final Vocab

Romanticism

19th century artistic movement that focused on nature, feelings, and emotions.

Realism

A 19th century artistic movement in which writers and painters sought to show life as it is rather than life as it should be

Enlightenment

A movement in the 18th century that advocated the use of reason in the reappraisal of accepted ideas and social institutions.

japonisme

A style in French and American nineteenth-century art that was highly influenced by Japanese art, especially prints.

assemblage

A three-dimensional composition in which a collection of objects is unified in a sculptural work.

Suprematism

A type of art used to convey a belief that the supreme reality in the world is pure feeling, which attaches to no object and thus calls for new, nonobjective forms in art shapes not related to objects in the visible world.

Post-Impressionism

An artistic movement that expressed world that could not normally be seen, like dreams and fantasy.

Baroque

An artistic style of the seventeenth century characterized by complex forms, bold ornamentation, and contrasting elements

Dada

An early 20th century artistic movement that attacked traditional cultural styles and stressed the absence of purpose in life

readymade

An object from popular or material culture presented without further manipulation as an artwork by the artist.

Impressionism

Art style that tried to capture what the eye sees at a given moment and the effect of sunlight on the subject.

collage

Artistic composition of materials pasted over a surface; an assemblage of diverse elements

Futurism

Artists used implied motion by shifting planes and having multiple viewpoints of the subject. They strived to show mechanical as well as natural motion and speed.

Treaty of Westphalia

Ended Thirty Years War in 1648; granted right to individual rulers within the Holy Roman Empire to choose their own religion-either Protestant or Catholic

salon

Informal social gatherings at which writers, artists, philosophes, and others exchanged ideas

veduta

Italian for "view" (landscape painting popular in 18th century Venice)

sublime

Lofty or elevated, inspiring reverence or awe; excellent, majestic; complete, utter

Fauvism

Means "wild beast". Bold, shocking color. Joyous tone, usually. Matisse

Cubism

Multiple perspectives all at once

Rococo

Very elaborate and ornate; relating to a highly ornate style of art and architecture in 18th-century France

primitivism

a belief in the value of what is simple and unsophisticated, expressed as a philosophy of life or through art or literature.

baldacchino

a canopy placed over a throne or an altar, sometimes resting on columns

odalisque

a female slave in the harems of the Turkey. It was a favorite subject of the 19th century artists in a reclining position

photomontage

a picture made of a combination of photographs

capriccio

a quick, improvisational, spirited piece of music

Salon des Refuses

a separate exhibition outside of the regular bi-annual Salon, for paintings that had been rejected or refused by the Salon jur

Historicism

a set of concepts about works of literature and their relationships to the social and cultural contexts in which they were produced

pastel

a soft, colored chalk stick or crayon made of pigments and a gum binder, usually applied to paper; also, resulting artwork

vanitas

a theme in still life painting that stressed the brevity of life and the folly of human vanity

Divisionism

also known as Pointilism; a distinctive style of painting focusing on the science of color developed by George Seurat

Neoclassicism

an attempt to revive and emulate classical attitudes towards art based on the ancient Greeks and romans

Purism

early 20th century art movement that embraced the "machine aesthetic" and sought purity of form

Grand Tour

education, see all the "hot spots" of Italy, visited cities like Naples, Florence, Venice, Rome, people could immense themselves in the lessons of antiquity

tenebrism

extreme contrast between light and shade

Grand Manner

grandiose display of the body; ties into absolutism. Display of aristocrats and royalty of Europe.

German Expressionism

hoped to break the academic, traditional, and impressionistic modes and create art that was a creative impulse

avant-garde

innovative; new and unusual ideas or experimental ideas

picturesque

like a picture; pleasing or charming to look at

en plein air

painting outdoors

fete galante

paintings of elegant outdoor entertainment