Modern Art: Definition, Period and Main Artists
We often speak indiscriminately of modern art and contemporary art, but to be precise they are not the same thing. Modernity and contemporaneity are different periods, this applies to political and economic history and of course also to the history of art. In this article we see the historical period of modern art, the main artists and most famous works of art and some curiosities.
Exactly what period should we refer to when talking about modern art? Not everyone agrees on the years that act as scattered waters, but undoubtedly it is correct to frame modernity between the 15th and 18th centuries and as far as we are concerned between the end of the 1400s and the end of the 1700s. We really want to use them, they could be the discovery of America (1492) and the French Revolution (1789-99). But of course when it comes to culture, sensitivity, evolution of taste and artistic currents, one cannot be too rigid.
History of Modern Art, Chronology
We have seen what is the period referred to when talking about modern art, now let’s deepen, with a sort of chronology.
Modern art undoubtedly has its roots in the fifteenth century and in particular the year 1401 is important, in which perspective was discovered. It is a revolutionary element, destined to mark the Renaissance and the entire history of art like few others.
The Art of 400
In addition to a spatially more likely construction, from the 15th century onwards and even more so in the 16th century the works of art will be literally overwhelmed by the emotionality of the subjects portrayed in them. The most significant artists of this extraordinary period are above all Italians, these are names that certainly do not need any particular introduction, such as: Michelangelo, Raffaello, Leonardo Da Vinci, Brunelleschi and Lorenzo Lotto.
The Creation of Adam by Michelangelo
The Creation of Adam by Michelangelo is the scene most famous and iconic artist painted on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel in Vatican City. In this particular historical moment, each type of art finds its place and dialogues at the highest level with the others, in the Renaissance it will produce much of the best that has ever been seen in architecture, painting, sculpture, engraving, etc.
The art of the 500 with Caravaggio
Art in this period evolves strongly and in the 16th century artists of the caliber of Caravaggio will find a real springboard. In the seventeenth century Rome will be the center of greatest development and cultural ferment, where artists at the service of popes and noble families, as well as very rich will find a place of honor.
From Baroque to Romanticism
Rome is the city of Bernini and Borromini, but it has also proved welcoming to foreign masters such as Rembrandt, Rubens and Velasquez. From the Renaissance to the Baroque, up to Neoclassicism, modernity is complex, eclectic, multiform. We are witnessing an alternation of classical and romantic periods, from Neoclassicism it is no coincidence that we will pass to Romanticism. Two different ways to get inspired and pay homage to the past.
Romanticism was born in Germany and developed mainly in Northern Europe, thanks to the activity of talented artists, such as Delacroix, Friedrich and Fussli. Another name that undoubtedly should be mentioned in this context is then that of William Blake, not only a painter and illustrator, but also a poet and creative able to influence the entire 1700s and also to inspire nineteenth-century movements such as the English one of the Pre-Raphaelites.
Modern Art: The Main Artists
Who are the most interesting artists of modern art, the ones that everyone should know? We have already mentioned some names of extraordinary depth, but the list could go on and on.
The fifteenth century was an extraordinary era for art also as a mirror of great economic, political and social upheavals. We left the Middle Ages behind us and opened ourselves, although not without fears and anxieties, towards the East.
After the fall of Constantinople in 1453, modern states began to emerge, including the national monarchies of France, England and Spain. In Italy the local Lordships developed into regional states, expanding to the detriment of the neighbors. Shortly thereafter, the discovery of the New World led to a new global political-economic order.
The Birth of Perspective
To lay the foundations of a new and extraordinarily flourishing season for the figurative arts, but not only, there were some important elements, such as the aforementioned birth of perspective. Another prominent element was the greater attention given to man as an individual, from every point of view, from anatomical research to greater attention to his emotions.
Modernity has then married a return to essentiality which in many cases has become a true repudiation of trappings or decorations considered excessive. To speak of a fully Renaissance work, however, these elements alone are not enough. What changes with the Renaissance, especially if we talk about the mature one, is not only the taste or the sensitivity, but it is the way of thinking and consequently also of understanding and depicting the world.
Let us take for example a work like the San Giorgio e il drago (1456) by Paolo Uccello, in which the space is composed according to the rules of perspective, but the characters are not arranged in depth. Unlike in the Crucifixion of San Pietro di Masaccio, even if earlier (1426), with all the elements that are commensurate with the perspective.
Another interesting hint on the attention to man as an individual can be obtained by examining the Madonna enthroned with the Child and musician angels (about 1405-1410) by Gentile da Fabriano and the Sant’Anna Metterza (1426) by Masaccio.