Baroque Art Essay

Its hard to make a differentiation in which the beginning of the Baroque period is clearly distinguished from that of the after-hours Renaissance. N one(a)theless, Baroque fraud is emotional, decorative and a direct result of the Counter-Reformation suit in Europe. During the Baroque period, in that respect was a dramatic religious destroy in the church building with the formation of Protestantism. Catholics reacted with the Counter-Reformation to revitalize Catholicism. They needed to attract viewers with religious artistic creation that more significantly impacted onlookers.Protestant aras (in the North) responded with a lack of religious art, concentrating, for example, on genre cayings that taught their viewers moral lessons. Compositions tended to brace more open space. The Baroque port originated in Italy and string out north, profoundly affecting the rest of Europe as it spread. In his survey of art history text, Gardners Art Through the Ages A Global History, Fre d S. Kleiner asserts that the status Baroque is problematic because the era encompasses a broad range of genres and styles.At the same time, it is effective in describing the art of the 17th century, a style marked by dynamism and movement, drama and greatness. Since the masses could not read, there could be no better way to feed them religion-Catholicisms contingent view of it-than through grand pictures depicting Biblical lessons and the dominance of Catholicism, calculate the Church. One of the most interesting examples of art as propaganda for the Catholic Church is Caravaggios Conversion of Saint Paul, painted ca. 1603. In 1600, Caravaggio was commissioned to paint two pictures. One is Crucifixion of Saint ray, a dramatic and wrongful work.The other is Pauls Conversion, which hangs across the chapel from Saint Peter in the church of Santa Maria del Popolo in capital of Italy. Also known as Conversion on the Way to Damascus or The Road to Damascus, this scene of Pauls conve rsion is known as the most intriguing of the two paintings. In this grand picture Caravaggio portrays the moment described in the Bible, in the Book of Acts, when Paul (then capital of Minnesota) falls to the ground in an epiphany from the Lord. The egocentric, Christian-hating capital of Minnesota is on his way to Damascus, on a mission to witch-hunt Christians there.In Acts chapter 22, verses 6-7, capital of Minnesota describes the moment About noon as I came near Damascus, all at once a bright light from heaven flashed around me. I shake off to the ground and heard a voice say to me, capital of Minnesota Saul Why do you persecute me? This information is important to consider when examine Caravaggios representation of the event. Caravaggio, who, in his personal life, was known to have an extraordinary disposition and not long after painting this scene, he fled Rome after killing a man (Encyclopedia Britannica) clearly was a subversive in his art.In this scenes it perhaps sho wed the mystery in the man that represents Caravaggios sarcasm, his sardonic version of Jesus, who, after all, is the one who knocked Saul senseless. If so, what is it that Caravaggio is secretly saying about Jesus? We will never know, further the possibility is at least entertaining. Summary While Baroque art arose out of an effort to manipulate the masses through propaganda tactics, it changed and evolved as it spread throughout Europe. Today, the style can be appreciated for its many accomplishments, everything from its pragmatic renderings to its grand drama and its larger-than-life grandeur.Baroque art has an intensity and immediacy not seen prior. The exquisite attention to detail and the realism of the style are part of what defines this age. Many masters emerged from this era, masters whose styles are widely vary and whose intentions were just as varied, and much can be learned from them and the legacies they go forth behind in their art, music, literature and architect ure. Combined, these characteristics make the Baroque style one of the most compelling periods in the history of Western art.