JACQUES-LOUIS DAVID

Transcription

1 JACQUES-LOUIS DAVID (zhahl loo-ee dah-veed) In the arts the way in which an idea is rendered, and the manner in which it is expressed, is much more important than the idea itself. Jacques-Louis David Grades 3-5 PowerPoint Lesson Plan OBJECTIVES HISTORY: Places an artwork in its art historical context. Students will be able to describe how David depicted historical events in his paintings and also shaped events happening in his own time. CRITICISM: Informed talk about art. Students are able to identify examples of implied texture in David s paintings and can explain the difference between implied and actual texture. AESTHETICS: Questions the nature, value and beauty of art. Students will discuss whether or not it is important to understand the background about an artwork, such as when and where and by whom it was made. PRODUCTION: Creating art. Students will create a portrait which exhibits the use of at least three different implied textures. VOCABULARY Note to volunteers The vocabulary words will be in bold italics throughout the lesson. They will be defined within the text of the lesson and do not need to be presented separately. Texture: refers to the surface quality, both implied and actual of an artwork. Texture is unique among the art elements in that it activates two sensory processes at the same time; vivid feelings of touch can be experienced as well as the sense of sight. Texture can be actual or implied. 1 PowerPoint Presentation

2 Actual texture can be felt. An artist creates actual texture in one of two ways. One way is to attach real materials to his work as in a collage. The second way an artist can create actual texture is with the medium as it is applied to the working surface. Van Gogh s paintings serve as an example of this method. In his paintings, rough textures have been produced by building up the paint on the canvas. Implied texture (or simulated) occurs when a smooth painting surface (such as paper) appears to be textured. Implied textures are careful renderings or copies of the light and dark patterns created by surface character. Portrait: picture of a person. INTRODUCTION To demonstrate the difference between actual and implied texture it would be useful to bring some textured items into the classroom and at the same time show a painting or photograph of the same item. For example, show students Wyeth s painting Pine Baron and also bring in some real pinecones and pine needles. This lesson will be focusing on implied texture. The artist we are learning about today was a French man named Jacques-Louis David (zhahl loo-ee dah-veed). Say that with me, Jacques-Louis David. His paintings not only show us examples of different textures, but he also used his art as a way to say something about the things that were happening in the time in which he lived. 2 PowerPoint Presentation HISTORY SELF PORTRAIT 1794, OIL ON CANVAS, 31-7/8 X 25-¼ This is a self-portrait David painted when he was 46 years old. He was born over 250 years ago in Paris, France. His family wanted him to be a soldier or an architect, but he had his mind made up to go to art school to learn to be an artist. David had a speech impediment that made it hard for people to understand him when he talked and later he was accidently pierced in the cheek while practicing swords. The accident caused a lump to grow in his cheek which made it even harder to understand him. Some people said maybe that was why he wanted to paint so much. He could express in art what was so hard for him to say out loud. He went to a famous school in Paris called the Royal Academy of Art when he was 18. He hoped his paintings would win the grand prize of Rome, an award for the best painting. Four times he lost, but on his fifth try he won. The prize was to

3 stay in Italy for five years where he could study the arts there. He learned about all the great Italian artists including Greek and Roman art. THE SWING 1766, JEAN-HONORE FRAGONARD, OIL ON CANVAS, 35 X 32 This painting, called The Swing, was a lot like the kind of art that happy, pretty and not very serious scenes, just like this one. This scene is of people having a picnic and playing on a sunny day with a beautiful view in the background. In Italy, David had been able to see and study many great and famous artworks as well as the ruins of ancient cities. His ideas about painting were inspired by the pieces of pottery and sculpture he saw and it sparked a new interest in the art of ancient Greek and Rome. Those new ideas began to change the way he painted. PORTRAIT OF MME. RECAMIER 1800, OIL ON CANVAS, 68 x 95-1/2 This lovely portrait was painted by David. A portrait is a picture of a person. It has the feeling of classical art from Greek or Roman times that David liked, unlike the almost fairy tale feeling in the last painting we saw. One of the things that make this portrait seem so real is the way David painted the texture of things. Who can tell me what texture is? (The way things feel or look like they feel.) In a painting you cannot really feel the texture of objects in the picture. Artists call that implied texture. Another way to think of it might be imaginary texture since you can imagine what it might feel like if it were real. Look at the lamp on the tall stand next to the couch. It looks like it is metal and would feel smooth and cold. What are some of the other (implied) textures you see in this painting and how do you think they would feel if you could touch them in real life? (Soft texture of the dress, curly hair, smooth skin, etc.) FYI The information contained in a box in this lesson is added for the adult volunteer s enrichment (think of it as a giant parenthesis in the middle of the lesson). Generally, the information is not intended for inclusion in the classroom presentation. However, if appropriate, you may wish to present some of this information to the students. This portrait is one of David s most delicate works. It is also one of the most painterly as it was never finished. Mme. Recamier is posed in fashionable toilette with the exception of the bare feet, a detail David insisted upon although it pushed the vogue for classical imitation beyond the point of acceptable even to Mme. Recamier. A more serious disagreement arose when David insisted upon another point: he painted her hair light brown in harmony with the color scheme of the rest of the picture and in line with the formula for classical beauty. Mme. Recamier s hair was coal black and she was proud of it. Without telling David, she went to his most successful pupil, Gérard, who agreed to do the kind of portrait she wanted. David refused to finish the commission. It never received the final polish to which David reduced the surface of his other works and we realize how much was polished out of the rest of his work. From David and the Revolution 3 PowerPoint Presentation

4 OATH OF THE HORATII 1786, OIL ON CANVAS, 51 X 65-1/4 David became known in Paris as a historical painter. That meant he painted stories of heroes and patriotic scenes from history like this one. This painting was from an old Roman legend and it made David famous. It is called The Oath of the Horatii. According to the legend, three Roman brothers agreed to fight three young men from Alba, to the death, to decide whose city was the greatest. The brothers are shown pledging their loyalty to their father and homeland before they go into battle. Behind the father s back are the women in the family who have either a brother or husband on the enemy side! They know no matter who wins, someone they care about will die. For them, there will be no happy ending. This was a powerful picture of the unhappiness of the sisters beside the heroism of the brothers. In France, about the time David painted this picture, the people were growing angry because they had no voice in their government. The king and the nobles had all the rights and almost all the money and many French people were starving. After David painted this picture many people felt it showed the same kind of feeling that they had about their country. They loved France, but at the same time, they were unhappy. The people couldn t stand it any longer and they revolted against the king. It started a ten year battle known as the French Revolution. FYI There was a time when pleasing the king and his court meant sending them lighthearted canvases of naked nymphs and boudoir romps. But by the 1760 s the reforming spirit of the Enlightenment had been at work. Parisians, long the scandal (and envy) of Europe for their pleasure loving ways, were now intent on appearing to be models of self virtue. Republican Rome seemed to offer an inspirational model an ideal society (created it should be noted, by overthrowing a hated ruler) and one that cherished civic virtue, physical courage, frugality and hard work. The Royal Academy favored this brand of classical virtue, and painters eager for state commissions followed suit. The day would come when idealistic Frenchmen would decide to transform their admiration for republican Rome into harsh reality. But at first, this neoclassicism was merely a fashion. No one saw the convulsion coming, least of all Louis XVI, whose art collection became a virtual gallery of antique wisdom and austere patriotic virtues. When the American Revolution broke out, to many French people it seemed as if the era of republican Rome had come to life across the Atlantic. France (to the king s later and bitter regret) supported England s rebellious colonies with men and a great deal of money. George Washington was idolized as a paragon of fancied Roman virtues-brave, self-sacrificing, devoted to his men and very tall. Roman virtues were writ large in The Oath of the Horatii in which three brothers line up toe to toe and embrace as they swear an oath to fight to the death for their homeland. The painting caused a sensation when it appeared at the Salon in 1785 (the American minister to France, Thomas Jefferson was particularly enthusiastic). It was easy to see why four years later the painting was adopted as the perfect emblem for the French Revolution. At the time, however, the end of the monarchy was the furthest thing from David s mind. In fact, the Horatii was commissioned by the king himself. The Smithsonian Magazine 4 PowerPoint Presentation

5 THE DEATH OF MARAT 1793, OIL ON CANVAS, 63 X 49 Have you noticed the people in David s paintings, although they look real, often seem almost like statues? He keeps the backgrounds in his paintings simple so we pay the most attention to what is happening to the people in the painting. David had become a strong supporter for the revolution. This is his famous painting of a man named Marat who was a doctor for the king s brother. He had a skin disease, the treatment of which, was to soak in a cold bath of medicines and wrap a medicine soaked turbine on his head. A packing case was set next to the tub so he could work and a blanket was over the tub so he could see visitors. Marat had quit his job and began to write articles in the papers against the king. He was a leader of the revolution who was feared because if you did not agree with him, he could get you into trouble and send you to the guillotine! David had begun to show actual political events of his time in his paintings and this was one of them. A woman who disagreed with Marat s ideas and wanted to stop him, came to see him and while there, stabbed him. David chose to paint Marat at the moment of his death in one of the most unforgettable paintings in the history of art. The ordinary people of France were outraged that this could happen and demanded things change for the better after seeing this painting. CRITICISM BONAPARTE CROSSING THE SAINT-BERNARD 1800, OIL ON CANVAS, 8 10 X 7 7 Napoleon Bonaparte was a military hero. In this portrait, he is shown crossing the Alps on horseback on his way to Italy. He will eventually become the Emperor Napoleon, ruler of France. Take a minute to see how many different textures you can find. Sensory Properties: What do you see? 1. Point out where you see smoother textures and tell what you think they would feel like. (Smooth, firm coat of the horse; smooth leather of boot; hard, smooth leather of glove; etc.) 2. Point out the roughest textures you see and tell how you think they would feel. (Rough stones on the ground; bumpy brocade on the hat and uniform; coarse, curly hair of mane and tail of horse; etc.) Formal Properties: How is it arranged? 5 PowerPoint Presentation

6 1. Contrast in an artwork is when things that are different from each other are placed next to each other. An artist puts things together that have contrast to add interest to a picture or help make things stand out. Point out where you see that David has put contrasting textures next to one another; rough textures next to smooth textures. (The coarse mane and tail next to the smooth skin of the horse; the rough texture of the brocade trim next to the smooth fabrics.) Technical Properties: What media, tools and techniques were used? 1. What size do you think this painting might be? Does it make a difference? (The painting is fairly large 7 x 4. Napoleon was a man who was not very tall and had a large ego. Perhaps the size of the painting was to help show people how important he thought he was). Expressive Properties: What mood or idea does it express? 1. What do you think David wanted us to think about this portrait of Napoleon when we look at it? (Our attention is focused on the horse and rider. David paints the horse rearing in a scene of a raging storm whipping the horse s tail and mane. Bonaparte s cloak is blown out by the wind in romantic grandeur, but he remains impassive, exerting his dominance over the scene. Napoleon did cross the Alps, but in reality rode a donkey, nearly lost his life and was not dressed in his finest clothes.) David shows carved into the rock below the horse and rider the names of Bonaparte and Hannibal. Hannibal was the great Roman commander who had also crossed the Alps during a military campaign. AESTHETICS Note to volunteers These questions are meant to be open-ended; there is no right or wrong answer. NAPOLEON IN HIS STUDY 1812, OIL ON CANVAS 80-¼ X 49-¼ This is a portrait of Napoleon in his study. We know from David s notes that the time on the clock is 4:00 A.M., so David is showing us how hard Napoleon is working for the people of France; he is working long into the night. Napoleon is shown in a relaxed pose, his hand inside his vest. (The pose of a man with his hand inside his vest was common at the time. Not having pockets, hands were slipped inside a coat or vest to relay a relaxed feeling. Today in an informal portrait, a person might simply put their hands in their pants pockets.) David was an artist who painted pictures as a way to express his ideas about things happening around him. His art became a way to tell people things in pictures rather than in speeches. 6 PowerPoint Presentation

7 Do you think in order for us to understand an artwork that it is important to know the background about it, such as when and where and by whom it was made? Why or why not? HISTORY (cont.) THE CORONATION OF NAPOLEON AND JOSEPHINE , OIL ON CANVAS, 20 X 30 6-½ This huge painting gives us a picture to forever remember Napoleon Bonaparte. It is the day he and his wife Josephine became Emperor and Empress of France in a grand coronation celebration. It is a display of imperial power that few other paintings can compare to. It pleased Napoleon greatly and he made David the First Painter to the Emperor. If you look carefully you can see that David included himself in the painting in the upper balcony. He is seen sketching while watching the coronation. Today, this painting takes up a space 30 feet long and 20 feet high on the wall in the Louvre Museum in Paris. It is full of wonderful examples of implied texture. Can you describe some of them? (Smooth fabrics, soft furs, rough brocades, hard metal, etc.) GENERAL E.M. GERARD 1816, OIL ON CANVAS 44 X 32-5/8 Nine years after his coronation, Napoleon was no longer emperor and a king returned to rule France. David, in his 60 s, left France to live the last ten years of his life in Brussels where he painted mostly portraits like this one. He was an artist who lived in a time full of changes and upset. He was born into a world where paintings were just pretty decorations for royalty and people rich enough to afford them. He became someone who changed what many artists painted after him and he was a great art teacher. His famous paintings of Marat and the Horatii showed the power of art to move even the most common of citizens into action. Neither France nor art has ever been the same. PRODUCTION Portrait with Texture Rubbing Criteria: Students create a portrait which illustrates the use of at least three different implied textures. 7 PowerPoint Presentation

8 Materials: Multiple objects to use for texture rubbings - sandpaper, netting, burlap, texture plates Copy of portrait figure on 8-½ x 11 paper Crayon, colored pencils Glue sticks Scissors 9 x 12 colored background Instructions: 1. Use crayon or colored pencil to draw the features in on the face. Color the skin on face, neck, arms or hands. 2. Show students how to lay their paper over a texture plate or similar object. Feel with fingers to see if the textured object covers the area you wish to fill in. 3. Use crayon or colored pencil and without moving the texture under the paper, color over the top until the texture appears on the paper. 4. Use at least three different textures to fill in the portrait. 5. Cut out the figure and glue it to a colored background paper. 6. Sign your name. Jill Bogle, PowerPoint Presentation