Neoclassicism

In the later 1700s artists turned back to ancient Greece and Rome, and to painters such as Raphael and Poussin, for noble, clear forms. Excavations in Italy and a renewed belief that art should teach drove the change. In London, Reynolds spoke of the grand manner. The style lasted into the early 1800s. Clear contours, carefully arranged figures and sculptural forms often signal a Neoclassical interest in ancient art. Renewed study of Greek and Roman objects offered models for composition as well as stories about duty and public virtue. The same concern for line and structure could shape a portrait. Compare the controlled surface with the emotion of the subject: Neoclassicism and Romanticism overlapped in artists’ training and practice, rather than forming completely separate worlds. Connected places: Rome · Paris · London.

• Mrs. Hugh Morgan and Her DaughterAngelica Kauffmann, c. 1771
• The MuseAngelica Kauffmann, 1766
• The Death of ProcrisBenjamin West, 1770, retouched 1803
• The Expulsion of Adam and Eve from ParadiseBenjamin West, 1791, retouched 1803
• Alexander's Confidence with his Physician PhilipBenjamin West, c. 1770
• A Dancing Young Woman as TerpsichoreAngelica Kauffmann, c. 1780
• The Meeting of Orestes and HermioneAnne-Louis Girodet de Roussy-Trioson, c. 1800
• The Oath of the Seven Chiefs against ThebesAnne-Louis Girodet de Roussy-Trioson, c. 1800
• Elizabeth Shewell West and Her Son, RaphaelBenjamin West, c. 1770
• George IIIBenjamin West, 1783
• British Manufactory; A SketchBenjamin West, 1791
• Madame Grand (Noël Catherine Vorlée, 1761–1835)Élisabeth Vigée Le Brun, 1783
• Alexandre Charles Emmanuel de Crussol-Florensac (1743–1815)Élisabeth Vigée Le Brun, 1787
• Comtesse de la Châtre (Marie Charlotte Louise Perrette Aglaé Bontemps, 1762–1848)Élisabeth Vigée Le Brun, 1789
• Figure StudiesGeorge Romney, c. late 1770s
• Saint AmbroseFrancisco José de Goya y Lucientes, c. 1796–99
• Madame François BuronJacques Louis David, 1769
• Villa in the CampagnaJacques Louis David, 1775–80
• Head of a WomanJacques Louis David, c. 1780
• Madame de Pastoret and Her SonJacques Louis David, 1791–92
• Portrait of Jeanbon Saint-AndréJacques Louis David, 1795
• Portrait of the Artist's MotherJean Baptiste Greuze, 1775
• Women and Children Mourning a Dead ManJean Baptiste Greuze, 1778
• Lady Sarah Bunbury Sacrificing to the GracesSir Joshua Reynolds, 1763–65
• Portrait of Catherine Grey, Lady MannersSir Thomas Lawrence, 1794