Let us now look at a deeper analysis of this painting. The Raft of Medusa painting portrays a scene that followed after the French naval ship Méduse‘s wreck, which went aground off the coastline of modern-day Mauritania on the 2nd of July, 1816. The particular artist’s personal, emotional reaction is what matters for Gericault, an idea that would continue through into the 20th century. This might be understood as a reaction to David and Ingres’ earlier Neoclassicism, which represented Enlightenment ideas of structure and logic. Much of Gericault’s art exemplifies what we now call Romanticism, with its emphasis on the exotic, emotive, and sublime. This is evident in his huge Raft of Medusa painting, as well as his lithographs of London’s impoverished and his portraiture of the mentally ill.Ī paralytic woman being transported along the street in a wheelchair (1821) by Théodore Géricault See page for author, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commonsĭespite learning from the Old Masters, notably Michelangelo, Géricault’s use of rapid, dynamic brushstrokes and opposing light effects generated evocative settings that broke loose from the polished Neoclassical school of painting. He drew dramatic events from real life on a grand scale, and as a draftsman, he found ideas in the most mundane topics. In its focus on current events and the reality of the human condition, Gericault’s work was completely modern. The Raft of Medusa painting, his most renowned work, was a breakthrough event in the history of contemporary art since it combined the urgency of the latest issues and a firsthand sensibility with the conventional, massive framework of a major Salon painting. 1820) by Théodore Géricault Théodore Géricault, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons His revolutionary use of contemporaneous subjects, his merging of classical aspects with a moody, painterly aesthetic, his love of equines, his interest in sublime and horrendous topics, and his sympathy for society’s weak and helpless make him a peculiarly complicated artist, but one who helped pave the way for Romanticism’s focus on sentimentality and subjective experience. Géricault’s brief career had a significant effect on the development of modern art, particularly the growth of French 19th-century painting. Year Completedīefore we get into the artwork itself, you may be wondering which artist painted the Raft of the Medusa. He went to hospitals and mortuaries to see the texture and coloration of the flesh of the ailing and dead in person. He spoke with two survivors and built a precise size replica of the raft. He was captivated by the occurrence, and before beginning work on the eventual painting, he conducted a considerable study and created several preparatory sketches. Théodore Géricault opted to represent this event to commence his career with a large-scale uncommissioned piece on a topic that has already piqued the public’s curiosity. The Raft of the Medusa by Théodore Géricault 4.2 What Was the Raft of Medusa Painting About?.4.1 Which Artist Painted the Raft of the Medusa?.3 Exhibition and Reception of the Raft of Medusa Painting.2 Analyzing The Raft of Medusa Painting.1.1 An Introduction to Théodore Géricault.1 The Raft of the Medusa by Théodore Géricault.
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