Academicism
It is called academic painting or academic art, the style of those works that use a particular method in their creation, and follow a specific canon of composition, characteristic of an art school that is in turn linked to a certain era and place.
Traditionally, academicism is identified with the French school Académie des beaux-arts (founded in 1816), which promoted the virtues of eclecticism, understood as a harmony between Neoclassicism and Romanticism. In this context, the most prominent proponent of the style was William-Adolphe Bouguereau.
The paintings created by these great masters not only adopted the formal rules of the school, but also the very subject matter of the works was also influenced.
The neoclassical part of the mix emerges in the form of mythological themes, although it is not a requirement, its use is widespread among French school painters. They refuse to paint realistic scenes or real landscapes, seeing no reason to spend their time painting what they consider "ugliness"; instead, they devote themselves solely to depicting an almost sublime beauty.
Famous academicist paintings
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"The Birth of Venus"This is one of the most famous paintings by W. A Bouguereau, painted in 1879, France. Original title: La Naissance de Vénus.
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"Dante and Virgil"Scene taken from the Divine Comedy, painted in 1879 by W. A BouguereauIn French: Dante and Virgil. Considered by experts to be one of the most brilliant paintings in history in terms of its depiction of the human body and its movement.
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"The Death of Moses"
Original title: La Mort de MoïseCanvas, 110 x 154 cm, oil painted in 1851 by the Frenchman Alexandre Cabanel , who created the work while on a study stay in Villa Medici, Rome.
Referring to this painting, the artist writes to his brother in a letter: "I have imposed upon myself a formidable and very difficult task, as I am trying to represent the image of the great master of the heavens and the earth, God, and beside him one of his most sublime creatures...". -
"Interior from Amaliegade"The full title of this work is "Interior from Amaliegade. Captain Carl Ludvig Bendz standing and Dr. Jacob Christian Bendz seated.". Painted in 1829 by the Danish painter Wilhelm Bendz. One of the most outstanding students of the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts.
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"Napoleon Crossing the Alps"
Equestrian portrait painting 1801 by the Frenchman Jacques-Louis David. Original title: Bonaparte Crossing the Grand-Saint-Bernard. Student at Villa Medici, of the so-called French Academy in Rome.
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"Spring"
Original title: Printemps. Painted in 1873 , this is one of the most famous canvases by Pierre-Auguste Cot, who was a student of at least three prominent academicist figures: Bouguereau, Cabanel, and Cogniet.
Naïve art, the opposite of academicism
At the opposite end of academicism is what is known as Naive Art, a name given to a style that does not follow any formal canon, but rather has a sui generischaracter, guided by the artist's self-taught learning. In the same way, other famous styles such as Impressionism, Cubism, Expressionism, and Abstract, are much closer to the "Naïve" than to the academic.
More paintings in this style:
