- Point out elements that support how a leader would like to be represented at the end of the French Revolution.
- Relate the painting to the historical moment of the revolution.
- Describe the association between politics and the domestication of animals in the painting.
- Relate the figure of Napoleon to the names of the historical figures that appear in the painting and on this page.
The political violence used during the period of the "Terror" politically isolated the Jacobin revolutionaries. Robespierre, Danton, and Saint-Just were all guillotined in 1794. With the fall of the Jacobin, the more moderate Girondins began to gain power. At the same time, the burden of wars waged with other countries was added incessantly to the losses of internal battles.
Lastly, the weakened French State failed to fulfill the promises of the revolution and fell under the control of those who would see the most radical advances of the revolution overturned. During these tense years of multiple conflicts, a military man of low nobility stood out in foreign campaigns: his name was Napoleon Bonaparte, and in 1799, his coup marked the transition of France from a revolutionary republic to, once again, an authoritarian regime.
After Napoleon's coronation in 1804, David, already 56 years old, became the emperor's official painter. "Napoleon Crossing the Alps," a painting in the neoclassical style, is one of the most famous works representing this new moment in French history.
- Napoleon is a calm and austere commander on a rebellious horse.
- The Alps are the highest mountain range in Europe.
- Napoleon is larger than the horse and immense in relation to the Alps.
- The stormy weather adds a layer of challenge to the journey.
- The lines are clear and harsh: the figures appear like a statue.
The painter of history, encouraged by the government.
Source: Bodleian Libraries
Alexander the Great on his horse.
FSource: Wikipedia
Toussaint Louverture, leader of the Haitian Revolution.
Source: Wikipedia
Cover of the album Cowboy Carter (2024), by the American singer Beyoncé.
Source: Wikipedia
Head of School
Fábio Marinho Aidar
Academic Director
Débora Vaz
Middle School Principal
Joana Procópio de C. F. França
Middle School Academic Coordinators
Cristiane Pires da Motta
Fernanda Luciani
8th Grade Counselor
Tiago Tavares de Lima
Instructional Designers
Maurício Ferreira Freitas (History)
Beatriz Ruffino (Library)
Paola Nogueira (Publishing)
Translator
Rodrigo A. Morato
Republic
The Renaissance embraced Greco-Roman antiquity as a true source of beauty and knowledge. However, unlike the pagans of Antiquity, the Renaissance thinkers saw themselves as living in a time after the coming of Jesus Christ, and for this reason, they believed they could achieve the aesthetic values of Classical Antiquity but produce even better works.
Renaissance Art
- Balanced and bilateral composition
- Mathematical symmetry through shapes, rhythms, and colors
- Linear perspective
- Uniform lighting that reaches the entire painting
- Well-defined lines
- Strict application of human anatomy
- Theme referencing the Greco-Roman universe
- The painting is not intended to cause an emotional impact: there is little theatricality in the composition
- Use of very balanced colors
Baroque art, associated with the Counter-Reformation movement, placed emotion before rationality. Painters primarily sought to depict Christian scenes that would create an emotional impact on the viewer.
Baroque Art
- Dramatic, emotional, and theatrical representation. The scene is depicted at the peak of the characters' emotional intensity
- The painting aims to create an emotional impact
- Strict application of human anatomy
- Non-uniform lighting with strong contrast between light and dark
- Asymmetrical composition
France in the 17th and 18th centuries was marked by political centralization around a sovereign monarch. The Palace of Versailles, built for the Sun King (Louis XVI), symbolized the luxury and excess of the aristocracy. During this same period, the rest of the population, the vast majority, found themselves alienated by the extravagance of the elites. The dominant artistic style of this era was Rococo, whose main themes were associated with frivolity and often depicted the love and daily life of aristocrats.
Rococo
- The composition is based on blended patches of paint, without well-defined lines
- Curving, sinuous elements
- Light and soft colors
- The composition is not constructed with geometry, symmetrical, or mathematical patterns
- Anatomy is less rigid, allowing for fluidity