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Applied Humanities
Vernon Lamb Themes in Visual Art David By James Romaine 2 Theme: Introduction to the Humanities (week 2) / Page 2.1.3 David On this page: 1 of 7 attempted (14%) Objective : Analyze a painting by Jacques-Louis David to identify its theme.
This work is a bit more cryptic than Gustave Caillebotte’s Paris Street; Rainy Day. The viewer’s first response to Jacques-Louis David’s painting might be, “Who are these people and what are they doing?” But once the identity of the subject is established, both works are revealed to touch on relatable themes.
Use the images and information provided to answer the questions below.
Oath of the Horatii
This painting is set in a Roman hall. On the left side are three Roman soldiers. The man closest to the viewer is holding a spear upright in his left hand. The man in the middle has his arm around the waist of the man holding the spear. All three soldiers are wearing sandals, short tunics, capes, and helmets. They are reaching toward swords being held by an older man who is centered in the painting. He is wearing sandals, a short tunic, and a cape. Behind the older man, three women are sitting on benches. One woman is comforting two small children. The other two women are comforting each other. Click to enlarge Erich Lessing/ Art Resource, NY
Jacques-Louis David
Oath of the Horatii , 1784
Era/Culture/Movement: Neoclassicism
Medium: Oil on canvas
Dimensions: 10′ 8″ x 13′ 9″
Location: Louvre Museum, Paris
visually unite parts of the composition, the colors are applied very deliberately within a prearranged design.
Although he was a French painter, David created this 1784 work in Rome, and the frieze-like arrangement of overlapping figures evidences a classical-inspired visual language. Given the number of figures in the painting and the dramatic action of some of them, David’s composition is remarkably flat. All of the figures occupy a narrow space, between the implied space of the viewer and the architectural background. This horizontal flatness could be read like a classical frieze. Many buildings and monuments of ancient Greece and Rome were decorated with carved sculptural figures, often engaged in heroic activity. Because of the material and placement of these frieze sculptures, they employed almost no depth of space. Instead, the compressed action unfolded horizontally by means of overlapping figures. In employing a similar method, even though painting would have allowed him to depict depth of pictorial space, David asserts his own artistic allegiance.
While the subject is based on a history of classical antiquity, David could have expected his viewers to be familiar with this story. However, the scene of oath-taking that David depicts was actually his own invention. Despite the complicated nature of the narrative (even the description above is simplified), David is able to capture the moral essence of the story in single moment with clarity and immediacy. While the layers of the painting unfold over repeated viewings, the image also has an instantaneous impact. This visual articulation of virtuous sacrifice is achieved both through scale and through clarity of form. At nearly 11 feet by 14 feet, it is an imposing painting, amplified in particular by the severity of the figures and their poses.
Rather than showing the battle itself as a physical contest, David focuses on the will to fight as a moral choice. As such, the painting engages the viewer with the same choice of placing patriotic resolve above personal or even family loyalties. David visualizes this choice, for example, through the way in which the feet of the Horatii, as they step forward to take the oath, cross a line on the floor created by the design of the pavement.
When Oath of the Horatii was first exhibited in Paris, it was received with great admiration, even by the King of France, Louis XVI. Although it depicted a subject from antiquity, David’s contemporary viewers interpreted the painting as visualizing an absolute and single-minded obedience to the state (and the king). Today, David’s 1784 painting’s expression of patriotism, sacrifice, loyalty, and solidarity is generally interpreted as a premonition of the French Revolution, which commenced in 1789, and in which David actively participated.
Oath of the Horatii
This painting is set in a Roman hall. On the left side are three Roman soldiers. The man closest to the viewer is holding a spear upright in his left hand. The man in the middle has his arm around the waist of the man holding the spear. All three soldiers are wearing sandals, short tunics, capes, and helmets. They are reaching toward swords being held by an older man who is centered in the painting. He is wearing sandals, a short tunic, and a cape. Behind the older man, three women are sitting on benches. One woman is comforting two small children. The other two women are comforting each other. Click to enlarge Erich Lessing/ Art Resource, NY
Short-Answer Question
How does the exacting precision of Jacques Louis David’s composition visually reinforce the narrative of the Horatii brothers’ patriotic resolve?
The power that artist is displayed in the painting
Submitted about 11 hours ago.
This clarity of visual form suggests a corresponding clarity of mind and conscience in the brothers’ determination to act. They are each making a firm oath to fight to the death for their city-state. Conversely, a lack of clarity in form, what we call expressive
How can historical events, even events that occur after the work of art was created, potentially shape interpretations of work of art?
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