Individual Project - Unit 4 - From the Baroque Period through the Romantic Age

Running Head : 17th CENTURY MASTERS OF DUTCH PAINTING

17th Century Masters of Dutch Painting

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17th Century Masters of Dutch Painting

The Baroque Art Style Movement started in the 17th century . This period was characterized by complex art style which is stimulated by the urge to tap the different emotional states ' which is dramatically shown by appealing to the senses ' The dominant characteristics of this period were grandeur , sensuous richness , drama , vitality , movement tension , emotional exuberance , and a tendency to blur distinctions Pioch

, 2002 , Baroque . The Dutch were one of those who perfected this particular style and they have generated some of the critically acclaimed Baroque masterpieces in art history . Jan Vermeer , Jan Steen and Gabriel Metsu were just three of the masters of Dutch painting who have immensely contributed to the development of the arts in the Netherlands . Vermeer 's Woman Holding A Balance , Steen 's The Drawing Lesson and Metsu 's Young Woman Reading A Letter were some of the noted creations that have embodied the novelty of genre Dutch paintings These art pieces were immediately accepted by the public because they resembled an honest and materialist art ' that highlighted art as an end in itself and not as a mere vehicle for emphasizing values from other realms of human thought ' More so , these paintings focused on a common theme which is the depiction of domestic daily life wherein women where the central characters . The artists used this theme to emphasize that the homes were not merely structures but also the foundation of morals in the society . In addition , the role of women in the paintings was intended to help bring serenity to the viewers in for them to easily adapt to the overwhelming changes that were introduced in the 17th century (cited in Janson , 2008 , The Subject Matter of Dutch Domestic Interiors

Jan Vermeer was an artisan who is known for his trademarks of crafty play with light and color , inclusion of graphics with poetic quality and the exploration of spatial relationships . The camera obscura was the tool he used add a realness factor to his paintings (Pioch , 2002 Vermeer , Jan . In Woman Holding A Balance , Jan Vermeer illustrated a young woman holding a pair of empty weighing scales who was probably going to measure the mass of the valuable materials placed on the table Moreover , other elements were also harmoniously integrated in the artwork such as the painting of the Last Judgment which signified a Christian biblical event , the weighing scales which symbolized justice the light coming from the window suggested spiritual enlightenment and the mirror in front of the woman represented conceitedness . All of these elements exemplified the significance of resisting temptation of material things and living moderately in to obtain salvation (National Gallery of Art , 2008 , Vermeer

Meanwhile , Jan Steen was branded as one of the most productive painters of the Dutch art scene . He was known for his versatility , richness of characterization , inventiveness in composition , skillful manipulation...