Avoiding pastel color schemes in Classical Art

Overview

Unfortunately for me, the neoclassical art period features oil paintings with a color scheme that I find incredibly bothersome. As such I don’t appreciate the art, for the technique used. Rather than focus on the pivot from tenebrism and chiaroscuro to pastel colors it might be more productive to look at what this era did that invokes awe. 

There are three principal art pieces from France, Poland, and America/Italy. The general overview is that these pieces are resurrecting the art style that was prevalent in Greek or Roman statues, very similar to the ad fontes perspective of the Reformation and Renaissance. All of these are excellent attempts at trying to create the same aesthetic as sculptures like “The Dying Gaul” or the frescos from the Parthenon. Some of the art is colliding with some of the newer Western philosophies. This creates pieces of art that mimic the epic marble sculptures of the golden age of Greece combined with things like feminism. 

The others are trying to help establish the legitimacy of authoritarian regimes. The idea of divinity being part of leadership in the Western world starts with Alexander the Great who was thought because he never lost a battle to be the actual son of Zeus, or son of god, to Julius Caesar who was also thought to be a son of god. Napoleon will also be given this divine treatment as will his sister and other notable figures in Europe. In the case of the art it isn’t making a theological statement so much as it is establishing them as an authentic part of this Greco-Roman tradition, that these leaders are continuing that tradition. That's a key part of strategic messaging.   

Zenobia in Chains

The deification of Western philosophical ideals happens in “Zenobia in Chains” by feminist and artist Harrier Goodhue Hosmer. Hosmer was born in America but traveled to Italy where she developed her Neoclassical style. This was made in Italy around 1859, it's not only about Zenobia a female ruler of Syria but also about an embodiment of feminism in less-than-ideal circumstances. This isn’t made to be a realistic statue as in an empirical depiction of her. It's more symbolic. It’s emblematic of the fact that women are more than the shackles life places on them and there is a deification of feminine strength on display. This work is comparable to others like the statue of Athena. That’s deliberate symbolism because the idea of being strong through adversity is a divine-human trait. It's something worth cultivating. 

There are these levels of where this historical figure who ruled Syria for almost a decade before Romans took over is combined with a feminist ideal that is developing in the Western world. She is personified here in a marble statue. This doesn’t look like it is made of stone, this looks like a glowing goddess just stepped out of imagination and was made real life. 

The things that capture the eye of onlookers is the texture. It looks like if you could shake her hand, or give her a high five, and you would feel her skin. It looks like her dress is made of actual fabric. Her crown, brooch, and belt look like they are made of metal.  This illusion is incredibly hard to wrap one’s mind around because it is executed with perfection. The marble absorbs and deflects the harsh light source so that it gives this glow to the piece. The dress looks like someone captured a waterfall and put it into stone. It’s ethereal which is the point of the piece. 

Poniatowski Statue in Poland (Remade from the cast Post WWII)

Poniatowski Statue in Poland (Original before WWII)

Unlike the previous piece where a new ideal is going to be fused with a form of a classical-styled sculpture, this next piece is going to be more in line with the typical imperial cult kind of historical reference. This is building a narrative about Napoleon's Empire. 

This is a statue of Józef Antoni Poniatowski in Warsaw Poland, made by Bertel Thorvaldsen who like Hosmer was in Italy most of his life and was influenced by Neoclassical architecture. It is a bronze statue, unlike Hosmer’s marble piece. Something to understand with European classical military sculptures is they are trying to capture the almost Jungian archetype of the conquering King, there is this audacious larger-than-life charisma about them that the administration of the Imperial organizations want people to recognize. It helps legitimize monarchial governments. Legitimacy is of the utmost importance for Empires, and Józef Antoni Poniatowski is one of Napoleon's Generals. So neoclassical sculpture here is something like political propaganda in a sense. It’s harkening back to Julius Caesar, and Alexander the Great to glorify what is happening as France conquers Europe. One of the key distinctions that plays into that is that he isn’t wearing a Polish military uniform, he is instead wearing a Roman military uniform. This is a mythological, deification of a local war hero. 

The original piece was destroyed in World War II, but the cast that was used to make the original was used to make this sculpture. They are both made from the same materials. I have included a photo of the original as well for context. 

What I enjoy about this piece is again this is a symbolic piece like the first one. This isn’t so much of a character as it is a positive caricature or manifestation of the righteous noble king archetype that we still understand today. I also like that because it's bronze and not marble it’s corrosion is dark and heavy. It has less of an ethereal glow and more of a militaristic armored tank look. The choice in material is deliberate and helps develop the message of the conquering king motif.  

Venus Victrix

The final piece is “Venus Victrix” by Antonio Canova. It is thought that Bertel Thorvaldsen who created the equestrian statue was a student of Canova and was greatly influenced by him. Like the previous piece, this is a stylized portrait of Pauline Bonaparte, the sister of Napoleon as the goddess Venus. It is marble with gold overlay. The light blue section is actually marble as well, it just happens to be in that hue and was specifically chosen for this piece. The depiction is of the classical scene the judgment of Paris from Homer’s Iliad, where Aphrodite is judged as the winner of the contest between three goddesses and is presented with a golden apple. 

Using other pieces of art to compare to, about the only part of the sculpture that is accurate to the individual Pauline Bonaparte is the face, everything else is classical idealism regarding the female form, that is stylization to imitate Greco-Romanesque aesthetics. It’s not a coincidence that this sculpture is made about the same time that Napoleon Bonaparte declared himself Emperor. So Pauline here is not only commissioning a flattering sculpture of herself but simultaneously elevating her brother who is later portrayed as an Ares figure. There is strategic messaging at play with these pieces of art. 

My favorite part about the piece is actually the bench with the mattress and pillows. I didn’t know that marble came in blue, and I thought that was interesting. But for the same reasons I liked the cloth in “Zenobia in Chains”  I like the pillows. Again there is this way that the pillows and cloth are made that make it look real. I can’t explain that smoothness and articulate adequately how I am completely convinced that is a real mattress. The same is true with the drapery and gold tassels.

What I pick up on the most is how classical themes are used by aristocracy to gain legitimacy with people but also to convey intent and righteousness. I didn't used to see this until I got a little more into classical studies as I got older. Before I just liked how they looked and thought they were neat. When I started expanding my own learning and looking into manuscripts like the Alexiad, or Liudprand of Cremona I learned that art was used to convey messages beyond the aesthetic. So when I see the art now I also see what is being implied by the art. It then becomes more meaningful. 

I used to study these in high school which for me was in 2006, when I graduated. However, I have changed since I last looked at these. So the details of what draws the eye which are largely for me the textures are the same. But now there are more contextual clues as to why these pieces were commissioned at the times they were. 

Works Cited

        Equestrian Statue of Prince Poniatowski in Warsaw Poland. Equestrian statues, 6 Apr. 2016, https://equestrianstatue.org/poniatowski-josef-august-prince/.

        Gallery, Borghese. Pauline Bonaparte as Venus Victrix in the Borghese Gallery. Galerie Borghèse, 21 Nov. 2023, https://borghese.gallery/collection/sculpture/venus-victrix-by-canova.html.

        Statue of Athena. National Museums Liverpool, https://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/artifact/statue-of-athena.

        The Deification of Roman Emperors (Chapter 4) - Invented History, Fabricated Power. Cambridge Core, https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/abs/invented-history-fabricated-power/deification-of-roman-emperors/09D3D81C852CB80C5A600D7BACCC90FF.

        The Deification of Roman Emperors (Chapter 4) - Invented History, Fabricated Power. Cambridge Core, https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/abs/invented-history-fabricated-power/deification-of-roman-emperors/09D3D81C852CB80C5A600D7BACCC90FF.

        Zenobia in Chains - Saint Louis Art Museum. Saint Louis Art Museum, https://www.slam.org/collection/objects/50748/.