Essay Samples on Art History

Essay Examples
Essay Topics

The Impact of Technology on Art: A Modern Renaissance

Introduction The influence of technology on art is an evolving narrative that reflects the symbiotic relationship between human creativity and innovative tools. From the early use of simple tools to create cave paintings to the digital art technologies of today, the integration of technology in...

The Art of the Meddah: Exploring Turkish Forms of Storytelling

Culture is the conglomeration of the beliefs and art forms of societiesm across places, along a long-time frame. And quite evidently, the Republic of Turkey has an extremely long history and a resultantly rich diversity in its culture. Throughout its history, the Turkish land was...

How Shemistry Influenced the History and Presentation of Art

Chemistry is everywhere in our life. Of course, chemistry is also closely related to art. There are many forms of art, such as oil painting, gouache, watercolor and so on. These painting forms are inseparable from products such as pigments and watercolors, which are based...

Attitudes Towards Consumerism in Contemporary Art

In this essay I will be using information gathered from my own personal research, studio research and relevant topics discussed throughout the lectures. Whilst also, considering social, economic, and cultural factors. I will be discussing and analyzing attitudes towards consumerism in Contemporary Art. Built from...

One of the Most Common Forms of Theatre

Throughout this essay the focus of various practitioners will be explored thoroughly from the paths of life they took and how they became so successful, to the impact that their work had on other practitioners and in general the industry itself. The industry of theatre...

The Practice of Art Forgery and Monet's Aesthetic Flaws

A forgery is a work that is not genuine to its proclaimed origins, however, is presented as a genuine article, and is so acting with the intention to deceive. The practice of art forgery is as well established and mature as the practice of creating...

African Art: West African Sculpting 

West African sculpting greatly influenced us today because lots o people still do it like when Pablo Picasso recreated the style of west African art he created it like they would some real some supernatural and exaggerated on some body parts after Pablo Picasso shared...

The Principles of Art: Movement, Unity, Harmony, Variety

If you were to ask someone “what is art essay”, the majority of people in the world would think of art and immediately their mind would shoot to a painting. The truth is, art is so much more than just a painting. There are thousands...

John Berger: Understanding His Artwork

John Berger is a remarkable man who enlighten us with his knowledge using one of his brilliant essays “Ways of Seeing.” Berger has concurred the ability to fully understand any artwork and to recognize what is visible before him. He clarifies that there is a...

The Sistine Chapel Ceiling by Michelangelo

The Sistine Chapel Ceiling (Italian: Volta Della Cappella Sistina), painted by Michelangelo somewhere in the range of 1508 and 1512, is a foundation work of High Renaissance craftsmanship. The Creation of Adam' is one of the nine ceiling boards in the Sistine Chapel portraying scenes...

History of Medieval And Byzantine Art Movements

A painting wealthy in color typical for St.George on a rearing white horse, shown against a rocky landscape, slaying the winged monster as it appears before him. An angel crowns St.George with a martyr’s crown, symbolizing the triumph of good over evil. The tower on...

Art Nouveau and Modernist Movements in Art

Art Nouveau is originated in England. William Morris collaborated with other artists so Art Nouveau was created. It has a wide range of different decorative arts, like architectural, painting, graphic art, and jewelry. It was most popular during the 1890s. Its popularity came to a...

The Famous Michelangelo Merisi Da Caravaggio

The famous Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio produced original paintings, criticizing those who imitated other artists creative styles. He even accused the great Giovanni Baglione and Guido Reni for imitating his uniquely developed techniques. Caravaggio was the building block for modern art and followed by many....

Art of Theatre and French Figure Joan of Arc

Bernard Shaw (1856-1950) is an irish playwright, critic, and political activist. His influence on Western theatre started from the 1880s till after his death. He won the Nobel Prize in literature in 1925 becoming the leading dramatist of his generation. Shaw's first play to bring...

Caravaggio’s Artwork Judith Beheading Holofernes

For this essay, you needed to decide on a painting, Sculpture and other selected types of art work by which ever artist that created them before the 1900’s.Select a topic out of the selection given to do research about the topic and art work to...

The Historical Art of American Events Depicted by John Curry

During the late 1920s and throughout the 1930s, America and its citizens dealt with many problems that influenced their lives, usually for the worst. During this time, all Americans dealt with the effects of the Great Depression, which caused many economic problems for individuals and...

Comparison of the Art Pieces of Leonardo da Vinci and Andy Warhol

Over time, the type of art people create has changed drastically. Art can be by what events are happening in the time that it was made or what materials were available/discovered. Each artist has a very different and unique style. For an example, Leonardo da...

Analysis of the Modern Concept of Islamic Art

Introduction In the 19th century the modern concept of Islamic art was invented by historians, to facilitate the categorization and study of the first produced material by Muslims of the concept emerging from Arabia in the seventh century. Today, the term of Islamic art proves...

How Western Art Styles Have Influenced African Art Styles

African styles have progressed throughout the ages, as African art has traveled all around the world as they have been seen by more and more overseas critics that have inspired new techniques in African artists to develop new ideas and techniques in carrying out their...

Unique Use of Impressionism with Other Styles in The Rehearsal by Edgar Degas

‘The Rehearsal’ was one of Degas’ first paintings of the ballet; his interest in the subject was perpetual, lasting until the end of his life. I find this work intriguing because of its atmosphere of immediacy. The viewer is a fly on the wall, peering...

The Connection Between the Art and Science

There are numerous regions in which we may achieve learning of human expressions and sciences. On many occasions, it is the information from acknowledged traditions, which we gain from and create for more grounded comprehension in what society has acclaimed to. In such, we acclimatize...

Combination of Art Movements in Le Bonheur de Vivre and Les Demoiselles d’Avignon

Henri Matisse’s Bonheur De Vivre and Pablo Picasso’s Les Demoiselles d’Avignon are paintings of the 20th century that depict the female form in two contrastive ways and in doing so broke away from Classical tradition as well as maintaining its influence. The Classical tradition of...

Les Demoiselles d'Avignon: The Beginnings of Cubism

Be different. Create something that no one has ever seen before. Start a movement. In a lot of ways, and for a lot of people, these are colossal goals that are only to be aspired to. But for Pablo Picasso, this was the plan. He...

Socially Conscious Artists: Paul Cezanne, Pablo Picasso and Chaim Soutine

Paul Cezanne was a master in the art world and greatly influenced and inspired other artists such as Pablo Picasso. One of Cezanne's first great paintings was a portrait of his friend Achille Emperaire. Achille Emperaire was born with restricted growth and spinal deformity and...

The Relation of the Pre-Raphaelites’ Poetry and Painting Styles

Within the dynamic artistic atmosphere of nineteenth century the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood was founded in 1848 as a primarily painting art group by Dante Gabriel Rosetti and John Everett Millais who had rejected the mechanistic and conventional approach of Raphael and Michalengelo. Instead of classical art’s...

My Opinion about Ways of Seeing by John Berger

John Berger is a novelist, poet, art critic and painter. His essay “ways of seeing” is widely known by acclaimed artists and university students. When first published in 1972 after his BBC show - he shocked people with his perspective on viewing and understanding art;...

The Ideas of Ways of Seeing by John Berger

An image is but a “window through which we look out into a section of the visible world” (Richter, Wells & Kemp, 2008, p102). But what of this visible world and that of the viewer? To begin questioning “what we see and what we know”...

Analysis of Caravaggio’s Life and His Masterpiece "The Musicians"

Essay grade Satisfactory

Beginnings in Life Not many artists can claim the amount of influence Caravaggio accomplished, nor can many claim being one of the founding fathers of an art revolution. By rebelling against Mannerism and Classicism, Caravaggio was one of the first to begin painting the world...

A Letter to Marinetti, the Founder of the Futurist Movement

Dear Marinetti, If only you were alive to see the world we live in today! Your futurism movement is still a great influence for some. However, today, when we talk about futurism, we are not usually talking about painting, sculpture, or poetry. Futurism today is...

The Role Of Manifesto Format In Historical Avant-Gardes

In this essay I am going to use expressionist group, Die Brücke, the Dada movement and futurism to make my argument, which is, the manifestos created by historical avant-gardes should be viewed not as politic texts but as an introduction to the group’s aesthetic and...

Art In Age Of Enlightenment And Mass Deception: Analysis Of Benjamin And Adorno

Introduction This response paper is about Walter Benjamin’s iconic essay ‘The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction’ and it’s interwoven philosophical interaction with Theodor W. Adorno’s essay ‘The Cultural Industry: Enlightenment and Mass Deception’, both of which are massive contributions to the...

The Marvelous Life of Jackson Pollock

Jackson Pollock was a well-known modern artist who was born in 1912 in the state of Wyoming. Although he lived a short life he lived a pretty good one. Before his fast and intense death in 1956 he created the “Drip” method in painting, studied...

The Story Behind the Starry Night

“For my part I know nothing with any certainty, but the sight of the stars makes me dream,” Vincent Van Gogh. Vincent Van Gogh was an artist who shaped the way of art in the late 1800’s. He used his art to give things with...

The Main Features of Impressionism in Art and Music

Impressionism was an artistic movement which came into form during the late 1800's. The movement began in Paris and was perhaps brought into being, but not embraced, by the painter Édouard Manet. 'The controversy he succeeded in causing led Manet to become a figurehead for...

Exploring the Identity of American Artist, Jackson Pollock

This pathfinder is an excellent resource for persons interested in knowing more about the famous American Artist Jackson Pollock. In the event a student is undertaking a research on this particular artist it is recommended that students begin with the books, plus the articles on...

The Escape from Reality in the Masterpieces of Impressionism

Foremost, ‘The two sisters’ (‘Les deux soeurs’) was painted by Renoir in 1881 on the terrace of ‘Maison Fournaise’, a restaurant in a suburban town to the west of Paris called ‘Chatou.’ It is known that the artist worked on various paintings there, such as...

The Beautiful Chaos of Jackson Pollock's Paintings

To think that America's greatest painter was born in a town with the population of 9,836 is a spectacle. Cody, Wyoming isn't exactly the place that you would imagine arguably the most influential artist in the mid 1900’s to be born but that's where it...

The Art History of the Byzantine Empire

Throughout history, various cultures have created numerous artworks depicting religious salvation and damnation, with the most common depictions coming from Christianity. The religion as a whole focuses a great deal on the concepts of sin as well as redemption through faith and worship. This theme...

The Art Reproduction of Mona Lisa as the Symbol of Luxury

Using the Mona Lisa original painting and the mass reproduction of the Mona Lisa as an example to demonstrate the Mona Lisa’s portrayal of luxury and power to manipulate and altered for consumer needs. The Mona Lisa is a painting of a portrait by Leonardo...

Breaking the Shell of Traditional Art with Two Fridas

Dadaism, known as one of the first art movements to reject 'art', going up against the culture, that had allowed for the destruction of World War 1. With Dadaism art could be created from anything and the concept behind the art work is more important...

How Aestheticism Is Demonstrated in Oscar Wilde’s Children’s and Other Tales

Introduction “Art’s for Art’s sake.” Originated from the French philosopher Victor Cousin, this was a famous slogan for the Aestheticism movement since the late 18th century Europe. Aestheticism was at that time a groundbreaking philosophy that focused on the aesthetic value of art itself rather...

The Mastery of Russell Whiting's Sculpture or Icarus

The sculpture Icarus has always been one that I have been drawn to. The appearance of the figure along with its perfect placement has always provoked thought and entertained me. The steel sculpture, carved, hammered, and welded by Russell Whiting is my favorite of the...

How Parthenon Have Influenced the Modern Architecture

The Parthenon in Athens and the Pantheon in Rome are perfect examples in architectural history that have used the portico and have contributed to the topic of the entrance and transitions in architecture. The Parthenon attaches a great deal of importance to its entrance-portico as...

A Discussion of Whether The Parthenon Marbles Should Be Returned to Greece

Essay grade Excellent

The Parthenon Marbles, also known as the Elgin Marbles, are a collection of Classical Greek marble sculptures that were created in honor of the Greek goddess, Athena by the sculptor Phidias. These parts were originally part of the Parthenon, which is a former temple built...

The Challenges During the Construction of Parthenon

The Parthenon is one of the unique architectural symbols of any civilization period. The building was constructed between 447 and 432 B. C. The temple was constructed as a replacement of the temple that had been destroyed in Persia in 480 B. C. Parthenon refers...

The Parthenon: A Complex Architectural Advance of the Golden Age Greece

“What art is, in reality, is this missing link, not the links which exist. It's not what you see that is art; art is the gap” (Duchamp). This quote perfectly explains the piece of art in which is used as the focal point of this...

Comprassion of Ancient Greek Art from Different Periods

Ancient Greek, Art was one of the most artistically and architecturally sounded times on earth we know Throughout the years of ancient Greek art there was four main periods of art throughout ancient Greece. Geometric period from 1100 BCE to 750 BCE. Archaic 750-480 BCE....

Characteristics of Art During the Hellenistic Period

The beauty of Greek and ancient Roman art is you can find answers to an array of questions regarding their mysterious and fascinating past. During the Hellenistic period, there was a clear shift to realism from idealism in their sculptures. This sculpture pushed the standards,...

Michelangelo And Pope Paul III

Without the artist, there is no art. Without the patron, there also is no art. Creating beautiful humanist tombs, pious frescos, and monumental architecture is the result from a collaborative effort from both the artist and the patron. Residing on the wall behind the altar...

Parrot's Motif in Art and Literature

The motif of the parrot is another metaphor for colonial mimicry. As in Robinson Crusoe, here Harry and Jackson are accompanied by a talking hotel parrot. Jackson feels mocked by the “pre-colonial” parrot as the only word it utters is “Heinegger”. For Jackson, the “prejudiced”...

Protest Literature as a Way to Establish Governmental Ideas and Philosophy

Protest literature is the art of expressing values, concerns, and emotions. It can take any form and protest any topic. Different types of protest pieces can articulate the same argument, but in varying ways always for the same purpose: to convince its audience of the...

The Rise of Flower Paintings and Preservance of Beauty

In the 17th Century, Holland’s fascination with flowers led to the emergence of flower paintings. This was led by scientific revolutions that had a huge impact on Holland, leading to an intense interest in botany and horticulture. Establishments of botanical gardens in the Netherlands along...

Brosschaert’s Still Life Flowers: Precedents to Tulipmania

In the seventeenth century, the Dutch Republic was a thriving metropolis, with commerce shaping the worldview of these citizens. More specifically, Dutch still life flower paintings reflected a deep interest in exotic nature, not only in commerce, but also with art’s relationship to nature as...

Postmodernistic Autenticity in Artworks and Conceptual Art

Modernism can be generally seen in two ways- the era of experimentation and seeking to transform culture and insights; or as a period of intense elitism. Postmodernism can be distinguished from modernism as it moves past the self-inclusive world of previous movements andback into the...

Factors Behind Failure of Modernism

According to Collingwood, the development of the arts has presented a painful and unstable process because it was generally not progress but retrogression (Read 2006). But arts received its own advance and construction in this constant failure or when went backwards. Thus in the study...

Historic Value of Art in the Ancient Rome by Giovanni Paolo Panini

What do you think art is? The expression or application of human creative skill? One's imagination put on a canvas? Yes, but there is more to art than just that. Art tells history. Just like the painting Ancient Rome(1757) by Giovanni Paolo Panini. In his...

Position of Power in "Patience on a Monument: A History Painting"

Patience on a Monument: ’A History Painting’ is a painting created by South African artist, Penny Siopis in 1988. This essay will examine the painting through a denotative, contextual, conventional and connotative analysis framework. Penny Siopis’ painting is titled Patience on a Monument, with the...

The Renaissance: the Defining Era of Art

The fourteenth and fifteenth centuries were vital times for the development of a modern society. After the subsequent shift away from the Middle Ages, it became apparent that this era in world history would re-examine values that the ancient Greeks and Romans created. These values,...

The Renaissance and the Humanists: Revival of Classics

The Darkness of 1300s was a time of famine, plague, continuous wars, and ignorance. There were very few achievements in science and art due to the crisis. The Renaissance (1350-1550s) is an epoch of the world significance in the history of European culture, which replaced...

Italy as the Birthplace and Center of Renaissance

In Italian the Renaissance is pronounced “Il Rinascimento” and Italy was a primary place when it came to the Rinascimento, but what made Italy the destination of the Renaissance? Other countries such as France, Germany, and England went through similar culture changes, but Italy was...

Romanticism Ideas and History's Effect on Humanities

In the years prior to the Civil War, an era of Romanticism ideas struck the citizens of America. From this Romantic Movement arouse the Gothic movement, which included ideas of guilt that changed the way people created artistic pieces and interpreted them. Specifically, the element...

Immense Impact of Romanticism Era on Art and Culture

Romanticism was the largest artistic movement of the late 1700s. Romanticism came around because of political, social, and economic changes. (History) Some important features of romanticism are emphasis on imagination, a capacity for wonder, and the importance of self-expression and feeling. This style of writing...

The Unique Style Of Greek Ceramics

Ancient Greece, as one of the cultural and artistic origins of western civilization, has created and developed various types of art styles including ceramics, sculpture, architecture and so on. Among, ceramics in an indispensable branch in Ancient Greek art: Greek people mixed clay with water,...

Philosophy Of Art: Analysis Of View Of La Crecenza By Claude Lorrain

“So complex is the information that reaches us from the visible world that no picture will ever embody it all”Sir Ernst GombrichThis quote about the way we see things and how, in his opinion that we should see them was by Ernst Gombrich. Gombrich was...

Analysis Of "The Sower" By Vincent Van Gogh

Essay grade Satisfactory

The art work we are studying is The Sower by Vincent van Gogh. The painting was created in June, 1888 and is inspired by the biblical teaching of the parable of the sower as explained in book of Mathew 13: 4-43. The art work was...

Analysis Of The Work Of Shepard Fairey And Its Socio Political Functions

Shepard Fairey is an American graphic arttist, muralist, and social activist. He is one of thte most famous figures of the street tart moving, almongst other artistst like Banksy, and is recognized as one of the most influential street artists of our time. Fairey’s work,...

Caravaggio And Caravaggisti In 17Th-Century Europe

Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio was really defensive over people who would copy his style and he even threatened some people for doing it, but it’s quite ironic that he is now one of the most copied artists in Western art. Many artists are thought of...

Comparative Analysis Of Artworks By Bhabha And Unknown Author

What does a huge sculpture from 2013 by Huma Bhabha have in common with a tiny sculpture from Pakistan? No, it is not the fact that both artists where from Pakistan. In my comparison essay, I chose to look at a piece by Pakistani Artist...

Formality And Informality Of Social Classes In Art

Artists in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries often used genre painting to depict scenes from ordinary life. Such paintings can be found in the galleries of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. Amongst these paintings are two large scale paintings, Curiosity by...

History Of Theater And Architecture In Period Of Elizabethan Era

Introduction In this research paper, I will explore the great history of theater and Architecture during the Queen Elizabeth I of England, reign in between the year of 1533 to 1603. She was the daughter of king Henry ViiI and his second wife, Anne Boleyn...

The Different Functionalities Of Socio-Political Art

Looking back to the late 4th century BCE in Italy, Roman coinage is a great example of art that reflected the society it was made in at the time. They had the function of being a vehicle to spread the imagery of the ruling class...

The Work Of Ai Weiwei As Socio-Political Art

Ai Weiwei is an artist born in 1957 in Beijing, who currently lives and works in Berlin. From architecture to installations, social media to documentaries, Ai exploits a wide range of media in his quest to create new ways of examining society and its values....

My Motivation To Build A Career In Art History

My Japanese heritage is important to me, and exploring cross-cultural relationships in the History of Art is of particular interest. Studying Delacroix’s Women of Algiers prompted me to explore Orientalism, and I started thinking about other movements influenced by different cultures. This led me to...

The Objects That I Would Place Together In A Museum

A museum curator has certain duties within the museum such as locating objects, creating exhibits, inventory management, collection of artifacts and grant writing. Museum decision based on the object displayed is determined by the focus study of the privileged objects over others. The decision is...

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