Theodore gericault the raft of the medusa 18181819 artsy. A surgeons report of mutiny, death, and rescue on the high seas. A brief description explaining the story behind the artwork and the processes used by the artist to plan the work. The painting depicts the wreck of a french government ship off the west african coast, and its passengers desperate struggle to survive. Vercors was the pen name of jean marcel bruller, taken from a french province where bruller fought during the early stages of the second world war.
An art analysis of theodore gericaults romantic painting. Few paintings have provoked as varied and enduring a response as theodore gericaults the raft of the medusa. The painting depicts the wreck of a french government ship off the west african coast. A surgeons report of mutiny, death, and rescue on the high. About 150 of the crew were set adrift on a hurriedly constructed raft. Gericault drew his inspiration from the account of two survivors of the medusaa french royal navy frigate that set sail in 1816 to colonize senegal.
Henry savigny the junior surgeon and alexander correard a geographical engineer. Based on a controversial and politically charged event, the raft of the medusa is gericaults most ambitious work. At 16ft by 24ft, gericaults the raft of the medusa is not too far short of the raft it depicts. Romanticism in france gericaults raft of the medusa 2. Reviews favoured the painting, which also stimulated plays, poems, performances and a childrens book. The raft of the medusa depicts the latter part of a day journey. Based on a controversial and politically charged event, the raft of the medusa is theodore gericaults most ambitious work.
One of the embittered survivors, an engineer named alexandre correard, went on to. Raft of the medusa by albert alhadeff in a book brimming with trials and harsh judgments, a history of the world in wvi chapters, julian barnes includes a well crafted study of theodore geriaults raft of the medusa 1819, a short twenty or so pages highlighted with a color foldout of gericaults great painting figs. The raft of the medusa, 1818 1819 theodore gericault. However, formatting rules can vary widely between applications and fields of interest or study. As halloween approaches, it offers a chance to delve into the. This essay discusses what the raft of the medusa was, the reasons behind why theodore gericault made this painting and the. Theodore gericault created one of the most iconic masterpieces of french romanticism, the raft of the medusa 181819. We utilize only the finest oil paints and high quality artistgrade canvas to ensure the most vivid color. In a book brimming with trials and harsh judgments, a history of the.
Rosenthal although theodore gericaults the raft of the medusa fig. These are the sources and citations used to research the raft of the medusa. The shipwreck had scandalous political implications at homethe. A new freedom of style, new mediums and self expression towards nature is incorporated in to this movement to create a personal, passionate and intimate reaction from the audience. Gericault consulted two raft survivors, authors of a book about the raft episode. Telling the horrific and scandalridden story of disaster at sea, it became an immediate celebrity, and even its tragic deterioration due to his extensive use of asphalt has not lessened its popularity in the louvre. The raft of the medusa by vercors goodreads share book. Oct 20, 2010 the book is beautifully printed on high quality paper and the painted images are beautifully reproduced.
The debate surrounding this piece is perhaps best analyzed thematically in terms of race and immigration, artistic style and breakthroughs, realism and regime. Beth its 16 x 23 and its important to remember that large paintings were reserved for important subjects. He wanted to capture every detail of what he imagined the survivors were feeling and did so with dark scale colors and heavy shadowing to portray a dark time. Why the raft of the medusa is one of the most inspirational. The book is beautifully printed on high quality paper and the painted images are beautifully reproduced. Depicted on a monumental scale gericault portrayed in horrifying explicitness scenes of a shipwreck based on a contemporary event in which the captain had deserted his crew and passengers. The mentor, august 1921, the ocean by prince albert of monaco, pictorial. Gericaults masterpiece, raft of the medusa 18181819, portrays on a heroic scale the suffering of ordinary humanity. More to our point, the episode inspired one of the greatest, and biggest, paintings of the 19th century. The elite saves itself, the strong murder the weak and the weak shed their humanity to survive or drown in agony at sea. Gericault, for instance, does not portray the raft of the medusa from within the confines of that perilous assemblage of planks, for to create such a representation would be to produce the image as seen by those on the raft and not the image of those on the raft themselves. The raft of the medusaa major work in french 19thcentury paintingis generally regarded as an icon of romanticism. Id been keeping notes since the disaster started, and soon realized that theodore gericaults painting the raft of the medusa offered a metaphor for some of the most extreme aspects of the catastrophe, and even for how it had been represented in the media. Completed when the artist was 27, the work has become an icon of french romanticism.
Mounted on a barrel and sup ported by his comrades, waving a white cloth into the air, he is the final peak of a pyramid of moving and excited bodies. This bibliography was generated on cite this for me on tuesday, april 5, 2016. A key figure in french romanticism was theodore gericault, who shifted the emphasis of battle paintings from heroism to suffering and endurance. The raft of the medusa louvre museum paris musee du louvre. Painted when gericault was just 27 years old, the raft of the medusa is considered an instant classic of the romantic movement. Jun 02, 2016 a brief description explaining the story behind the artwork and the processes used by the artist to plan the work. Romanticism gericault, raft of the medusa, 181819 kiama. There were approximately 150 seamen on the medusa, and they died quickly. This work depicts the aftermath of a contemporary french shipwreck, whose survivors embarked on a raft and were decimated by starvation before being rescued at sea. Gericault, raft of the medusa practice khan academy. The raft of the medusa by theodore gericault the raft of the medusa by theodore gericault depicts the aftermath of the wreck of the french naval frigate meduse, which ran aground off the coast of mauritania in 1816. The raft of the medusa 1 theodore gericaults the raft of. Their book described the drastic means they had taken to survive on the raft to a confused public, who was coping with the restoration of the monarchy after napoleons final defeat. Theodore gericault, raft of the medusa smarthistory.
The raft of the medusa was also one of the first pieces to feature a subtle social and governmental criticism, showing that artists can have an extremely loud voice if they desires to raise it. Romanticism emotions of the soul gericault sought to depict the sheer horror of the dwindling of the passengers. The raft of medusa was undeniably, and in every way, exceptional. List of books and articles about theodore gericault online. The raft of the medusa art history bibliographies cite. The raft of the medusa painting by theodore gericault. The corpse models of gericaults the raft of the medusa. Then he got the ships carpenter of the medusa to make him a plan of the raft and then a scale model. Raft of the medusa by theodore gericault by ian nakachi on.
Shorter notices gericaults raft of the medusa and caravaggio by donald a. The raft of the medusa painting by gericault britannica. Mar 14, 2016 theodore gericault 17911824 would almost certainly have slipped into obscurity were it not for one vast narrative painting. The tragedy behind the raft of the medusa painting. Apr 16, 2015 theodore gericault, the raft of medusa, 181819. Scenes of shipwrecks culminated in 1819 with theodore gericaults strikingly original raft of the medusa. Gericault ultimately settled on the moment, recounted by one of the survivors, when they first saw, on the horizon, the. If that were not enough, athanassogloukallmeyer is a talented writer and she has done a great job of bringing the dashing theodore gericault back to life. Painting, in other words, is condemned to take such an external view.
The raft of the medusa, by theodore gericault, 1819. This oil painting, which stands at a massive 491x716cm, was created to capture the tragedy of the medusa. Many subsequent pieces and movements were based on the criticism of some sort and the raft of the medusa was often the inspiration for such a deed. Jul 21, 2017 the raft of the medusa is an oil painting of 18181819 by the french romantic painter and lithographer theodore gericault. Combo the combo shows six books that are on the shortlist of the german book prize in a book store in stuttgart, germany, 12 september 2017. Completed when the artist was 27, the work has become an icon of. Based on a controversial and politically charged event, the raft of the medusa is gericault s most ambitious work. The raft of the medusa was created by theodore gericault in the years 1818 and 1819 during the french romantic period. It depicts an event whose human and political aspects greatly interested gericault. Oct 25, 2016 theodore gericault, the raft of the medusa 181819, oil on canvas, 193. The raft of the medusa by theodore gericault is a 100% handpainted oil painting reproduction on canvas painted by one of our professional artists. Eugene delacroix, massacre at chios, 1824 louvre in 1824 eugene delacroix submitted a monumental canvas to the salon representing the massacre at chios. The raft of the medusa theodore gericault 17911824 was the painter behind the raft of medusa, an 18181819 work of painting measuring 16 by 23 by 6 inches 716 by 491cm. An inhumane tragedy the medusa was a french frigate that departed from the port of lile daix to transport french conscripts who were supposed to reclaim authority over senegal.
Find more prominent pieces of history painting at best visual art database. Beth its 16 x 23 and its important to remember that large paintings were reserved for important. His notation of an arab, a moor to be precise, and a black african is remarkably axiomatic. Jean louis theodore gericault the raft of the medusa. The true story of the raft of the medusa theodore gericault. In midseptember, the ragdale foundation graciously offered me a residency, which i. The raft of the medusa by theodore gericault joy of museums. In this dramatic reexamination of one of the most influential paint. In its brutality, realism, and raw emotion it captures the essence of a historic event that shocked the french public, a revolutionweary public that was not easy to shock.
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