Art Historians suggest that the The Romantic 'movement' was in full swing between 1783 to 1832. There are several overlapping 'movements' which suggest the same style or ideals. However the earlier 'Romantic' movement which appeared to view the world through 'rose colored glasses' was developed as a response or revolt to the strict rules of the period of 'Classicism'. It is believed that the unemotional period of Neo-classical schools of thought was a true catalyst for the emerging of the Romantic period in art.

Fueled by the French Revolution, the Napoleonic wars, and the American Revolution, there was indeed a revolutionary energy at the very core of Romanticism and its style.  Patriotism with battle scenes with ships in peril, man struggling against the raging seas were also favorites In France, and artists like J.A. Gros immortalized Napoleon’s victories. Theodore Gericault and his The Raft of Medusa and Eugene Delacroix’s The Death of Sardanapalus, are excellent examples of the Romantic era in art, painting emotional subject matter, using rich color, and using lively brushstrokes in their works.

While other artists of the 19th century painted in this idealized romantic style, such as artists from the Victorian period, their work also had a romantic quality about it, however they may not fit exactly into the accepted description of 'Romanticism'. These artists are referred to as romantic realists as their work was almost photo realistic.

Artwork from Romantasism
		Adrian Ludwig Richter, Abendandacht im Walde 1842, Leinwand, 69 × 104 cm Leipzig, Museum der bildenden Künste, Germany
		Adrian Ludwig Richter, Abendandacht im Walde 1842, Leinwand, 69 × 104 cm Leipzig, Museum der bildenden Kunste

 

Beginning at the end of the 18th century and continuing through to the middle of the 19th century, a sweeping shift in attitude and philosophy, in all art forms, spread across Western Europe and then to America. It was a time many saw as a revolt or rejection of the aristocratic, impersonal, and artificial neoclassical era. An accurate depiction of the Romantic Movement has been disputed for decades among scholars due to the great diversity among its ranks from the political to the religious, and the fact that no particular style, technique, or attitude can be used to describe it. However during the late 18th century it was agreed that the term ‘Romanticism’ came to mean anti-Classical.

Romanticism was about passion and imagination, independence, patriotism, and autonomy. Nature, landscape, patriotism, people, and historical art were favorite subjects.  The artists seemed to have almost a magnetic pull towards the Middle Ages, and these artists expressed a love of crumbling buildings and ruins being overtaken by nature. There was a fascination with tragic love stories, melancholic themes, and dramatic tragedy; one might accurately describe this era as being dynamic and active with many roles, extolling imagination and freedom of spirit. Mythical folk fables (fairy tales), customs, and folk art, all had a role in the paintings of the Romantics

Of interest here is that many of the artists associated with Romanticism, were students of Jacques-Louis David, of the leaders in France of the  Neoclassical era.

John Constable painted the 'Hay Wagon' and through his painting of quiet English countryside he became renowned as one of the world's greatest Romantic landscape artists. It is also said that almost all classical landscape painters have been influenced by John Constable and Constable was influenced by the Dutch Master Jacob von Ruisdael. Also in England, was J.M.W. Turner, who was the first major artist to work in the open air (outdoors). He achieved dramatic pictorial visualization in his work and he masterfully depicted the atmospheric effects of light and color as exhibited in a painting of Snow Storm, Steam Boat Off a Harbour’s Mouth in 1842.

Germany’s Casper David Friedrich, with his In the Polar Sea 1824 conveyed a supernatural feeling in his work and in America there was the English born Thomas Cole and the Hudson River School, which was the primary American school of landscape painting. These artists were able to convey a very specific mood and atmosphere to their work, drawing an emotional response from the viewer. It seems the art from this period connects on many levels with the viewer, most especially on a level of emotion.

The romantic influence seems to appeal to our basic human nature and man's need to fill his life with the art that fits the accepted standards of beauty. It may be that romantic ideas and perceptions create the underlying popular appeal of 'art'.

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Paint media – Oils and watercolor

Artists – Goya, Gericault, John Constable, Delacroix, Casper David Friedrich, William Hogarth, William Turner, Thomas Moran, Thomas Cole, Albert Bierstadt to name just a few.

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References:

A Biographical Dictionary of Artists, by Sir Lawrence Gowing, ISBN 1-861990-73-1

The Louve, by Alexandra Bonfante-Warren

Romanticism and Art, by William Vaughan, ISBN- 0500202753

John William Godward - The Eclipse of Classicism by Vern G. Swanson - ISBN: 1851492704
http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761573163/Romaticism.html

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Title: The Last Romantics: The Romantic Tradition in British Art: Burne-Jones to Stanley Spencer Author: John Christian, Barbican Art Gallery ISBN:0853315523  General Topic: Art History	Title: Romanticism and Art Author: William Vaughan ISBN: 0500202753 General Topic: Art History	Title: Indian Renaissance British Romantic Art And the Prospect of IndiaRomanticism and Art Author: Hermione De Almeida, George H. Gilpin ISBN: 075463681X General Topic: Art History

 

Title:Theodore Chasseriau: The Unkown Romantic Author:Stephane Guegan, Vincent Pomarede, Louis-Antoine Prat, Bruno Chenique ISBN:0300096909  General Topic: Art History	Title:John William Godward:The Eclipse of Classicism Author: Vern G. Swanson ISBN: 1851492704 General Topic: Art History	Title:Victorian Painting Author:Christopher Wood ISBN: 0821223267 General Topic: Art History

 

Title:Victorian Painting Author:Lionel Lambourne ISBN: 0714843598 General Topic: Art History	Title:The Art of Lord LeightonAuthor: ISBN: 0714829579 General Topic: Art History	Title:Romanticism Art and Ideas Author: David Blayney Brown ISBN: 0714834432 General Topic: Art History