John Constable, The White Horse, 1819 This is an example of picturesque landscape – where nature is a force that is lovely and compatible with man, maybe even controllable by man. This painting is introduced during the industrial revolution, late in the enlightenment of the 18th century, where the general consensus is that technology makes our lives better.   By the 19th century, London and urban areas were very smoggy and factories were an eyesore, therefore focus was turned by reactionaries (like Constable) to the English countryside and a nostalgic view of the past/nature.  This is meticulously observed; these paintings were very large (six by eight feet), and you can see every leaf, blade of grass, and close attention is paid to the reflection in the water o However this is not necessarily a faithful landscape; Constable purposefully edits out any effects of industrialization and shows Man enjoying the bounty of nature (the man fishing)

John Constable, The White Horse, 1819

  • This is an example of picturesque landscape – where nature is a force that is lovely and compatible with man, maybe even controllable by man. This painting is introduced during the industrial revolution, late in the enlightenment of the 18th century, where the general consensus is that technology makes our lives better.  
  • By the 19th century, London and urban areas were very smoggy and factories were an eyesore, therefore focus was turned by reactionaries (like Constable) to the English countryside and a nostalgic view of the past/nature. 
  • This is meticulously observed; these paintings were very large (six by eight feet), and you can see every leaf, blade of grass, and close attention is paid to the reflection in the water o However this is not necessarily a faithful landscape; Constable purposefully edits out any effects of industrialization and shows Man enjoying the bounty of nature (the man fishing)
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artwhat.

during my first ever survey of western art class, my professor explained the difference between historians and art historians. historians, she said, were interested in old things. art historians, on the other hand, were interested in old things of quality. you don't hang garbage up on the walls of a museum; it has to be substantial and it has to mean something. so here you go; old things, made mostly by dudes long dead, of debatable degrees of quality but always with a constant level of importance. think of this as a deck of flash cards... sans the whole cards part.

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