ABOUT
Since the Renaissance period, figure paintings have thrown off the shackles of expressing the divinity of religion in the Middle Ages, and opened a new chapter of people-oriented approach under the light of humanism. In the following five centuries, after experiencing the styles of Baroque and Rococo, Neoclassicism, Romanticism and Modernism in the 20th century, Western figure paintings gradually shifted from focusing on the portrayal of the outside world to conveying the spirit.
The exhibition, Faces of Time-Western Portrait Collections of Tokyo Fuji Art Museum, is jointly organized by the NCPA, Tokyo Fuji Art Museum, China International Exhibition Agency, and Tianyu Cultural Industry Group Co., Ltd. and it can be seen as a condensed and vivid history of the development of Western figure painting. All of the 56 original figure paintings in the exhibition are from the Tokyo Fuji Art Museum. Created by 52 artists, these works span five centuries of Western art and cover different themes such as mythology, religion, history, customs, etc. This exhibition shows the painters’ aesthetic style and appearance of the times in various periods.
The exhibition, Faces of Time-Western Portrait Collections of Tokyo Fuji Art Museum, is jointly organized by the NCPA, Tokyo Fuji Art Museum, China International Exhibition Agency, and Tianyu Cultural Industry Group Co., Ltd. and it can be seen as a condensed and vivid history of the development of Western figure painting. All of the 56 original figure paintings in the exhibition are from the Tokyo Fuji Art Museum. Created by 52 artists, these works span five centuries of Western art and cover different themes such as mythology, religion, history, customs, etc. This exhibition shows the painters’ aesthetic style and appearance of the times in various periods.
CONTENTS
This exhibition unfolds an evolution of Western figure paintings over the past 500 years. From the figure paintings themed with religious mythologies in the 16th century to the aristocratic court paintings symbolizing power and wealth, from the secular works mirroring the real life to the modernist portraits imbued with avant-garde spirit in the 20th century, hundreds of diverse figures appear in different time and space backgrounds to jointly constitute a brief history of the development of Western figure paintings.
This exhibition unfolds an evolution of Western figure paintings over the past 500 years. From the figure paintings themed with religious mythologies in the 16th century to the aristocratic court paintings symbolizing power and wealth, from the secular works mirroring the real life to the modernist portraits imbued with avant-garde spirit in the 20th century, hundreds of diverse figures appear in different time and space backgrounds to jointly constitute a brief history of the development of Western figure paintings.
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Part 1: Realm of God and Man
Flora -- Ambroise Dubois (1543-1614) -- Late 16th c. -- 148.0 × 137.0 cm -- Oil on canvas
As the origin of Western Civilization, ancient Greek and Roman cultures gave birth to a series of mythological figures and legendary stories with symbolic significance. Subsequently, the Christian story was added to the mythology narrative, and both were mixed in artistic creation, leading to sustained clashes among subject matters, styles and narrative modes.
Hercules and Omphale -- Theodoor van Thulden (1606-1669) -- 17th c. -- 191.0 × 168.5 cm -- Oil on canvas
In European art history, figure paintings initially portrayed the figures in mythological legends and religious stories because images, as the most intuitive expression tools, could go beyond cultural and cognitive barriers and achieve the purpose of communication and preaching. Although the image of “Man” and his historical era was placed at the centre of the Humanism Age, the routine of depicting mythological figures and religious stories kept on for different purposes. Commissioned by clients, the artists found the most suitable scenarios in ancient classics and religious teachings to express the themes, used metaphors to endow these mythological figures with the power of “Man” in their works, and illustrated such ideas that were universally applicable.
Jupiter and Thetis -- Jean Auguste Dominique Ingres (1780-1867) -- c.1807-25 -- 82.0 × 65.0 cm -- Oil on canvas
The boundary between Man and God became blurred, while deities also had secular meanings. This narrative device continued in art history for hundreds of years and also has been revived in baroque, neoclassical and academic works until the 20th century. -
Part 2: Great Reputation
Portrait of Amalia von Solms-Braunfels -- Anthony van Dyck (1599-1641) -- c.1629 -- 114.3 × 95.9 cm -- Oil on canvas
Portraiture not only highlights real people, but also sheds light on historical context. It not only symbolizes status and authority, but also shoulders the mission of chronicling great achievements.
As early as the ancient Rome Period, marble statues of emperors symbolized imperial power. During the Renaissance Period, secular figures gained the same importance as religious figures. Monarchs, popes, nobles and generals became patrons of artworks, to make their dignified images in the history and publicize individual prestige and lofty status. In this way, portraiture turned into a category of painting with a strong political function and it also recorded the changes in social customs, dress tastes and other aspects. During the Baroque Period, portraiture explored more facial expressions and inner expressions of figures. During the Rococo Period, artists paid attention to elaborate decorations of figures in the paintings. In the Neoclassical Period, the revival of the ideal beauty of ancient Greece particularly swept France. At that time, painters, represented by Jacques-Louis David and Jean Auguste Dominique Ingres, created a series of works of historical figures.
Bonaparte Crossing the Great St. Bernard -- Workshop of Jacques Louis David (1748-1825) -- c.1805 -- 73.5 × 59.0 cm -- Oil on canvas
During this period, portraits of Napoleon were also full-fledged in France. As they were used to propagandize and make his achievements go down in history, his previous image was completely overthrown: he was made into an epic hero with overall control over the destiny of an entire nation. -
Part 3: Paradise on Earth
A Young Girl and Her Dog -- Joshua Reynolds (1723-1792) -- c.1708 -- 77.5 × 63.5 cm -- Oil on canvas
The rise of the Enlightenment in the 18th century brought about a critical way of thinking, independent of religion or mythology. Motivated by the Enlightenment, people not only rekindled their enthusiasm for the ancient world, but also manifested their keen interest in the natural world. The artworks abandoned sublime, compassionate or dramatic themes, but rather focused on observations of everyday life. In the palaces, interior designs and furniture accessories extensively presented the complex animal and plant elements on the relief patterns. At the same time, a particular kind of landscape painting was all the rage. The beautiful and idyllic scenery in the paintings looked like an idealized paradise on Earth, which was fictional but not unreachable.
The Silk Divan -- Michele Gordigiani (1830-1909) -- c.1879 -- 129.5 × 84.5 cm -- Oil on canvas
Poets, musicians, painters and elegant ladies vividly came out in the paintings, and they wore gorgeously, took elegant postures, and immersed themselves in the joy of poetry, wine, music and flowers. The theme of love was no longer expressed by way of mythological figures. Instead, ordinary people embraced the love in the modern world familiar to the artists.
Pleasures of the Country -- François Boucher (1703-1770) -- c.1743 -- 92.0 × 72.5 cm -- Oil on canvas
Perhaps the French painter Francois Bouchet was the most emblematic elite of this artistic trend, who achieved great success in high society and was admired by the powerful Madame de Pompadour and other celebrities. At the late stage of his professional career, as French artistic tastes shifted toward neoclassicism, Bouchet was criticized for his superficial theme and unconstrained painting technique.
The times was poised to call for a new artistic language. -
Part 4: Elusive Woman
Portrait of Mrs. Harold Wilson -- John Singer Sargent (1856-1925) -- c.1897 -- 152.5 × 96.5 cm -- Oil on canvas
Well-known female portraits could be easily found in Western art history since the Renaissance Period, but they were mostly works commissioned by royal members and nobles. By the end of the 18th century, more and more civilian female images appeared in secular painting scenarios. Although female portraits were still dominated from the male artists’ perspective, in addition to the traditional elegant and modest images, the female images with personality characteristics and independent consciousness started to hold the spotlight.
Toilette -- Jules James Rougeron (1841-1880) -- c.1877 -- 58.5 × 40.0 cm -- Oil on canvas
Portrait of A Woman by the prestigious French portraitist Hyacinthe Rigaud in the 18th century still takes the traditional figure pose. Portrait of Mrs. Harold Wilson by American painter John Singer Sargent in the 19th century pursues a balance between innovation and experimentation and shifts to emphasize everyday life, which also marked the initial direction of modernism in the late 19th century. Gustav Klimt, a famous Austrian symbolist painter, not only refined the colour types in his creation, but also meticulously designed the composition of the backgrounds and figures.
Portrait of a Lady in Fashionable Attire -- François-Henri Mulard (1769-1850) -- c.1810 -- 112.5 × 70.3 cm -- Oil on canvas
The women in these paintings are quite beautiful and elusive. This exploration for forms is of great modernistic and liberating significance. -
Part 5: Life is a Dream
Abstract Idea -- René Magritte (1898-1967) -- c.1966 -- 41.0 × 33.0 cm -- Oil on canvas
From the late 19th century to the early 20th century, various avant-garde art movements sprang up. The metamorphosis of artistic language also extended to the field of portraiture so that the portraiture creation was deviating from realism with each passing day. In the final part of this exhibition, the artists use “dream” as the medium to transform the portrait works in different forms and grope for the new theme of dreamworld and life.
Two Women -- Marie Laurencin (1883-1956) -- Early 20th c. -- 65.5 × 54.5 cm -- Oil on canvas
Under the impact of Freudian psychoanalysis, surrealist artists attached great importance to the surreal dimension of the dreamworld. As a result, the figures in their paintings demonstrate independent vigour more obviously and become more and more metaphorical and mysterious. Works are no longer based on the construction of figures. Instead, reality is mirrored by creating a kind of parallel world. In Hector and Andromache by Giorgio de Chirico, the hidden reality and mysterious dreamworld constitute a “metaphysical” space. In René Magritte’s Abstract Concepts, the dream comes out as a logical error or meaningless thing. In Marc Chagall’s The Circus, the dream is a primitive, magnificent and fantastic fairy tale.
Woman and Children -- Édouard Vuillard (1868-1940) -- c.1904 -- 56.0 x 54.5 cm -- Oil on paper mounted on panel
Part 5 of this exhibition concludes with Portrait of Jules Brasner by pop art master Andy Warhol. Andy Warhol was deeply inspired by surrealism. The portrait, created by him for Brasner, looks like a mysterious dream world. But this masterpiece also radiates cool mechanical effects and implies the birth of a new artistic language.
-
Part 1: Realm of God and Man
Flora -- Ambroise Dubois (1543-1614) -- Late 16th c. -- 148.0 × 137.0 cm -- Oil on canvas
As the origin of Western Civilization, ancient Greek and Roman cultures gave birth to a series of mythological figures and legendary stories with symbolic significance. Subsequently, the Christian story was added to the mythology narrative, and both were mixed in artistic creation, leading to sustained clashes among subject matters, styles and narrative modes.
Hercules and Omphale -- Theodoor van Thulden (1606-1669) -- 17th c. -- 191.0 × 168.5 cm -- Oil on canvas
In European art history, figure paintings initially portrayed the figures in mythological legends and religious stories because images, as the most intuitive expression tools, could go beyond cultural and cognitive barriers and achieve the purpose of communication and preaching. Although the image of “Man” and his historical era was placed at the centre of the Humanism Age, the routine of depicting mythological figures and religious stories kept on for different purposes. Commissioned by clients, the artists found the most suitable scenarios in ancient classics and religious teachings to express the themes, used metaphors to endow these mythological figures with the power of “Man” in their works, and illustrated such ideas that were universally applicable.
Jupiter and Thetis -- Jean Auguste Dominique Ingres (1780-1867) -- c.1807-25 -- 82.0 × 65.0 cm -- Oil on canvas
The boundary between Man and God became blurred, while deities also had secular meanings. This narrative device continued in art history for hundreds of years and also has been revived in baroque, neoclassical and academic works until the 20th century. -
Part 2: Great Reputation
Portrait of Amalia von Solms-Braunfels -- Anthony van Dyck (1599-1641) -- c.1629 -- 114.3 × 95.9 cm -- Oil on canvas
Portraiture not only highlights real people, but also sheds light on historical context. It not only symbolizes status and authority, but also shoulders the mission of chronicling great achievements.
As early as the ancient Rome Period, marble statues of emperors symbolized imperial power. During the Renaissance Period, secular figures gained the same importance as religious figures. Monarchs, popes, nobles and generals became patrons of artworks, to make their dignified images in the history and publicize individual prestige and lofty status. In this way, portraiture turned into a category of painting with a strong political function and it also recorded the changes in social customs, dress tastes and other aspects. During the Baroque Period, portraiture explored more facial expressions and inner expressions of figures. During the Rococo Period, artists paid attention to elaborate decorations of figures in the paintings. In the Neoclassical Period, the revival of the ideal beauty of ancient Greece particularly swept France. At that time, painters, represented by Jacques-Louis David and Jean Auguste Dominique Ingres, created a series of works of historical figures.
Bonaparte Crossing the Great St. Bernard -- Workshop of Jacques Louis David (1748-1825) -- c.1805 -- 73.5 × 59.0 cm -- Oil on canvas
During this period, portraits of Napoleon were also full-fledged in France. As they were used to propagandize and make his achievements go down in history, his previous image was completely overthrown: he was made into an epic hero with overall control over the destiny of an entire nation. -
Part 3: Paradise on Earth
A Young Girl and Her Dog -- Joshua Reynolds (1723-1792) -- c.1708 -- 77.5 × 63.5 cm -- Oil on canvas
The rise of the Enlightenment in the 18th century brought about a critical way of thinking, independent of religion or mythology. Motivated by the Enlightenment, people not only rekindled their enthusiasm for the ancient world, but also manifested their keen interest in the natural world. The artworks abandoned sublime, compassionate or dramatic themes, but rather focused on observations of everyday life. In the palaces, interior designs and furniture accessories extensively presented the complex animal and plant elements on the relief patterns. At the same time, a particular kind of landscape painting was all the rage. The beautiful and idyllic scenery in the paintings looked like an idealized paradise on Earth, which was fictional but not unreachable.
The Silk Divan -- Michele Gordigiani (1830-1909) -- c.1879 -- 129.5 × 84.5 cm -- Oil on canvas
Poets, musicians, painters and elegant ladies vividly came out in the paintings, and they wore gorgeously, took elegant postures, and immersed themselves in the joy of poetry, wine, music and flowers. The theme of love was no longer expressed by way of mythological figures. Instead, ordinary people embraced the love in the modern world familiar to the artists.
Pleasures of the Country -- François Boucher (1703-1770) -- c.1743 -- 92.0 × 72.5 cm -- Oil on canvas
Perhaps the French painter Francois Bouchet was the most emblematic elite of this artistic trend, who achieved great success in high society and was admired by the powerful Madame de Pompadour and other celebrities. At the late stage of his professional career, as French artistic tastes shifted toward neoclassicism, Bouchet was criticized for his superficial theme and unconstrained painting technique.
The times was poised to call for a new artistic language. -
Part 4: Elusive Woman
Portrait of Mrs. Harold Wilson -- John Singer Sargent (1856-1925) -- c.1897 -- 152.5 × 96.5 cm -- Oil on canvas
Well-known female portraits could be easily found in Western art history since the Renaissance Period, but they were mostly works commissioned by royal members and nobles. By the end of the 18th century, more and more civilian female images appeared in secular painting scenarios. Although female portraits were still dominated from the male artists’ perspective, in addition to the traditional elegant and modest images, the female images with personality characteristics and independent consciousness started to hold the spotlight.
Toilette -- Jules James Rougeron (1841-1880) -- c.1877 -- 58.5 × 40.0 cm -- Oil on canvas
Portrait of A Woman by the prestigious French portraitist Hyacinthe Rigaud in the 18th century still takes the traditional figure pose. Portrait of Mrs. Harold Wilson by American painter John Singer Sargent in the 19th century pursues a balance between innovation and experimentation and shifts to emphasize everyday life, which also marked the initial direction of modernism in the late 19th century. Gustav Klimt, a famous Austrian symbolist painter, not only refined the colour types in his creation, but also meticulously designed the composition of the backgrounds and figures.
Portrait of a Lady in Fashionable Attire -- François-Henri Mulard (1769-1850) -- c.1810 -- 112.5 × 70.3 cm -- Oil on canvas
The women in these paintings are quite beautiful and elusive. This exploration for forms is of great modernistic and liberating significance. -
Part 5: Life is a Dream
Abstract Idea -- René Magritte (1898-1967) -- c.1966 -- 41.0 × 33.0 cm -- Oil on canvas
From the late 19th century to the early 20th century, various avant-garde art movements sprang up. The metamorphosis of artistic language also extended to the field of portraiture so that the portraiture creation was deviating from realism with each passing day. In the final part of this exhibition, the artists use “dream” as the medium to transform the portrait works in different forms and grope for the new theme of dreamworld and life.
Two Women -- Marie Laurencin (1883-1956) -- Early 20th c. -- 65.5 × 54.5 cm -- Oil on canvas
Under the impact of Freudian psychoanalysis, surrealist artists attached great importance to the surreal dimension of the dreamworld. As a result, the figures in their paintings demonstrate independent vigour more obviously and become more and more metaphorical and mysterious. Works are no longer based on the construction of figures. Instead, reality is mirrored by creating a kind of parallel world. In Hector and Andromache by Giorgio de Chirico, the hidden reality and mysterious dreamworld constitute a “metaphysical” space. In René Magritte’s Abstract Concepts, the dream comes out as a logical error or meaningless thing. In Marc Chagall’s The Circus, the dream is a primitive, magnificent and fantastic fairy tale.
Woman and Children -- Édouard Vuillard (1868-1940) -- c.1904 -- 56.0 x 54.5 cm -- Oil on paper mounted on panel
Part 5 of this exhibition concludes with Portrait of Jules Brasner by pop art master Andy Warhol. Andy Warhol was deeply inspired by surrealism. The portrait, created by him for Brasner, looks like a mysterious dream world. But this masterpiece also radiates cool mechanical effects and implies the birth of a new artistic language.
