Baroque
Baroque was an seventeenth century art movement that originated in Italy. The Baroque was stylistically complex, even contradictory. At this era Caravaggio’s dramatic intensity was appreciated, but his realism was seen by some as unacceptably vulgar. The Baroque painters focused on representing scenes of heroes, mythology and Catholic themes. Portraiture was also an important subject among Baroque painters.
Main Baroque painters were: Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio, The Carracci Family (Agostino, Annibale and their cousin Ludovico), Peter Paul Rubens, Rembrandt van Rijn, Jan Vermeer, José de Ribera, Francisco de Zurbaran, Diego Velázquez, Bartolome Murillo, Josefa de Óbidos and Frans Hals. These painters used exaggerated motion, space, detail and chiaroscuro. This style shows also solidity and grandeur.
The Baroque period is also known for a great expansion in classical music. During this period, the piano became more prominent and began to replace the harpsichord as an orchestral instrument. Baroque composers include GF Handel, Vivaldi, and Johann Sebastian Bach, who represents the ultimate in Baroque music.
See also
External links
"The Club-Foot" by José de Ribera.
