Chapter 20 / Marie Antoinette and Her Children

Elisabeth Vigee-Lebrun / 1787

Elisabeth Vigee-Lebrun was a leading artist in the 18th century. In 1783 she was elected to the Grench Academy. This was a portrait done to show the royal's emotions regarding the French Revolution. The figures in the portrait all have extremely calm expressions on their faces. They are holed up in a room in the palace, totally unaware of the uprising that was beginning outside. This uprising would be the start of the French Revolution. The uprising started during the reign of King Louis XVI. His negligence and ineffectiveness caused french nobility as well as the catholic church to be exempt form tax payment, which caused an uprising from those who were still held to regular tax payments. On July 14th, there was a storming of the Bastille prison, which is why France now celebrates Bastille Day. This, along with so many other riots and revolts, rattled the common folk, and this painting shows that the nobility was oblivious (at least at this point in time) to what was about to happen.

Elisabeth Vigee-Lebrun personally experienced the French Revolution, so this painting is a sort of jab at the fact that the royals were totally oblivious and didn't really make an effort to help their suffering citizens. All figures in the painting seem pretty happy, like everything in the world is totally fine. This creates an interesting dichotomy, since the outside world was definitely not happy. The rich textures and colors in the paintings, along with the lavish clothes and headwear show Marie Antoinette's high status and wealth. Here, she is shown as both a royal and a mother. The child on the left side of the painting looks up the her admirable, as the youngest child rests on her lap. The boy on the right side of the painting reveals an empty crib to the views of the painting. This is a metaphor for the death of one of Marie Antoinette's children.

Chapter 19 / Night Watch

Rembrant / 1642

Rembrandt van Rijn was born in 1606 in Leiden, in Protestant Holland. During his career, Rembrandt worked largely for Protestant patrons. Rembrandt ran his own commercial patronage. He preferred that his works be valued as "Rembrandts", rather than products of a contractual agreement.

This painting shows militia company. Militia company are able bodied men who the city could call upon if needed to help with riots and help to defend the city. Most military paintings during this time showed the militia in a perfectly formed line, but Rembrandt decided to show them in the process of lining up. For this painting, Rembrandt was commissioned to paint one of the six large works that would be in the main hall of Kloveniersdoelen, which is the range building that the men practiced in. Rembrandt decided on an audacious composition. The men in the painting are in action, getting arranged and forming up. The painting is also very dark, which has actually been critiqued by some. The men in the painting more from dark into light, while the girl to the captain’s left is in full light, symbolizing the Kloveniers. She is carrying the costly drinking horn as well as a dead bird, which has a prominent claw. This is an emblem of the Musketeers, and also might be intended as a pun of the Captain’s name.

Some people think that this painting is meant to symbolize a scene at night, but actually the subdued lighting was just caused by the early darkening of the painting’s multi-layered varnish, which led to a very misleading name. Rembrandt uses light to highlight the two men at the center of the painting, as well as the girl to the left of the men. By showing the rest of the painting in shadows, Rembrandt effectively makes these three people the center of the painting’s attention. 

Chapter 16 / The Sistine Chapel Ceiling

Michelangelo / 1512

Perhaps one of the most well known pieces of art is the painted ceiling of the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican. The painting was commissioned by Pope Julius II in 1506, and its creation lasted from 1508 to 1512. The painting is done in diogramatic form and the paintings seem right-side up to viewers. It includes nine main narratives in the center of the barrel walled ceiling, all of which are from the Old Testament referring to the Christian future. The paintings are done is reverse chronological order, ending with a creation scene in which God organizes the universe. There are three Adam and Eve scenes, including creation, temptation, and expulsion from Eden. There are also three Noah scenes showing god's destructive power, as well as his willingness to save humanity. Along the side of the ceiling, Jesus' ancestors are shown alluding to the divine plan. Each of the nine scenes are surrounded by four nudes. Each corner of the ceiling contains an Old Testament scene, and the spandrels and lunettes above the windows depict the ancestors of Christ.

One of the most famous frescoes on the ceiling is The Creation of Adam. God is shown extending his monumental figure towards Adam and is surrounded by nude figures. In contrast, Adam is shown as relaxed and sits in a reclined position. This signifies that he has not yet received the spark of life from God's touch, who is extending his finger towards him as if to touch him. All figures are in contrapposto, meaning that the figure is not putting equal weight on both legs.

Michelangelo was very focused on the human figure rather than on scenery. The painting is still widely studied today, and many believe that its mysteries are just now beginning to be uncovered. For example, in the scene where God separates light from darkness, closer observation of his throat reveals astonishing things. When transposed with an anatomically correct human brain stem, his throat is a perfect match. Why would Michelangelo depict God;s throat as a human brain stem? There are other hidden secrets in the painting as well, including the optic nerves of two eyes, precisely as Leonardo Da Vinci illustrated them, lower on God's robes. Of course, this could all be coincidence, but it is still eerie and worth studying.