27. The Aesthetic Movement - Art For Art's Sake (1870-1890)

What was Aestheticism about? What were the goals?

This movement promoted the idea that art needn't moralize, nor tell a story, but merely be beautiful. Whether a painting, building, piece of music or literature, so long as it's enjoyable, it should be seen as admirable and praise worthy, especially as it provided a moment of escapism from the ordeals of daily life. This sentiment was considered scandalous at the time in Victorian England, where all art was supposed to promote morals. Critics like John Ruskin had long maintained that the purpose of art was to inform and educate, reinforcing morality and ethics. This flew in the face of that.

A bit of historical context:

This movement had its roots in Romanticism, particularly in the writings of the German philosophers Immanuel Kant and Friedrich Schiller. Starting in 1825, the English philosopher and historian Thomas Carlyle translated Schiller's works and popularized the term 'aestheticism'. Oxford Professor Walter Pater increased interest in these ideas with his popular essays, written in 1867-8, that helped inspire the artists of this movement.

Aestheticism was also closely aligned with the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood, which championed beauty and craftsmanship, and saw its art as a form of escapism from the drab and dreary live of 19th century England. Many see Aestheticism as an extension of the Pre-Raphaelite movement.

The underlying philosophy of the period:

These artists maintained that art and morality are separate, and needn't mix. One need not look for morality in art in order to judge its merit. Further, the philosopher Schiller once said that artmaking was a form of play, and that "Man is never so serious as when he plays; man is wholly man only when he plays." He went on to say that art as play gives us a form of salvation, "Man has lost his dignity, but Art has saved it, and preserved it for him in expressive marbles."

How was it represented in the other arts – music, architecture, and literature?

Aestheticism was quite popular in literature - the Decadent movement is primarily a literary one. A great proponent of aestheticism was the playwright Oscar Wilde. In poetry, precursors to the movement were John Keats and Percy Shelley.

Aestheticism also played a role in interior and furniture design. The architect Owen Jones wrote a text book in 1856, The Grammar of Ornament, a detailed study of historical ornamentation from around the world, which had a tremendous influence on design, as it was used in newly opened government schools of design. It's still considered a great resource today. In it, Owen outlined techniques which he felt would modernize and beautify homes:

1. ebonized wood, with gilt trim

2. far eastern designs and motifs

3. flowery designs filled with birds and feathers.

4. blue & white porcelain.

These ideas were a large influence in the Art Nouveau style that came after. Art Nouveau was largely a continuation of Aestheticism.

What made it great?

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Some of the leading figures:

Owen Jones (British, 1809-1874) (Architect)

George Frederick Watts (British, 1817-1904) (also a Symbolist painter)

Dante Gabriel Rosetti (Italian, 1828-1882) (also a Pre-Raphaelite)

James Abbott McNeill Whistler (American, 1834-1903)

William Morris (British, 1834-1906) (textile designer)

Simeon Solomon (British, 1840-1905)

Albert Moore (English, 1841-1893)

John Godward (British, 1861-1922)

Ramon Casas i Carbo (Spanish, 1866-1932)

Aubrey Beardsley (British, 1872-1898)

Some of the most famous artworks of the time:

Symphony in White, No. 1, The White Girl, by James McNeill Whistler, 1862

Hard as it may be to believe, this painting shocked audiences and was rejected by both the Paris Salon and the Royal Academy Exhibition. People were upset they couldn’t connect the girl to any literary work or story. Who is she? She’s nobody? Scandalous!

Arrangement in Gray & Black, no. 1 (portrait of the artist’s mother), by Whistler, 1871

While the Royal Academy in London allowed Whistler to exhibit this, they added to the title, explaining it was Whistler’s mother. He preferred his original title, since, why would it matter to anyone else who the sitter was? It turned out, lots of people cared. The work has become an icon of motherhood, and has been copied and imitated countless times. It’s one of the most famous and popular American paintings of all time. It was also much more popular in France where it was bought by a museum, helping Whistler improve his reputation. Martha Tedeschi explained, “Whistler's Mother, Wood's American Gothic, Leonardo da Vinci's Mona Lisa and Edvard Munch's The Scream have all achieved something that most paintings—regardless of their art historical importance, beauty, or monetary value—have not: they communicate a specific meaning almost immediately to almost every viewer.”

Nocturne in Black & Gold: The Falling Rocket, by James McNeill Whistler, 1875

This work started a legal dispute between the artist and art critic John Ruskin, who claimed Whistler was “flinging a pot of paint in the public’s face.” Whistler sued Ruskin for slander, and although he won the case, it bankrupted him, as the jury awarded Whistler just one farthing.

The Golden Stairs, by Sir Edward Burne-Jones, 1880

This is one of the most famous examples of an Aesthetic painting that seems to tell a story, but relates to none. If you want this to tell a story, you have to make it up yourself. The beautiful young women here became a standard of “aesthetic” beauty in the movement. Note, many of the women carry musical instruments. Music itself evokes emotions without telling a story. These artists felt their painting should act the same way. The critic Walter Pater said, “All art constantly aspires toward the condition of music.” This work was shown not in the Royal Academy, but at a private gallery. It was quite popular and inspired Gilbert & Sullivan to make a parody of it with their play, Patience, in 1881.