“Art should comfort the disturbed and disturb the comfortable”, Cesar Cruz. Art has been around for thousands of years and is an important part of our culture. Over the roughly 40,000 years that art has been around it has gone through many changes because of what was happening in the world at that time. All of these art eras have been important to the development of the art we know today. I am going to talk about what I think are the most important eras that got us to where we are in art now.

Gothic

According to art historian Isabella Meyer gothic art was centered around the conflicting feelings of freedom and fear that the world was going to end. Gothic art took place from 1140-1600, was one of the longest art periods, and started in France before spreading to other parts of Europe. One of my favorite artists from the Gothic Era is Duccio, he was an Italian artist that made some of the most famous art in Gothic Italy. This era of art is important because it is when people started to draw what they saw in the real world and moved away from folk stories and stories from the bible.

Renaissance

According to art historian Isabella Meyer Renaissance art was more focused on three-dimensional art and the fact that it was supposed to be viewed from multiple angles, not just the front. The Renaissance lasted from 1420 – 1520 and started in Italy. Caravaggio is my favorite artist from the Renaissance era, he also later moved into the Baroque era. The Renaissance was a rebirth of our culture and the art reflects that in how they changed how we view the art. Around this time is when we started to get many of the sculptures that we know today, but we also got really intricate paintings on the ceilings in churches and other public buildings.

Realism

According to art historian Isabella Meyer The Realism Era was a revolt against the previous era Romanticism and it focused more on showing everything about the real world: the good, bad, pretty, ugly, everything. Realism was from 1850 – 1925 and started in France. Gustave Courbet is my favorite realism artist, and he was a French painter. Realism was when we started to make actual real-looking people due to the invention of photography, this advancement helped us to show the world more accurately.

Impressionism

Impressionism is more spontaneous and focused on feelings rather than realism. Impressionism was from 1850-1895 and started in France. My favorite artist is Claude Monet. He was a French painter who was one of the founders of impressionism. Many of his works are in the Nelson Atkins Art Museum, and I have seen them in person. Impressionism is one of, if not the most important, eras of art because it is when people really started to test the boundaries of what is really art and what is just paint.

There are many more eras of art and all are important, but these are not only the most important but they are also some of my favorites. If you are someone who loves art in any way, I hope this story inspired you to learn more. In anything you are doing, it is important to know the history. Learning art history can really let you understand what type of art you want to make and can help you find your style. As proven, art can change over time and it’s okay to learn, improve, and grow in your art.