ROMANTICISM (1780–1850)

William Blake, The Descent of Man into the Vale of Death. Sold for $225,000 via Sotheby’s (January 2016).

Romanticism (1780–1850)

Romanticism embodies a broad range of disciplines, from painting to music to literature. The ideals present in each of these art forms reject order, harmony, and rationality, which were embraced in both classical art and Neoclassicism. Instead, Romantic artists emphasized the individual and imagination. Another defining Romantic ideal was an appreciation for nature, with many turning to plein air painting, which brought artists out of dark interiors and enabled them to paint outside. Artists also focused on passion, emotion, and sensation over intellect and reason.

Prominent Romantic painters include Henry Fuseli, who created strange, macabre paintings that explored the dark recesses of human psychology, and William Blake, whose mysterious poems and images conveyed mystical visions and his disappointment in societal constraints.