Apollo Crowning Himself 1781, The Raft of the Medusa, and The Oath of the Horatii

Comparing Works of Art
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Comparing Works of Art             A work of art refers to any product of creative arts such as paintings, sculptures, and many others that bear a strong aesthetic and imaginative appeal. Throughout human history, various works of art have been made to serve different and unique purposes. Art has been used as an appreciation of the internal balance and harmony, as well as an expression of imagination. Various ancient works of art such as rock paintings have been associated with different ritualistic and symbolic functions. An artist may create a piece for motivated or non-motivated functions. Under-motivated functions, an artist intentionally creates a certain piece to champion political and societal change, relay various emotions, and to reflect personal psychology. Artists use various forms and elements of art to convey a certain message to the audience. This paper seeks to compare three works of art by different artists created in different periods of time. The works to be compared are; Apollo Crowning Himself 1781, The Raft of the Medusa, and The Oath of Horatii.             Apollo Crowning Himself 1781 is a sculpture by the Italian artist, Antonio Canova, who lived between 1757 and 1822. The marble sculpture depicts Apollo, the god of music and poetry, using a laurel wreath to crown himself. This neoclassical sculpture is inspired by the Metamorphoses. After Daphne, the beautiful nymph, turned into a laurel tree to escape from Apollo, the god swore that though Daphne cannot be his wife, she will be his tree, and he will wear her on his hair. Apollo is nude in the sculpture except for sandals. The previous antique representations of the god such as nudity, masculinity, as well as the balanced posture are all depicted in the sculpture.             The Raft of the Medusa was created by Theodore Gericault in 1818-1819. The oil painting has gained popularity over time to become one of the icons of French Romanticism. The over-life-size painting depicts the aftermath of the wreck of a French naval in 1816 off the coast of Mauritania. Following the accident, a hurriedly constructed raft was used to transport more than 147 people to safety. Only 15 of them were rescued after 13 days. They were starved, dehydrated, and practiced cannibalism. The issue generated a lot of public interest, prompting the a...