Romeo and Julietin the art

IntroductionDuring the romantic period, a wide number of famous painters, focused their attention on some of the most notorious Shakespearian‟ s plays, such as Macbeth, Hamlet and Romeo and Juliet. We can notice that there are two different types of characters: the heroine, magnific and inaccessible, the symbol of beauty and pityless diva and the figure of the angelic woman also seen as a victim. Juliet is often presented as the heroine, as she demonstrates courage and determination even she is only 13 and there is a feud between her family and his lovers one.

“Romeo and Juliet”, a tragedy written by William Shakespeare, was a very important fount of inspiration for many artists. That‟s because the tragedy includes important themes as love, growth and death. For example there are many pictures about the “balcony scene” and the “kiss”. Another way in which “Romeo and Juliet” became so popular is the cinema, in fact there are some representations about the tragedy; the most famous is the one with Leonardo di Caprio…

Queen Mab‟ s CaveJoseph Mallord William

Turner

Joseph Mallord William Turner (1775-1851), english romantic painter Queen Mab‟ s cave-(1846). Oil on canvas. Haused in London, Tate. Queen Mab is a fairy mentioned in Shakespeare's tragedy Romeo and Juliet. In the case of Romeo and Juliet, Queen Mab words are spoken by Mercutio in the one of the most famous monologues in the history of theatre. In this, Queen Mab is described as a tiny creature that sits on the faces of the sleepers and realizes their wishes in their dreams, then she wakes them with a start and make them sleep again. In some occasions, she is bane‟ s carrier. The lengthy poem talks about dreams, and Shakespeare used some tricks to make the reader remember it throughout the enitre tragedy. The monologue foreshadows the fate of the two lovers. When Mercutio tells Romeo about Queen Mab, Romeo has a premonition of the crash, with regard to the party where he meets Juliet for the first time, because of a dream he did. This annoys Mercutio, who does not recognize in Romeo‟ s words a premonition, and he thinks it‟ s bad, that causes, in his opinion, dreadful thoughts. This picture is the representation of Romeo and Juliet‟s whole story development, so we can say that Queen Mab monologue is a metaphor of their lives.

„„Romeo and Juliet‟‟Frank Bernard Dicksee

• Size:118 x 171 cm• Artist: Frank Bernard Dicksee• Museum:City Art

Gallery, Southampton, England.• Technique: oil on canvas• Period: 1884

THE SCENEThe painting represents the Balcony Scene. Romeo and Juliet are on the balcony and Romeo is greeting her before going to Mantova, after their first night as married. The scene represents also their last kiss and their last moment together.

THE CLOTHESGiulietta is wearing a white night- dress that symbolizes her pureness and she has her red hair held in a golden ribbon that symbolizes her nobilty. Romeo is dressed in a romantic way, his clothes are red and green, the colors of the sensuality and his youth.

THE COLORSThe colors of the painting are bright, hot and brilliant like the personality of the two lovers.

THE VEGETATION• The Ivy symbolizes the passion that makes the two lovers stay together.• The Pittosporum is an evergreen and symbolizes Romeo and Juliet‟s love that

survives the adversity.• The Asphodel is the plant of the poison that Juliet drinks to simulate the death.

THE BACKGROUNDThe atmosphere of the city on the background is foggy and gloomy, and it seems more the country of London than Verona.THE LIGHTThanks to the lateral lumination all the light is concentrated on the kiss and attracts the viewer‟s attention.

The picture «Romeo and Juliet last goodbye» is often confusedwith the one entitled «The last kiss given to Juliet from Romeo». The first is now lost. It‟ s existence is testified by a watercolordrawing, autographed by the artist (Hayez), who shows us the lovers in the moment just before the kiss, with Juliet lifting herface already closing her eyes and Romeo, who bends over her, having his foot placed on the windowsill. The luck –visual, literary and melodramatic- as that of other stories of impossible and unlucky love of the past, would continue to bear fruit and increase attention, demonstrating the value inherentin our culture of the relationship between Eros and Thanatos. The scene takes place in Juliet‟ s house, still wrapped in the darkness of night, with Juliet‟s young shoulders, that stretchesfor the last kiss to Romeo, now on the balcony, shining in the rosy light of dawn. An interesting composition supportsvigorous surrender inspired by the great venetian tradition.

Romeo and Julietlast goodbye

„„The last kiss given to Juliet from Romeo‟‟

Francesco HayezFRANCESCO HAYEZ, AN ITALIAN PAINTER, THE HIGHER EXAMPLE OF ROMANTIC PAINTING“The last kiss given to Juliet from Romeo” (1823). Oil on canvas. Haused in Villa Carlotta di Tremezzo.When Hayez, in 1823, had faced “The last kiss given to Juliet from Romeo”, commissioned by Giambattista Sommariva, one of the main collectors of romantic Milan, he had clearly in mind the two versions of the most famous love drama of all times.

The famous invention of the "voluptuous" kiss, ("The kiss is not the tender love of a pure soul enchanted, but voluptuous") that Romeo, about to descend from the open window, gives to a passionate Juliet in slippers, had aroused a remarkable consent in the public and great fortune, that the wise painter - a good manager of his business - had to make reproductions of the painting (even miniatures and engravings, and also the famous cameo, which was made in 1824 by John Beltrami for the same Sommariva). Hayez was inspired by Shakespeare's tragedy Romeo and Juliet, addressing two emblematic themes of poetic romance. The contrast between social constraints and the freedom of individual feeling (the love between the young couple is forbidden by their powerful families) and the eternal bond between love and death (which emerges at the story‟s conclusion). Influences from the classical era of Ingres‟s painting can be noted in the piece, particularly in the accuracy and clarity of the drawing. The architectural layout of the scene is highly dramatic, while the careful description of the details of daily life allows place the representation in a contingent historical reality and not in an abstract world. These devices increase dramatic attention and instigate the lively participation of the observer. The romantic taste for detail is a rediscovery of the precision applied in Dutch genre painting of the 1600s. It is also confirmed by the care the artist took in depicting the furniture, clothing and even Juliet‟s slippers.

Romeo and JulietMilton Hebald

Milton Hebald is a famous sculptor from New York City. He was born in 1917. He studied and specialized himself in figurative bronze sculptures and his most important masterpieces are shown in New York. One of his most famous statues is “Juliet and Romeo” which is located outside the Dealcourte Theatre from 1977. This bronze piece depicts the two famous lovers kissing. It is their first kiss and Romeo is hugging and holding Juliet tight. Juliet‟s hair is long and straight and they are looking at each other intensely. She is wearing a long dress while Romeo has a jacket and a pair of trousers. The statue is very simple. The artist drew inspiration from the classical period. The masterpiece definitely attracts the viewer and strikes his attention. The work is very romantic and poetic. It is 34” high.

„„Romeo at Juliet‟s Deathbed‟‟Johann Heinrich Fuseli

Johann Heinrich Fuseli was born in Switzerland in 1741. His father was a painter and writer and this familiar interest for arts influenced Johann. He travelled a lot throughout Europe, he studied in Germany and in Italy where he had the opportunity to appreciate Michelangelo‟s masterpieces. Then he went to London where he began to express himself with his paintings.. In 1790 he became a member of the Royal Academy.

In 1809 he drew and painted the famous picture “Romeo at Juliet‟s deathbed” which now belongs to a private collector. It is very important to point out that Fussli often drew inspiration from literal works, such as tragedies, comedies or even poems. “Romeo at Juliet‟s deathbed” is one of the last scenes of Shakespeare‟s tragedy, Romeo and Juliet, and both the passage and the picture are full of pathos. Fussli‟s artistic features are known worldwide: his paintings are dark, gloomy and enigmatic but his figures are full of life. Lighting effects are very detailed: Fussli tends to portray the two protagonists in the foreground where all the light is concentrated to attract the viewer‟s attention. Apart from the two figures, everything is dark in order not to outshine the couple. In this picture, Fussli portrays the moment in which Romeo finds out Juliet is dead because she committed suicide in order not to live without him. Romeo has his back turned to the viewer, with his knees on the ground. He is looking at sleeping Juliet while he is holding the veil that covered her body with one hand and her face with the other one.Both figures are very pale. Juliet‟s dress is grey while Romeo‟s is dark. In the background there is a corpse as they are in a cemetery but this is not clearly visible. The atmosphere is very gloomy and sad.

The film “Romeo + Juliet”

It is an adaptation of the tragedy by BazLuhrmann. It is a modernization of Shakespeare‟s play, in fact, for example, in the film the two families are warring business empires and sword are replaced by guns.

Differences between the play and the film

The argument is caused by Montague family

We don‟t know Juliet‟s age

In the end juliet wakes up while Romeo is drinking poison and so he died in her arms

The argument is caused by capulets

Juliet is 13 years old

Juliet wakes up and finds romeo died