Art of the United Kingdom
British Art is the art of the island of Britain. The term normally includes British artists as well as expatriates settled in Britain. Art of the United Kingdom is relatively detailed, as most styles, tones, and subject matters have been used by British artists.
History
Prehistory
The oldest art in the United Kingdom can be dated to the Neolithic period, and is found in a funerary context. But it is in the Bronze age that the first innovative artworks are found. The Beaker people, who arrived in Britain around 2500 BC, were skilled in metal refining. At first, they worked mainly in copper, but around 2150 BC they learned how to make bronze. As there was a ready supply of tin in Cornwall and Devon, they were able to make take advantage of this new process. They were also skilled in the use of gold, and especially the Wessex culture excelled in the making of gold ornaments. Works of art placed in graves or sacrificial pits have survived, showing both innovation and high skill. Anglo-Saxon sculpting was outstanding for its time in the 11th century, as proved by pre-Norman ivory carvings. [1]
In the Iron Age, the Celtic culture spread in the British isles, and with them a new art style. Metalwork, especially gold ornaments, was still important, but stone and most likely wood was also used. This style continued into the Roman period, and would find a renaissance in the Medieval period. It also survived in the Celtic areas not occupied by the Romans, largely corresponding to the present-day Wales and Scotland.
Roman Britain
The Romans, arriving in the 1st century BC, brought with them the Classical style. Many monuments have survived, especially funerary monuments, statues and busts. They also brough glasswork and mosaics. In the 4th century, a new element was introduced as the first Christian art was made in Britain. Several mosaics with Christian symbols and pictures have been preserved. The style of Romano-British art follows that of the continent, but there are some local specialities, to some extent influenced by Celtic art.
Native kingdoms
Roman rule was replaced by a number of kingdoms with different cultural backgrounds. The Celtic fringe gained back some of the power lost in the Roman period, and the Celtic style again became a factor influencing art all over Britain. Other peoples, such as the Saxons, Jutes and Danes, brought with them Germanic and Scandinavian art styles. Celtic and Scandinavian art have several common elements, such as the use of intricate, intertwined patterns of decoration. Leaving the debate over which style influenced the other most aside, it seems reasonable to say that in Britain the different style to some extent fused into a British Celtic-Scandinavian hybrid.
Middle Ages
Christianity, before the religion of parts of the Roman ruling class, started spreading among the peoples of Britain from the end of the 6th century. There was little change in the art style at first, but new elements were added. The Celtic high crosses are well-known examples of the use of Celtic patterns in Christian art. Scenes from the Bible were depicted, framed with the ancient patterns. Some ancient symbols were redefined, such as the many Celtic symbols that can easily be interpreted as referring to the Holy Trinity. One new form of art that was introduced was mural paintings. Christianity provided two elements needed for this art form to take root: Monks who were familiar with the techniques, and stone churches with white-chalked walls suitable for murals. As the artists were often foreign monks, or lay artists trained on the continent, the style is very close to that of continental art. Another art form introduced through the church was stained glass, which was also adopted for secular uses.
British art in the later middle ages was part of the International style and often as such its painting and art in that period is not distinctive to much of other northern European art. An outstanding example of this period is The Wilton Diptych.
Renaissance and reformation
A notable event in British art history is the adoption of Protestantism by Henry VIII of England in 1536 and the subsequent seizure of property belonging to the Catholic church by the state (See Dissolution of the Monasteries). This resulted in the destruction of much of England and Wales' art tradition, which had previously been under the patronage of the church. Another result was isolation from the trends of catholic Europe, including many of those at the centre of the Renaissance. While there was a political motive for the seizing and destruction of church property, there was also the religious motive of iconoclasm, which continued in fits and burst until the late 17th century.
The English Renaissance, starting in the early 16th century, was a parallel to the Italian Renaissance, but did not develop in exactly the same way. It was mainly concerned with music and literature; in art and architecture the change was not as clearly defined as in the continent. Painters from the continent continued to find work in Britain, and brought the new styles with them, especially the Flemish and Italian Renaissance styles.
18th century: The English School
Beginning in the 18th century, the English school of painting is believed by some to be the first distinctly British style of painting. It is notable for its portraits and landscapes. Among the artists of this period are Sir Joshua Reynolds (1723–1792), George Stubbs 1724–1806), and Thomas Gainsborough (1727–1788).
Late 18th century – early 19th century
The late 18th century and the early 19th century was perhaps the most radical period in British art, producing William Blake (1757–1827), John Constable (1776?–1837) and Turner (1775–1851), the later two being arguably the most internationally influential of all British artists. Turner was noted for his wild, almost abstract, landscapes that explored the effects of light and was a profound influence on the later impressionists, as well as being admired by abstract impressionists such as Mark Rothko. Constable too, was a landscape painter who was also to have an influence on the impressionists, but is more accessible than Turner, and is noted rather for his imprecise brush strokes and elevation of 'mundane' subject matter then Turners almost visionary presaging of the future.
1840 to 20th century
From the 1840s onwards, British painting was dominated by the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood, a movement whose paintings concentrated on religious, literary, and genre subjects executed in a colorful and minutely detailed style. While praised and encouraged at the time by leading critic John Ruskin, subsequent generations of critics have disapproved of its themes, which they don’t believe are representative of their times; and of their philosophical aims, which they believe to be self-contradictory.
Associated with this movement was designer William Morris (1834–1896), who eschewed the tawdry industrial manufacture of decorative arts and architecture, favouring a return to hand-craftsmanship. His efforts to make beautiful objects affordable (or even free) for everyone led to his wallpaper and tile designs defining the Victorian aesthetic. See also Arts and Crafts movement.
The major art movement at the beginning of the 20th century was vorticism which counted among its members important artists such as Sir Jacob Epstein, Wyndham Lewis, David Bomberg and others. Later on in the century Britain produced such important artists as Henry Moore, Lucian Freud Frank Auerbach, as well as highly idiosyncratic painters such as John Tunnard and Francis Bacon ("The London School"). David Hockney and many others emerged with the sixties scene.
Contemporary British art
The Young British Artists movement, which includes Damien Hirst, Sarah Lucas and Tracy Emin, is perhaps the most prominent group of visual artists to come from Britain since the Pre-Raphaelites. Their work is largely conceptual art, and is frequently controversial, many say sensationalist. As a reaction to abstract expressionism, pop art emerged originally in England at the end of the 1950s.
Notable artists
See also: List of British artists
Notable visual artists from the United Kingdom include John Constable, Sir Joshua Reynolds, Thomas Gainsborough, William Blake and J.M.W. Turner. In the 20th century, Francis Bacon, David Hockney, Bridget Riley, and the pop artists Richard Hamilton and Peter Blake were of note.
More recently, the so-called Young British Artists have gained some notoriety, particularly Damien Hirst and Tracey Emin. A new group,Stuckism, has recently become popular as well.
Notable illustrators include Aubrey Beardsley, Roger Hargreaves, and Beatrix Potter.
Institutions
Notable arts institutions include the Allied Artists' Association, Royal College of Art, Artists' Rifles, Royal Society of Arts, New English Art Club, Slade School of Art, Royal Academy, and the Tate Gallery.
See also Museums in England, Museums in Northern Ireland, Museums in Scotland, Museums in Wales