To continue our discussion about the impact of the Enlightenment, we will look at two American artists of the era: John Smibert and John Singleton Copley. \Required Readings: “John Smibert,” “Portraiture and Middle-Class Social Aspirations,” and “John Singleton Copley” in American Arts (Chapter III).
This week we will examine how the works of such European American artists as Smibert and Copley reflected the changing climate of American culture in the eighteenth century. Consider and write responses to the following questions:
1) How did Smibert’s paintings reflect ideas of the Enlightenment? (300 word)
2) How did Copley’s paintings reflect ideas of the Enlightenment? (300 word).
Reminder: Make sure to start each response by making a specific point. Readings: John Smibert,” “Portraiture and Middle-Class Social Aspirations,” and John Singleton Copley, “The sanctification of the Consumer Revolution” (pages 101-113). Use the pantings to form a response to the questions as well as quotations.
link to paintings for better visual: https://www.flickr.com/photos/186463033@N05/galleries/72157713292825318/
