Below is a series of examples of these artists that I have chosen relate to periods of realism. Referring to the Manifesto of Gustave Courbet . They are true artists that have developed by finding their own individuality and expressing their own. They focus on real and practical time. These artists represent and demonstrate keen observation and focused on contemporary people shown during various everyday life situations, an age they live in and not the past or the future.

I have choosen the three artworks to review inline with the Corbet Manifesto.

Nighthawks, The Gross Clince and  Iron Rolling Mill.

Edward Hopper (American, 1882-1967) Nighthawks, 1942

In 1942 Edward Hopper’s Nighthawks was completed and captures the paradox of loneliness in urban life. Hopper’s masterpiece is an existential crisis in its own right; where three diners fall prey to the isolating stillness of New York City. It remains not only one of the most recognisable, but also relatable paintings in 20th century American art, and Artsper explores the nostalgic depths of this modern masterpiece.

Hopper’s unique composition permits the audience to see the subjects from both frontal and profile views, highlighting the melancholy that consumes the nocturnal isolates. The angular nature of this Modernist masterpiece painfully evokes the near-meaningful interactions between the diners, which are continuously interrupted or ignored. Hands nearly touching, eyes nearly meeting or mouths nearly speaking; Hopper’s intimate setting perfectly encapsulates the alienating reality of life in the Big Apple "unconsciously, probably, I was painting the loneliness of a large city".

Brassy fluorescent lights emits an eerie glow, like a beacon onto the darkened streets of New York City, whilst four night owls sit around the counter of a late-night diner; physically close yet psychologically miles apart. The very essence of human vulnerability throbs like an exposed vein in Hopper’s masterpiece, capturing the all-consuming solitude of modern life. Even before smartphones took over any attempt at real human interaction, Hopper’s iconic painting reveals our inability to connect in the early 1940s.

Thomas Cowperthwait Eakins (1844-1916) The Gross Clinic (1875)

The artist observed live procedures by the famous and local surgeon Dr. Samuel Gross, then translated them onto a large-scale canvas that he titled Dr. Gross (1875) (now known as The Gross Clinic). Perhaps this work has become the most important painting in the history of American art.

The monochromatic tone of the composition is, perhaps, intentional, in order to concentrate the effect on the bloody thigh and the bloody finger of the operating professor. But the attention is at once and so entirely directed on that reeking hand as to convey the impression that such concentration was the sole purpose of the painting. In similar paintings by Ribera, Regnault, and other artists of the horrible, as vivid a result is obtained without sacrificing the light and colour in the other parts of the picture; and the effect, while no less intense, is, therefore, less startling and loud.

Eakins, through his painting, wished to honour the scientific breakthroughs that were coming out of the local Jefferson Medical College. With The Gross Clinic he believed he was going to the next level. Consistently attending lectures at the clinic he masterfully pieced together his composition from sketches of the surgical theatre.

He may have also referenced photographs of Dr. Gross (not all preparatory works for the canvas were documented or preserved). The result “had the effect of reality, but was actually completely contrived,” says Kathleen Foster, senior curator and director of the Centre for American Art at the Philadelphia Museum of Art.

Adolph Von Menzel (1815-1905) The Iron Rolling Mill

In 1869 Menzel created his first drawings of an Industrial setting, The Heckmann Brassworks in Berlin. The theme of physical labor had already made its entry into the pictorial world of the nineteenth century with Gustave Courbet’s Stonebreakers of 1851.

From his rich experience of painting large group scenes Menzel creates a group scenes, here Menzel creates a structure positively filled with figures demonstrating the force of modern industrial work. In the steam-filled gloom, bizarre shadows and flickering lights merge to become a demonic drama depicting the struggle between men and machines. The animated, tonally dynamic central section of the picture is set against the calmer upper third of the composition with its diffuse daylight. The apparent chaos of the complicated iron rolling equipment emphasises the dependence of the workers, who must yield to the unbending workings of the machinery.

Menzel's friend Paul Meyerheim who was working on a series on the history of the railways for the industralist Albert Borsig inspired "The Iron Rolling Mill". In 1872 Menzel travelled to Konigshutte in Upper Silesia to familiarise himself with the work conditions in the factory and to make some preparatory sketches. Menzels main concern was the artistic challenge of portraying the groups of people and the production process involved. He was captivated by scenes of everyday life certainly not in representing the existential threat to humans caused by the age of the machinery.

Creative response to Corbert's Realism

Gustave Corbert's Manifesto focused on the learning aspect of Art being an individual expression. Just like the Manifesto my interpretation is personal and individual. Art is unique to the individual. I have explored and created an image based on and something I do in everyday life. I have decided to take images of myself brushing my hair and drawings which is an everyday ritual. How I execute this is by taking a picture close up and a close up exploration drawing of my hand, hair and hairbrush. I will produce an image and sketch of the action. I will link it back to the manifesto by showing just as Corbert says "Art is completely individual". To interpret Art is to make sense of it. My subject matter is chosen as Realism and everyday life.