Compare And Contrast The Death Of Marat And Michelangelos...

In these two exquisite works of art or shall we call them the grand master pieces of their era’s. Both Jacques-Louis David’s The Death of Marat and Michelangelo’s Pieta flawlessly reflects the untimely deaths of two significant figures that we know of today. The two figures comprised of Jesus Christ in Michelangelo’s Pieta and Jean-Paul Marat in Jacques-Louis David’s The Death of Marat. In the two pieces we see that the pair of artists portray the figures in a divine and yet virtuous way. One work of art almost mimicking the other, yet there is still some differences between the characteristics of each piece still making it its own individual self. In the following paragraphs we will be diving deeper into the similarities and differences†¦show more content†¦Not only did David want to do this but his artistic viewpoints wanted him to reflect the use of propaganda to others through art in the Neoclassical era. In other words, he wanted to de pict through the painting how politics during the French Revolution were taken sternly and had serious repercussions in a sort of misleading way. In the same way, if you did not fit into the rest of society and you stood out you were labeled as a target. As we see Marat was murdered by Corday who was seen as his political enemy. In the meantime, through the style of David’s painting we see the use of iconography or â€Å"the study or description of images and symbols† . Here in this painting of The Death of Marat we see the main image (i.e. Marat) being used as more than just the centerpiece of the work rather, the symbol of the work which means there is more to this work than just The Death of Marat. Strangely enough, we can see the use of iconography when comparing The Death of Marat to an almost political Christ of his people. Meaning that Marat was killed for his religious beliefs/political beliefs and died for his people as that of Christ did with his religious be liefs. Incidentally, we can say that â€Å"David’s clear sympathies for Marat and his transformation of the politician into a timeless martyr† or someone who sacrifices their life for not believing in Marat’s case the political beliefs of the others in