The role of art in our life.
Art is an all embracing notion (music, painting, theatre, literature and so on). Art had the most important role in the development of the mankind. The first were found on walls of ancient caves. So we can guess that painting was the first way of art. Painting is the most understandable way of art, because it gives us the most full and vivid impression.
Seneka once said: “All art is bur imitation of nature”. I do
on’t agree with him. I think that art has many functions and it’s hard to overestimate the role of art in one’s life. Art has great influence on our souls, feelings, forms our moral values. Art forms our outlook and enriches our inner world. Art influ-ences greatly the development and of evolution of con-sciousness of a person and of the mankind. Art makes us think of the sense of life, how people must live, what is ideal of beauty, what is
s love, – the eternal questions. Art helps us to understand people who lived hundred years ago and to learn the history of the mankind. Art creates our notion about beauty and harmony. Art helps people to understand outside world and ea

As to the trends of art, I prefer old art. Painting of old masters is one of the greatest treasures mankind has col-lected in the history of its civilisation. The pictures of old painters are in all big museum of the world (for example, the Hermitage, the Tretiakovskaya gallery and others). Old paint-ing reflects the collective experience of human spiritual life of many centuries, because, as I have already said, painting is the first way of art. As to country sc

George Romney was born in 1734. He was a son of a cabinetmaker. He was apprenticed to Christopher Steele, a travelling portraitist between 1775 and 1757; at that time Romney established himself in Kendal, Westmoreland, where he had a fairly prosperous trade in small portraits. In 1762 he left for London; here he broadened his style considerably. In 1763 and 1765 he won awards at the Society of Arts. During the next few years he became more popular as a portrait painter. In 1764 Romney paid a short visit to Paris. In 1773 he left England and spent two years in Italy, mainly Rome, study-ing antique sculpture and the work of Raphael. These studies had a major influence on the development of his style.
On his return to England in 1775 Romney rapidly be-came and remained for many years one of the most fashion-able portrait painters in London; his patrons ranged from the Prince of Wales and members of the aristocracy to the literary and dramatic figures of the day. Second only to Sir Joshua Reynolds in popularity, Romney was, however, such a pathol-ogically timid character that he never ventured to present himself for the ho
The most vivid impression on me has produced Rom-ney’s picture “The portrait of duchess Elisabeth Derby”, which was finished in 1778. It is an oil painting, canvas.
The figure of a beautiful rich woman is placed on the landscape background. It is a full length portrait. The woman is represented sitting. The figure is arranged in a vertical for-mat. Colouring is subtle, soft, delicate and restful. Brush-strokes are not visible.
The women is dressed in luminous dress, through which one can see contours of her figure. The lady’s figure is lighted up evenly. The women has be
Every pleat of the woman’s dress, coiffure and other details are painted very precisely. As to my opinion the details are not emphasised purposely. Accuracy in details is the re-sult of supreme mastery in technique of the painter. So the figure is a harmonious unity.
The landscape isn’t painted so exactly. There is a piece of blue-grey sky in the right-corner of the picture, but on the horizon the clouds are condensing. The forest behind the lady isn’t green, it is obscure and gloomy. Predominant colour is brown. There is a sharp contrast between lighted up figure and dark landscape. The figure is close to the observer than to the landscape. So the figure doesn’t blend with the land-scape.
The posture of the lady is very natural. Her eyes are gazed before and upper herself. She is deep in her thoughts.