Editing Academic art (section)

{{Short description|Style of painting and sculpture}}
{{Redirect-distinguish|Academist|Academicians|Academic (disambiguation){{!}}Academics}}
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{{Infobox art movement
| name = Academic art
| image = {{photomontage
|photo1a= The Birth of Venus by William-Adolphe Bouguereau (1879).jpg
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|photo2b= Alexandre Cabanel Phèdre.jpg
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|photo3a= The Roses of Heliogabalus.jpg
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| size = 300
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| color = #F9F9F9 
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| caption = ''The Birth of Venus'' by [[William-Adolphe Bouguereau]] (1879); ''Phaedra'' by [[Alexandre Cabanel]] (1880); ''[[The Roses of Heliogabalus]]'' by [[Lawrence Alma-Tadema]] (1888)
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'''Academic art''', '''academicism''', or '''academism''', is a style of [[painting]] and [[sculpture]] produced under the influence of European [[academies of art]]. This method extended its influence throughout the [[Western world]] over several centuries, from its origins in Italy in the mid-16th century, until its dissipation in the early 20th century. It reached its apogee in the 19th century, after the end of the [[Napoleonic Wars]] in 1815. In this period, the standards of the French {{Lang|fr|[[Académie des Beaux-Arts]]|italic=no}} were very influential, combining elements of [[Neoclassicism]] and [[Romanticism]], with [[Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres]] a key figure in the formation of the style in painting. The success of the French model led to the founding of countless other art academies in several countries. Later painters who tried to continue the synthesis included [[William-Adolphe Bouguereau]], [[Thomas Couture]], and [[Hans Makart]] among many others. In sculpture, academic art is characterized by a tendency towards monumentality, as in the works of [[Auguste Bartholdi]] and [[Daniel Chester French]].

The academies were established to replace medieval artists' [[guild]]s and aimed to systematize the teaching of art. They emphasized the emulation of established masters and the classical tradition, downplaying the importance of individual creativity, valuing instead collective, [[Aesthetics|aesthetic]] and [[Ethics|ethical]] concepts. By helping raise the professional status of artists, the academies distanced them from artisans and brought them closer to intellectuals. They also played a crucial role in organizing the [[art world]], controlling cultural [[ideology]], taste, criticism, the [[art market]], as well as the exhibition and dissemination of art. They wielded significant influence due to their association with state power, often acting as conduits for the dissemination of artistic, political, and social ideals, by deciding what was considered "official art". As a result, they faced criticism and controversy from artists and others on the margins of these academic circles, and their restrictive and [[Universalism|universalist]] regulations are sometimes considered a reflection of [[Absolutism (European history)|absolutism]].

Overall, academicism has had a significant impact on the development of art education and artistic styles. Its artists rarely showed interest in depicting the everyday or profane. Thus, academic art is predominantly [[Idealism|idealistic]] rather than [[Realism (arts)|realistic]], aiming to create highly polished works through the mastery of color and form. Although smaller works such as [[portrait]]s, [[Landscape painting|landscape]]s and [[still-life]]s were also produced, the movement and the contemporary public and critics most valued large [[history painting]]s showing moments from narratives that were very often taken from ancient or exotic areas of history and [[mythology]], though less often the traditional [[Religious art|religious narrative]]s. [[Orientalism#Orientalist art|Orientalist art]] was a major branch, with [[List of Orientalist artists|many specialist painters]], as were scenes from [[classical antiquity]] and the [[Middle Ages]]. Academic art is also closely related to [[Beaux-Arts architecture]], as well as [[classical music]] and [[Ballet|dance]], which developed simultaneously and hold to a similar classicizing ideal.

Although production of academic art continued into the 20th century, the style had become vacuous, and was strongly rejected by the artists of set of new [[art movement]]s, of which [[Realism (arts)|Realism]] and [[Impressionism]] were some of the first. In this context, the style is often called "[[Eclecticism in art|eclecticism]]", "[[L'art pompier|art pompier]]" (pejoratively), and sometimes linked with "[[historicism (art)|historicism]]" and "[[syncretism]]". By [[World War I]], it had fallen from favor almost completely with critics and buyers, before regaining some appreciation since the end of the 20th century.