John Singer Sargent painted his "Madame X," the socialite Virginie Amélie Avegno Gautreau, in a black dress in a simple room with no accessories. The use of the black dress stands in stark contrast to the subject's pale skin, which also emphasizes just how much of the subject's skin Sargent is exposing by painting her in such a dress.

Image: Portrait of Madame X by John Singer Sargent (1883-4)

It is widely known that in The Meeting, Gustave Courbet painted himself, his art dealer Alfred Buyas, and Buyas' servant Calas, largely because of how accurate Courbet's depictions were. Even without the background knowledge, many things indicate the status of Calas. His clothes are shabbier than his companion's, and he defers to the figure in the middle with his head bowed.

Fitting for an official portrait of the country's greatest military hero, Sir Thomas Lawrence's portrait of General Arthur Wellesley, Duke of Wellington, portrays him in a serious, uncompromising position. His serious demeanor is paired with his stiff pose, showing his arms crossed in front of him. In this portrait, Wellington is presented simply in front of a plain background, with little but his uniform to accent his own image and pose.

Figure 3: Napoleon Crossing the Alps by Jaques-Louis David (1801)

Figure 4: Portrait of Sir Arthur Wellesley, First Duke of Wellington by Sir Thomas Lawrence (1814)

This painting, The Burning of the Houses of Lords and Commons, was one of the key paintings that helped develop J. M. W. Turner's later style. While Turner always preferred sweeping landscapes with dramatic brushwork, by the 1830s, Turner was capturing natural disasters such as this fire with more abstract forms and innovative lighting techniques. The 1834 fire at Britain's Parliament, which engulfed both the seat of government and a large swath of London, was a natural subject for Turner to use these new techniques.

Figure: The Burning of the Houses of Lords and Commons by J. M. W. Turner (1834-5)

In this painting, The Blue Boy, Thomas Gainsborough intentionally contrasts the light and color used for his subject with those used for the background. The dark, warm colors featured in the landscape background allow for the bright blue clothing the subject is wearing to shine even brighter. Additionally, the focus of the light is almost entirely on the subject, rather than the background.

Figure: The Blue Boy by Thomas Gainsborough (1834-1835)

This eighteenth-century portrait by Thomas Gainsborough, The Blue Boy, intentionally references the previous century and the style of King Charles I's court painter, Sir Anthony van Dyck. Gainsborough places his subject in seventeenth-century clothing and poses him in a manner similar to that in which Van Dyck placed the children of Charles I in his portrait of them.

Figure: The Blue Boy by Thomas Gainsborough (1834-1835)

The conflagration that engulfed both Houses of Parliament in October of 1834 was the largest fire in London for over 150 years. J. M. W. Turner, along with many other people, ran to view the huge fire. Turner was quickly sketching the images of the fire in order to make full-scale paintings at a later time. This painting was first exhibited just a few months after the fire.

Figure: The Burning of the Houses of Lords and Commons by J. M. W. Turner (1834-5)

The dynamic patterned background, elaborate brushstrokes, and vivid color blue are not reminiscent of medieval art, nor is symmetry in and of itself a defining feature. The gold lettering on the figure's cap, however, is similar to the inscription one would use to identify a saint in medieval art.

Image is in the public domain, accessed through Wikipedia Media Commons: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Vincent\_van\_Gogh\_-\_Portrait\_of\_Joseph\_Roulin.jpg

The use of highly visible, quick brushstrokes by Impressionists had two distinct advantages, creating a sense of motion in the painting and allowing the artist to capture light changes as he was painting outdoors. In Claude Monet's The Saint Lazare Station, the smoke billowing off the engines of the train are more realistically captured with the quick brushstrokes as they create a motion and a texture more consistent with smoke's real life properties.

Image is in the public domain, accessed through Wikipedia Media Commons: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Claude\_Monet\_004.jpg

The painting does not glorify the new world order, nor does it condemn it. Instead, the painting recognizes the new way of life and the need to replace ways that have grown old and stale, but it also recognizes the beautiful sacrifice made by people (and ships) that can no longer offer as much. Thus, it celebrates the fight of the old Temeraire, in spite of its weaknesses now.

Image is in the public domain, accessed through WikiArt: http://www.wikiart.org/en/william-turner/the-fighting-temeraire-tugged-to-her-last-berth-to-be-broken-up-1839