https://padlet.com/giannitelli_alessandra/uif1x12k4muo in Europe and England en-us 2018-02-06 18:06:17 UTC 2026-01-19 17:00:29 UTC hello@padlet.com giannitelli_alessandra https://padlet.com/giannitelli_alessandra/uif1x12k4muo/wish/228770172  The Aesthetic Movement began in France with Théophile Gautier at the end of the 19th century. It was a reaction against the materialism and the strict moral code of the burgeoisie. Its main principle was “art for art’s sake”, according to which art shouldn’t have any moral purpose, but was an end in itself and aimed at the contemplation of beauty. So artists weren’t interested in political and social issues, but isolated themselves in an ideal world of art and beauty. ]]> 2018-02-06 18:22:37 UTC https://padlet.com/giannitelli_alessandra/uif1x12k4muo/wish/228770172 giannitelli_alessandra https://padlet.com/giannitelli_alessandra/uif1x12k4muo/wish/228771197  In England, the main theorist of the Aesthetic Movement was Walter Pater. His books became very famous among the young artists. He rejected religious faith, he thought that life should be lived “as a work of art”, and that man’s primary aim was the experience of pleasure. This was a subversive message, in contrast to the strict moral code of the Victorian middle-classes. Differently from the previous generation, the Aesthetes didn’t criticize contemporary society, but simply avoided it. They didn’t want to mix with the masses and despised the ugliness of contemporary industrial society. They believed that art shouldn’t have any didactic or moral aim. ]]> 2018-02-06 18:24:05 UTC https://padlet.com/giannitelli_alessandra/uif1x12k4muo/wish/228771197 giannitelli_alessandra https://padlet.com/giannitelli_alessandra/uif1x12k4muo/wish/228771867  There are similarities between the works written by artists in different parts of Europe at the end of the 19th century. Aestheticism was also called “Decadentism”. The first writer who described a “decadent artist” was the French novelist Huysmans. Des Esseintes, the protagonist of his novel "A rébours", is a typical bohémien. He is disgusted by the vulgarity of modern life and decides to live alone and devote himself to the cult of beauty and pleasure. Similarly, Dorian Gray, the protagonists of Wilde’s novel "The Picture of Dorian Gray", is a typical dandy who wants to tranform every experience of his life into an aesthetic experience, following only beauty and pleasure. Also Andrea Sperelli, protagonist of the novel "Il piacere" by D’Annunzio, makes of his life a work of art, surrounding himself with beautiful objects and thus marking his superiority from the masses. ]]> 2018-02-06 18:25:10 UTC https://padlet.com/giannitelli_alessandra/uif1x12k4muo/wish/228771867