Definition

Noun: * A revival or renewed interest in the principles, styles, and aesthetics of classical antiquity (particularly ancient Greece and Rome) in art, literature, architecture, or music, occurring after the Renaissance and typically characterized by order, symmetry, clarity, and restraint.

Examples

• The architectural design of the building, with its columns and pediment, is a clear example of neoclassicism.
• Neoclassicism in music is often associated with composers like Igor Stravinsky, who incorporated classical forms into 20th-century works.
• The poet's adherence to strict meter and rational themes placed him within the tradition of literary neoclassicism.

Advanced Usage

• As an artistic period: Often used to describe the dominant style in Western art from the mid-18th to early 19th centuries, reacting against the excesses of Baroque and Rococo.
  • Jacques-Louis David's paintings are considered masterpieces of French neoclassicism.
• In contrast to other movements: Implies a deliberate, conscious return to classical ideals, distinct from the original classical period or from Romanticism.
  • Where Romanticism emphasized emotion, neoclassicism valued reason and idealized form.

Variants and Related Words

• Neoclassical (adjective): Pertaining to or characteristic of neoclassicism.
  • The museum's neoclassical façade is a local landmark.
• Neoclassicist (noun): An artist, writer, or architect who practices or advocates for neoclassicism.

Synonyms

• Classicism (Note: Often used interchangeably, but "neoclassicism" specifically denotes a later revival.)
• Revivalism (in the specific context of classical styles)

Antonyms

• Romanticism
• Baroque
• Rococo
• Modernism (in certain contexts)

Noun

1. revival of a classical style (in art or literature or architecture or music) but from a new perspective or with a new motivation