neoclassicism

American  

[nee-oh-klas-uh-siz-uhm] / ˌni oʊˈklæs əˌsɪz əm /

noun

1. Architecture. Often Neoclassicism the trend or movement prevailing in the architecture of Europe, America, and various European colonies at different periods during the late 18th and early 19th centuries, characterized by the introduction and widespread use of Greek orders and decorative motifs, the subordination of detail to simple, strongly geometric overall compositions, the presence of light colors or shades, frequent shallowness of relief in ornamental treatment of façades, and the absence of textural effects.

2. Sometimes Neoclassicism stylistic principles that attempt to revive classical Greek or Roman aesthetics or philosophy in art, literature, etc.

3. Sometimes Neoclassicism any of various movements of the late 1600s to the mid 1800s in architecture, the arts, literature, etc. that attempted to revive classical Greek or Roman aesthetics or philosophy.

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neoclassicism British  

/ ˌniːəʊˈklæsɪˌsɪzəm /

noun

1. a late 18th- and early 19th-century style in architecture, decorative art, and fine art, based on the imitation of surviving classical models and types

2. music a movement of the 1920s, involving Hindemith, Stravinsky, etc, that sought to avoid the emotionalism of late romantic music by reviving the use of counterpoint, forms such as the classical suite, and small instrumental ensembles

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Other Word Forms

• neoclassicist noun

Etymology

Origin of neoclassicism

First recorded in 1890–95; neo- + classicism

Explanation

Neoclassicism is a style of art that's inspired by ancient Greece and Rome. In 18th-century visual art and architecture, neoclassicism meant a return to simpler, more traditional forms. Neoclassicism can be seen all over the Western world, most obviously in large, symmetrical buildings with columns — the White House is a great example of this style. The revival of traditional forms rooted in Classical Greek and Roman art affected everything from fashion and music to literature and visual arts, arising along with the Age of Enlightenment in the 1700s. The word neoclassicism updates classicism ("classic style") with the Greek neo, or "new."

Example Sentences

Throughout the roaring decade, she became known for her impeccable techniques and her mixing of influences: cubism and neoclassicism, stillness and speed, past and future.

From Los Angeles Times • Jul. 1, 2022

Although the initial response was strong, the composer’s Art Nouveau aesthetic came to seem dated amid the rapidly moving trends of the twenties: twelve-tone music, Stravinskyan neoclassicism, the music theatre of Kurt Weill.

From The New Yorker • Aug. 12, 2019

The artist’s version of an Eastern Orthodox icon depicts Russian-born Touchstone director Ksenia Grishkova — not a saint or a goddess, perhaps, but exalted by Levinson’s neon-hued neoclassicism.

From Washington Post • Jul. 26, 2018

Looked at through the lens of today’s painting revival, driven by artists romping through styles from Surrealism to neoclassicism, the paintings seem almost sophisticated in their slapstick simplicity.

From New York Times • Jul. 3, 2011

It is this opposition, then, of neoclassicism and rationalism, that constitutes the basic issue of pastoral criticism in England during the Restoration and the early part of the eighteenth century.

From De Carmine Pastorali (1684) by Congleton, J. E. (James Edmund)

Related Words

• grandeur