Compare the portrait of george washington by houdon and napoleon crossing the alps. write a formal analysis describing the similarities and differences in the way that the elements and principles of art are used to communicate the power of these two leaders. answers should be a minimum of three fully-formed paragraphs.

George Washington and Napoleon Bonaparte were both leaders that participated in their respective countries' revolutions. And they’ve raised to power as the personification of their governments. Napoleon beside started as a revolutionary, became Emperor and build his dynasty, while Washington preserved the republican ideals that were base on USA independency.

The chosen media to depict both figures is different, as it was ordered to the French sculpture Jean-Antoine Houdon and confectioned in Carrara marble. It was commissioned by Virginia General Assembly and it was delivered in 1796. Napoleon Crossing the Alps (1801) is a Jacques-Louis David painting and this iconic image has other four versions belonging to different collections.

Both artworks are classified as part of the Neoclassic style, which was a revival of the classic values in arts, influenced by the Enlightenment and adopted by many rulers as their personification style. But we can other differences as the artist's intentions and characters' personalities reflected in those pieces of art.

George Washington is depicted in one of the most classic poses, which we can make a connection with the Michelangelo’s David, from the Renaissance. Made with the ruler’s real measures, Washington has a serene and proud physiognomy. There is no excess, as he’s holding a baton with his right hand, and reposing his left hand on a classic column, symbolizing that would be leaning on classic ideals to govern.

In Napoleon’s painting, we see different ways to compose a Neoclassic painting, which some critics consider it was David’s flirtation with the Romanticism movement that would rise a few years later. The character is depicted riding a brave horse, with exaggerated heroic features, holding a raised sword with his right hand, while the horse is in attack position. Napoleon’s face shows determination as he’s returning victorious from an important battle.

Those men personalities can also be described in those artworks symbology, as Napoleon became a despot who wanted to expand his territories and control the whole Europe, Washington ruled under a constitution and wanted to make a free and better place for American people.

they are often in theme and variations