Beyond the Canvas: Why Modern Painters Broke Free from the Classical Line Step into almost any contemporary art gallery, and you’ll immediately notice a striking difference from the grand halls filled with Renaissance masters or Academic salon paintings. The meticulously rendered figures, the perfect perspective, the smooth, almost invisible brushstrokes – hallmarks of classical painting – are largely absent. So, why did most modern painters decisively turn away from this centuries-old tradition? The shift wasn’t a sudden whim, nor a sign of declining skill, but a profound evolution driven by technological, philosophical, and societal changes. Firstly, the advent of photography in the mid-19th century was a seismic event. Before cameras,…