Review of Arte

アルテ - The anime adaptation is based on the manga series by Ohkubo, Kei. The idea is borrowed from the life story of a real painter and tries to give an insight into a chapter in contemporary history. Since I am very fond of historical references, it was only a matter of time before I stumbled upon this anime. Story: Simple and suitable for the target group, but unfortunately too romantic from a historical point of view (6/10) In the archaic world of the 16th century, a young daughter from a noble family wants to become a painter. This does not sound very exciting at first,but the story has a kernel of truth. It is not immediately obvious, but the first name Arte could be short for Artemisia and would thus refer to the Italian painter Artemisia Gentileschi. Well, one could object that the anime is set in the early 16th century and Artemisia was born in the late 16th century (1593 - 1656), so her works are more likely to be assigned to the Baroque period. This argument would be justified, since it is accurate. But given the parallels between the anime and Artemisia's life, to name just a few examples, leaving parental home, finding a teacher, and moving to another major city, the argument in this regard can be neglected. Unfortunately, the story only contains those elements of Artemisia's life that are bearable for the target group of young people, especially Shoujo. In my opinion, the indication "Seinen" is not correct, because then the anime would be considerably darker and would depict or at least hint at more of the very tragic and sad circumstances in Artemisia`s life. The criticism of historical transfiguration will run like a thread through my review, and as I know I will get a bit carried away at some point due to the subject matter, I apologise in advance.

Characters: Pleasant but simply structured, a plain attempt to impart wisdom (5/10)
Both the characters and the depiction of their individual stories serve to convey life wisdom. While the historical circumstances are basically portrayed correctly, the difficulties that women could hardly overcome are too romanticised. With that in mind it becomes understandable why the supporting characters, such as Arte's father and especially Ubertino, have a huge influence on Arte despite the little screen time they have at their disposal. Due to the target group-specific focus on the main character and the comedy, deeper insights into contemporary history, such as the humiliation of the baker in episode 4, remain peripheral.
Arte Spalletti:
An enthusiastic young woman who, after the death of her father, is heiress to a noble but penniless family of the Florentine nobility. Determined to realise her dream of becoming a painter, she defies time and her mother's will and tries to stand on her own two feet. The anime shows the difficulties, but very mildly. In a historical context, this would be seen as being on the verge of feasibility. To cut a long story short, the portrayal in the anime is simply too cute and does not do justice to the hardships and sacrifices of women in order to free themselves from the shackles of the early modern period (16th century).
Leo:
Given his humble origins, despite his talent, he had to work harder, be more diligent, and endure more hardships to build a reputation and be recognised as an artist. He accepted Arte as his apprentice because her determination and actions reminded him of his youth. He is a good character whose development is outlined and also plausible, yet he is a fiction. The historical role model in this case would be Agostino Tassi and this one would be exactly the opposite. So this deviation is elementary, makes the anime more romantic and less gloomy, but the indication as historical is not accurate in this respect.
Ubertino:
His character is actually one of the most important, so I am surprised that so little attention is paid to him. His character reflects the nature and mindset of the "de Medici" family. Starting with the textile trade, the Medici created a dynasty that lasted from the 15th to the 18th century and is inextricably linked to Florence. Their actions are considered the basis of today's banking system, and their patronage shaped the Renaissance in Florence. One might object and ask what the evidence of a Medici family connection is. Again, the name, in this case Ubertino, can be helpful as a clue. Around 1516 Lorenzo di Piero de 'Medici was enfeoffed with the Duchy of Urbino, which fits into the time and the historical background of the anime plot. However, Ubertino's actions are much better suited as evidence. As an art dealer, or a merchant in general, he takes on the role of a middleman, which was crucial at the time. On the one hand, he bridges the local distances between artist and customer by taking care of the transport, on the other hand, the time delay is part of his activity, because a work of art takes a long time to be finished. He can provide the financial means for the procurement of paints, ingredients or tools. Since he often deals with different works of art by different artists, his knowledge of value also provides a certain expertise in evaluating the art objects. In rare cases, for example when recognizing a great talent, he may also act as a patron. In my opinion, Ubertion is the best portrayed character, which also impresses me because he has received relatively little screen time.
I have read a couple times that the supporting characters come across as boring. I think that's a bit of an exaggeration, the characters of Katarīna or Angelo Parker, among others, are likeable and fit well into the plot, but it is unfortunately true that they are basically just colourless extras. However, in my opinion, this does not apply to Veronica. The characterization here is also a kind, basically good-hearted person, but clearly shows that every life has a dark side. For me, she clearly stands out from the extras and is the best elaborated supporting role next to Ubertino.

Visuals: Try to present the appearance of the era well, but too flawlessly due to CG (6/10)
The visuals are praised in some reviews, as far as the architecture of the buildings and the artistry used are concerned, that's fine. Through the use of computer-aided graphics, the famous sights of the city are impressively reproduced with a high recognition value, for example the imposing Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore, which is rightly the city's landmark with its beauty. The Ponte Vecchio, one of the most famous and beautiful bridges in the world, which crosses the Arno River, is also well done. The bridge was built in 1345 at the narrowest point of the river. The construction of the small overhanging bridge shutters makes the Ponte Vecchio unique for tourists today. In the series, I was thrilled that the bridge was depicted correctly. It used to be mainly butchers who hawked their wares here, but when the ducal family moved to the nearby Palazzo Pitti in the late 16th century, they decreed that only jewellers could do business on the bridge. This was because they felt disturbed by the smell of meat and so the little bridge shops came into being, which did not exist in Artes' time. The first 30 years of the 16th century were marked by many changes in Florence, including the temporary removal of the Medici from power and their reinstatement by military means around 1530, which resulted in a great famine due to the siege of the city. Against this backdrop, and despite the fact that the architecture is beautifully rendered, the overall impression of the city is too neat and tidy for the era in which the series is set. The streets are wider and more neatly swept than usual at the time. Indeed, it is the ease with which one can say that the graphics are beautiful that clearly reflects the characteristics of the focus on a younger audience. The most striking example for me is the shed where Arte lives. At first it looked like a real drawing, but the renovation made it sterile, neat, precise and thus computer-generated and soulless. What I want to say is that because of the CGI, the viewer's gaze is focused too much on the surroundings and thus misses what is really important. My criticism corresponds to what Leo-san does with Arte in the third episode. He has her draw the background to a painting several times until she asks why she should draw it over and over again. The explanation is that the background is not the focus of the painting. It's a portrait, so the person in the picture should actually be the focus. Arte has brought the background to the fore with her expressive painting. I couldn't have put into words more beautifully and aptly why CGI will never be my cup of tea. To complete the thought, the character designs are simple but very beautiful. The simplicity is especially noticeable in relation to the very pretty and far too accurate and pleasing environment. The character designs do not harmonise much in this environment, although they are the essentials.
In contrast, there is hardly anything to criticise about the animation. The movements are well executed and have a natural posture and flow. I also noticed that movements that take place in the background actually remain in motion. Arte's market visits can serve as an example here. The people moving in the background are really going in one direction. The backgrounds are rarely a still image, this is not standard and I liked it very much. Unfortunately, even very good animation cannot completely mitigate the shortcomings in the art, but it is a definite plus.

Sounds: Mixed impression, therefore unfortunately only (6/10)
The music for Arte was composed by Itō, Gorō and bears the signature of the all-rounder. Itō-san is a composer, arranger, guitarist and producer. He has performed as a solo artist and as a member of the bossa nova duo "naomi & goro" in Japan and abroad. He successfully produces his own albums and also writes film scores. Many different styles can be found in Artes' musical arrangements, whereby the cheerfulness of bossa nova as original Brazilian dance music always comes to the fore a little. The spectrum of musical styles used ranges from classical to rock to modern. Some of the music is very soulful, such as Katarīna's Past "カタリーナの過去", a beautiful piano solo arrangement, or "Arte Alegret", classical with full orchestra and a slight emphasis on strings and grand pianos. But also very suitable for the series is the arrangement "In Venice", for example, which has a gentle touch of medieval music, played by a modern orchestra. The melodies of "Prayer 1 and 2" have, in keeping with the name, a sacred touch. My criticism of the music section relates less to the music itself than to its use. Occasionally I found the BGM to be too intrusive or a little out of place in the scenes, as it either started too abruptly or with an inappropriate time delay. I find it very unfortunate that the basically very appealing music was not used to its advantage.
The Japanese actress and singer Sakamoto, Maaya sings the first OP "Clover". She has already appeared in many anime and the performance here is also very successful. The title song was kept cheerful, light J-pop, accompanied by an orchestra, similar to Idol songs. Overall, the piano and guitar sound is somewhat in the foreground and the vocals harmonise well with it. Like the background music, it is not exceptional, but well done. As described above for the art, it is easy to say that it is beautiful because it is flawless. It was created to please, but it lacks the idiosyncrasies that generally make art special.
The ED is called "Hare Moyō" and is sung by the Japanese seiyū and singer Yasuno, Kiyono. The arrangement has a beautiful guitar playing as the basic melody and the vocals are beautifully matched to it. A very nice musical arrangement that also stands out from the usual with the orchestra and harp in the background. The animation of the ED is not very fancy, which spoils the overall impression a bit, but that does not detract from the beauty of the music at all.
The dubbing actors for the main characters are very well casted. As always in my reviews, I like to take a closer look at the supporting roles and here, among the male dubbing voices, Fujiwara Mitsuru in particular caught my eye. He has a good voice and pronunciation in relation to the characters portrayed, especially as he speaks two very different roles, Danilo and the Baker. Among the female voices, I particularly liked the soft voice of Daphne, spoken by Tomatsu, Haruka. Her timbre is very pleasantly soft and a little deeper. In keeping with the role, she speaks clearly and somewhat slower. A very beautiful performance.

Unfortunately, the production cannot fully present the subject in a mature way. With the implementation for a younger audience and many comedy elements, an imbalance is created with the deep theme of the anime. The result is that a young target group finds most of the series uninteresting, while an older target group finds the presentation of the topics inappropriate and historically incorrect. Regardless of the entertainment value of the series, both target groups are not completely satisfied. That said, I would recommend the anime if someone is looking for fun entertainment and the historical background is of little interest.

As always, thanks for reading and have fun watching.