EARLY ABSTRACTION: FAUVISM, A beginner's guide to Fauvism ...s... · Henri Matisse, Woman with a...

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EARLY ABSTRACTION: FAUVISM, EXPRESSIONISM, AND CUBISM Fauvism and Matisse A beginner's guide to Fauvism Matisse, Luxe, calme et volupté Matisse, Bonheur de Vivre Matisse, Dance I Matisse, The Red Studio Matisse, The Red Studio Matisse, Goldfish Matisse, "The Blue Window" Matisse, Piano Lesson Henri Matisse, The Green Line, 1905, oil on canvas, 40.5 x 32.5 cm (Statens Museum for Kunst, Copenhagen) Distinctive brushwork Fauvism developed in France to become the first new artistic style of the 20th century. In contrast to the dark, vaguely disturbing nature of much fin-de- siècle, or turn-of-the-century, Symbolist art, the Fauves produced bright cheery landscapes and figure paintings, characterized by pure vivid color and bold distinctive brushwork. "Wild beasts" When shown at the 1905 Salon d’Automne (an exhibition organized by artists in response to the conservative policies of the official exhibitions, or salons) in Paris, the contrast to traditional art was so striking it led critic Louis Vauxcelles to describe the artists as “Les Fauves” or “wild beasts,” and thus the name was born. One of several Expressionist movements to emerge in the early 20th century, Fauvism was short lived, and by 1910, artists in the group had diverged toward more individual interests. Nevertheless, Fauvism remains signficant for it demonstrated modern art’s A beginner's guide to Fauvism Log in About Donate KHANacademy Subject: Age of global 1 Unclaimed points Search for subjects

Transcript of EARLY ABSTRACTION: FAUVISM, A beginner's guide to Fauvism ...s... · Henri Matisse, Woman with a...

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! EARLY ABSTRACTION: FAUVISM,EXPRESSIONISM, AND CUBISM

Fauvism and Matisse

A beginner's guide toFauvism

Matisse, Luxe, calme etvolupté

Matisse, Bonheur de Vivre

Matisse, Dance I

Matisse, The Red Studio

Matisse, The Red Studio

Matisse, Goldfish

Matisse, "The Blue Window"

Matisse, Piano Lesson

Henri Matisse, The Green Line, 1905, oil oncanvas, 40.5 x 32.5 cm (Statens Museum for

Kunst, Copenhagen)

Distinctive brushwork

Fauvism developed in France to become the first

new artistic style of the 20th century. In contrast to

the dark, vaguely disturbing nature of much fin-de-

siècle, or turn-of-the-century, Symbolist art, the

Fauves produced bright cheery landscapes and

figure paintings, characterized by pure vivid color

and bold distinctive brushwork.

"Wild beasts"

When shown at the 1905 Salon d’Automne (an

exhibition organized by artists in response to the

conservative policies of the official exhibitions, or

salons) in Paris, the contrast to traditional art was so

striking it led critic Louis Vauxcelles to describe the

artists as “Les Fauves” or “wild beasts,” and thus the

name was born.

One of several Expressionist movements to emerge

in the early 20th century, Fauvism was short lived,

and by 1910, artists in the group had diverged toward

more individual interests. Nevertheless, Fauvism

remains signficant for it demonstrated modern art’s

A beginner's guide to Fauvism"

Log inAbout Donate• KHANacademy Subject: Age of global … # $ 1# Unclaimed points #Search for subjects, skills, and videos%

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Henri Matisse, Woman with a Hat, 1905, oil oncanvas, 79.4 x 59.7 cm (San Francisco Museum

of Modern Art)

remains signficant for it demonstrated modern art’s

ability to evoke intensely emotional reactions

through radical visual form.

The expressive potential of color

The best known Fauve artists include Henri Matisse, André Derain, and Maurice Vlaminck

who pioneered its distinctive style. Their early works reveal the influence of Post-

Impressionist artists, especially Neo-Impressionists like Paul Signac, whose interest in

color’s optical effects had led to a divisionist method of juxtaposing pure hues on canvas.

The Fauves, however, lacked such scientific intent. They emphasized the expressive

potential of color, employing it arbitrarily, not based on an object’s natural appearance.

Henri Matisse, Luxe, calme et volupté, 1904, oil on canvas, 98.5 x 118.5 cm(Museé d'Orsay, Paris)

In Luxe, calm et volupté (1904), for example, Matisse employed a pointillist style by applying

paint in small dabs and dashes. Instead of the subtle blending of complimentary colors

typical of Neo-Impressionism Seurat, for example, the combination of firey oranges,

yellows, greens and purple is almost overpowering in its vibrant impact.

Similarly, while paintings such as Vlaminck’s The River Seine at Chantou (1906) appear to

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Similarly, while paintings such as Vlaminck’s The River Seine at Chantou (1906) appear to

mimic the spontaneous, active brushwork of Impressionism, the Fauves adopted a painterly

approach to enhance their work’s emotional power, not to capture fleeting effects of color,

light or atmosphere on their subjects. Their preference for landscapes, carefree figures and

lighthearted subject matter reflects their desire to create an art that would appeal primarily

to the viewers’ senses.

Maurice de Vlaminck, The River Seine at Chatou, 1906, oil on canvas, 82.6x 101.9 cm (The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York)

Paintings such as Matisse’s Bonheur de Vivre (1905-06) epitomize this goal. Bright colors

and undulating lines pull our eye gently through the ideallic scene, encouraging us to

imagine feeling the warmth of the sun, the cool of the grass, the soft touch of a caress, and

the passion of a kiss.

Like many modern artists, the Fauves also found inspiration in objects from Africa and other

non-western cultures. Seen through a colonialist lens, the formal distinctions of African art

reflected current notions of Primitivism–the belief that, lacking the corrupting influence of

European civilization, non-western peoples were more in tune with the primal elements of

nature.

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Henri Matisse, Bonheur de Vivre (Joy of Life), 1905-6, oil on canvas, 176.5x 240.7 cm (Barnes Foundation, Philadelphia)

Blue Nude (Souvenir of Biskra) of 1907 shows how Matisse combined his traditional subject

of the female nude with the influence of primitive sources. The woman’s face appears

mask-like in the use of strong outlines and harsh contrasts of light and dark, and the hard

lines of her body recall the angled planar surfaces common to African sculpture. This

distorted effect, further heightened by her contorted pose, clearly distinguishes the figure

from the idealized odalisques of Ingres and painters of the past.

Henri Matisse, The Blue Nude (Souvenir de Biskra), 1907, oil on canvas,92.1 x 140.3 cm (Baltimore Museum of Art)

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The Fauves interest in Primitivism reinforced their reputation as “wild beasts” who sought

new possibilities for art through their exploration of direct expression, impactful visual forms

and instinctual appeal.

Essay by Dr. Virginia B. Spivey

Additional resources:

Fauvism at theartstory.org

Fauvism at The Metropolitan Museum of Art's Timeline of Art History

African Influences in Modern Art at The Metropolitan Museum of Art's Timeline of Art

History

Tips & Thanks

2 Votes • • by

Why did fauvism not last as long ?

1 Vote • • by

Why are some paintings painted using the dashes or dots of paint and othersare painted normally?

1 Vote • • by

The essay states, "Bright colors and undulating lines pull our eye gentlythrough the ideallic scene..." and by doing this we, as the viewers, areinspired to imagine and experience what is dipicted in the painting. Thiscreates a more authentic reaction to art that is personalized.

1 Vote • • by

Why was his inspiration just people it seems?

1 Vote • • by

Did the artist ever intend for the colors to let people know how the person in thepainting felt?

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