While Impressionism as an art form established itself in the mid-1800s, there was a group of artists who disagreed with its basic sense of aesthetic. They believed that merely painting an observation or vision was frivolous, and began to look for more symbolic and personal meanings in art. The group of painters often painted individually with a style that came to be called Post-Impressionism.
Post-Impressionists were convinced that instead of focussing on light and an objective look at everyday life, reducing subjects to their basic geometric form or abstract shapes achieved a more stable, solid form of art. Through their style, they were trying to restore a sense of order to Impressionist paintings that seemed out-of-focus and obscure.
The important painters associated with this movement were Georges Seurat, Paul Cezanne, Paul Gauguin and Vincent Van Gogh, though they used a variety of techniques to achieve the Post-Impressionist form. These techniques would later develop into mature forms of art by themselves – George Seurat, noted for pointillism which used small dots to form an image; Henri Matisse who eventually led Fauvism (a form of painting that merged non-naturalistic colours with expressionist painting techniques); and Van Gogh’s expressive brushstrokes that eventually became Expressionism.
Though their radical and unique expressive painting styles, Post-Impressionists left a lasting legacy for painters to live up to and follow. Fauvism and Cubism were two forms of art born out of this movement.
Examples:
- Sunflowers: Painted in 1888 by Vincent Van Gogh, the painting was part of a series that he painted, with abstract figures and thick brushstrokes that used colour to display emotion than just light and depth. These paintings were so famous that the entire series was bought by a Japanese investor for $ 40 million in 1987.
- A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte: One of Georges Seurat’s most iconic paintings, the pointillism technique is on full display in the serene painting. It was considered a milestone in late 19th Century art, and Seurat took two years to perfect the form.
- Vision After the Sermon: This vibrant painting by Paul Gauguin blends reality which spiritual symbols. There is a vision of Jacob battling the angel in the background and a group of churchgoers in the foreground witnessing the mystical and primitive.
Wow facts:
- Paul Gauguin, an important Post-Impressionist and controversial painter, wanted to escape the aggravations of the industrialized Europe and constantly searched for an untouched land of simplicity and beauty. Gauguin travelled to distant, remote places where he could live and paint a pure country landscape and its people. He made some of his most insightful art while he was in Tahiti, on the Pacific Ocean.
- In many of Henri Matisse’s works, the separation of colour from its usual purpose was one of the most iconic aspects that made his paintings famous. This led to the beginning of the Post-Impressionist movement.
Picture Credit : Google
