Neo and Post Impressionism

Neo and Post impressionism developed out of impressionist. A group of young painters came known as Post-Impressionists at the exhibitions ' Manet and the post-Impressionists ' held at the Grafon Galleries in London in 1910. These were artists who were influenced by impressionism but broke free from it and started their own artistic style expressing emotion and themes of symbolism . 

Among these artists were

Paul Gaugin ( 1848- 1891)

Vincent Van Gogh (1853-1890)

Paul Cezenne (1839 - 1934)   

 The main artists of neo- impressionism were George Seurat and Paul Sigurac who sought to place scientific knowledge in art. The contrast of complementary colours and optical mixture

The neo- impressionists applied small touches of pure colour next to one another on their canvas. They depicted, landscapes places of entertainment Seurat developed pointillism/ Divisonism.

Signac wrote the highly influential 1889 treatise from Eugene Delacroix to neo- impressionism.

The treatise influenced artists such as pissarro, Van Gogh, Matisse and Kandunsky  

George Pierre Seurat
Self- Portrait

George Pierre Seurat was born on 2nd December 1859 in France. He was a French painter and a draftsman. In.In his earlier works Seurat produced drawings using conte crayon on textured paper.He then experimented with styles inspired by Delacroix and the impressionists. Seurat started using a scientific approach to the application of colour and composition. This led to a new technique known as Pointillism. This involved small dots of pure colour painted next to each other. Examples of this are Bathers at Asnieres and A Sunday on la Grande Jatte.

A Sunday on la Grande Jatte by George Pierre Seurat

La Grade Jatte was first exhibited in May 1886 in the final Impressionist exhibition. It portrays fashionable Parisians enjoying a Sunday afternoon at a popular spot on the River Seine. In this painting Seurat experiments with colour, subject matter and composition.It is a scientific approach to composition and application of colour.

This involved placing small dots of pure colour next to each other on the canvas. Seurat perfected the technique known as division of pointillism.

The colours in this painting suggests the effect of warm, hazy sunshine the figures although stylised and statue like give us the feeling of busy scene of people enjoying themselves in the sunlight.  

Paul Cezanne

Paul Cezanne was born on 19th January 1836 in Aix-en-Provence. His works which consisted of building form with colour and analytical approach influenced the cubist and the fauvists. He lived between Aix-en-provence and Paris where he studied and became involved with the impressionist movement. In 1880s Cezanne started moving further away from the impressionist style of painting.

The Large Bathers  (1906) by Paul Cezanne

The theme of nude figures as a group in a landscape attracted Cezanne for a long time. In the final decade of his life time Cezanne painted three large oils of female bathers. Possibly began as early as 1895 and were still being worked on just before his death n 1906. Shy of woman, he did not use female models, so most of his nude paintings were created. In this painting and also the other two, Cezenne paints the figures as solid forms and they are in harmony with their setting, the sky and trees.

The colours are bright following the ideas of impressionism focusing on light. Many of the forms of the bathers are heavily outlined but at the same time combined with areas of tone.

The Composition creates a balance and calm in his painting.The trees form the sides of a huge triangle and the figures are also arranged in triangular groups.      

Vincent Van Gogh 

In his early paintings Van Gogh his work was dark and naturalistic when he moved to Paris his style changed due to coming in contact with Impressionist Artists.

His palette lighted and was influenced by Japanese prints. In 1988 he moved to Arles where he painted hundreds of canvases and created his greatest master pieces.

Vincent Van Gogh- Chair

In Van Gogh's chair' Vincent used paint thickly and left the brush strokes showing. Often he used the paint directly from the tube. He used firm, dark outlines paint to the shapes.

Van Gogh painted a pipe and tobacco pouch to show that he only needed to paint everyday objects that surrounded him.The onions  sprouting in box could have a symbolic meaning as Gauguin wanted him to paint from imagination and not real life.The box also has Van Gogh's signature. The floor's perspective is exaggerated. This is inspired from the work of Japanese artists who disregarded the rules of perspective.   

 'Starry Night' by Vincent Van Gogh

In Starry Night there are whirling clouds, shining stars and a bright crescent moon. In this painting spacing between the curving swirling and the stars is created using heavy and thick brush strokes which give the painting rhythm and movement. Starry Night composition is surreal and stylized. This shows it was distinct from the Impresssionist technique. In this painting he used thick brush strokes. In his technique he adds depth as well as a rich texture to his  work.

The main light source are the bright stars and crescent moon.

Van Gogh used white and yellow to create the spirals giving attention to the sky.

The village is painted in dark colours but the windows are brightly lit with small blocks of yellows, oranges and greens with a dash of reds to create a scene of comfort. It is peaceful in comparison to the dramatic night sky while the silence of the night can almost be felt.

The cypress tree dominates the foreground on the left and the church tower gently breaks up the composition. He chose dark blues and greens to show the reflection of the moon. Dominance of blue is balanced by the orange of the night sky.

Paul Gaugin- Self-Portrait

Paul Gaugin was born on 7th June in 1848 in Paris. He was a leader of post-impressionism. He usesd bold experimentation with colouring. His subjects are expressed with a strong sense of design, bold, flattened ,simplified forms, colour. While living in Pont-Aven, Brittany, he created Vision of the Sermon. He used pure, intense colour. This marked  the change from the Impressionist style to the Post -Impressionist.

Gaugin travelled to Panama and Martinique and in 1891 he set off to Tahiti where he lived in poverty. This was his most creative period.   

Tahitian women on the beach an analysis by Paul Gauguin

Tahitian Women on the Beach was painted in June 1891. He used a style with both bold colours, flat and simplified shapes. In this painting there are  two woman sitting on the sand one is facing the viewer and the other one on the left is facing away from the viewer. The young woman sitting on the left hand side her back towards us and her face down. She is wearing a white top and a  red pareo cloth wrapped around the body forming a skirt with a white floral print . Her black hair is tied up with a yellow ribbon and a white flower is placed hanging from her ear. Her right arm extends towards the viewer. The women on the right is wearing pink, cross legged.  Although they sit next to each other they are disconnected and seem to be lost in their own thoughts. 

In this painting he shows stark contrast against the light were the two woman are sitting and the green water of the lagoon and the blackness of the sea,  which is highlighted with white from the breaking waves.  This  shows the foreground and background  creating perspective.

Bibliography

(online) Avalibale at:< http://www.artble.com/artists/vincent_van_gogh/paintings/starry_night/more_information/analysis

 (Accessed 12th May 2014)

(online) Avalibale at:<  http://www.artble.com/artists/paul_cezanne (Accessed 12th May 2014)

(online) Avalibale at:< http://www.squidoo.com/gauguin-tahitian-women-on-the-beach-an-analysis (Accessed 12th May 2014)

(online) Avalibale at:< http://www.gauguingallery.com/tahitian-women-on-the-beach.aspx 

(Accessed 12th May 2014)

(online) Avalibale at:< http://www.artble.com/artists/paul_cezanne/paintings/the_large_bathers (Accessed 12th May 2014)

Book

Janes, K.H.,Chivers, I and Zaczek, I., 2011. Great Paintings, London: Penguin Group