Fauvism Expressed

Fauvism Expressed

Hellooo :) This blog post will entail a thorough report on an art movement called The Fauvism/ Fauves. It will also conclude the different artists that were protagonists of the movement for example; Matisse, Picasso and Andre Derain… Hence others areas that will surround the topic of discussion; such as style, history of the Fauves, reasons why it came about and how Fauvism developed onto a later date. In the main body of the dissertation I will gather and organise what exactly is meant by Fauvism and how it has developed on to artists to produce this style of art. I will then be discussing thoroughly my opinions as well as influences and comparisons between artists and most of all how it has impacted onto other movements.

Introduction to Fauvism:

Fauvism was explained as the first of the major avant-garde movements in European 20th century art, Fauvism was characterised by paintings that used intensely vivid, non-naturalistic and lavish colours.

Fauvism doesn't seem that radical, but at the time, it was a cutting edge movement; its very name, Fauvism, comes from the French word fauves meaning "wild beasts."

To truly understand Fauvism and its impact, you must understand its roots. Impressionism, made famous by painters like Monet, dominated paintings in the late 1800's. Impressionists used broken brush strokes and small dabs of colour to portray brief glimpses of their subjects; they showed how something looks when a certain light hits it. They painted modern life, the cities, people and landscapes around them. Fauvism took some of these ideas and exploded them, meanwhile ignoring others. Fauvists made bolder, vigorous and even violent brush strokes. Their work showed passion and enthusiasm, and they applied the same zest to colour. Fauvists used colour to express emotion about their subjects, not to show them realistically. In my opinion I would say that Fauvism acted as a rebellion towards other movements ‘Impressionism – Post’ to show another type of style within and how they could create something that had influenced them in the first place. 

The leading artists involved were Henri Matisse, Andre Derain, Raoul Dufy, George Braque, and Vlaminck. A signature trademark of Fauvism was contrasting colours, taken from opposite sides of the colour wheel. A good example is Henri Matisse's "Dance (II)" (1910), showing a ring of naked bodies in rich, earthy-rusty-orange (quite striking against a deep blue sky and vibrant green ground) rather than the softer, peachy skin tones he'd used in the original work, "Dance" in 1909.

Although Fauvism was short-lived (1905-08), it was extremely influential in the evolution of 20th century art.  

The Dance (II) 1910

Artists in Fauvism:

The Open Window- Collioure 1905

Henri Matisse was one of the Fauvist Artists during the movement in 1905. It was actually this artist that started the movement along with Andre Derain. 

At first glance, the apparent freedom of his style seems to deny any skill or technique, but when you begin to analyse his effective use of visual elements you start to realize that there is an instinctive sensibility at work. The key to his success in using such exaggerated colours was the realization that he had to simplify his drawing. I understand that if he intensified the quality of colour for expressive effect, it would then reduce the amount of detail used in drawing the shapes and forms of the image. 

By applying the same kind of simplification and spontaneity to his drawing and brushwork, Matisse was amplifying the sense of joy that he had achieved through colour.

He wrote, "We move towards serenity through the simplification of ideas and form.......Details lessen the purity of lines, they harm the emotional intensity, and we choose to reject them. It is a question of learning - and perhaps relearning the 'handwriting' of lines. The aim of painting is not to reflect history, because this can be found in books. We have a higher conception. Through it, the artist expresses his inner vision."  I think this quote actually impacted the way artists look at Fauvism today and in a way some parts of this quote resemble a teaching approach; as it says from lines 51 ‘The aim of the painting’… this line could actually teach those who want to try painting this movement or just to acknowledge them in how he expresses his style.

Rather than focusing on colour, Matisse aimed to create strikingly simple forms and figures, carefully balanced and with a distinct emphasis on movement and the expression contained within. This technique would be a major influence on Hans Hofmann and his development of the "push/pull" theory.  According to this theory, rather than representational forms, colour and form can create spacial depth and movement in a picture through traditional, linear perspective .

Andre Derain was the other artist in partnership in creating The Fauvism Art Movement.  Andre Derain was eventually recognized as the leader of Les Fauves, or "The Wild Beasts," and like the group, he emphasized the use of intense colour as a vehicle for describing light and space, as well as for communicating the artist's emotional state.

 In these regards, Fauvism proved to be an important precursor to Cubism and Expressionism, respectively, and an inspiration for future modes of abstraction.

In contrast to Henri Matisse, Andre Derain uses heavy brush strokes to create his expressive and descriptive qualities of colour in his work whereas Matisse uses colour at its maximum intensity, which explains why his painting looks slightly abstract with only one protagonist colour in this case red which is used frequently on the plant pots, and on the masts of the yachts. In my opinion I believe that he did this to complement the rest of the colours in the picture as well as to make a statement that these were the main objects that punctuate the painting. 

Derain’s style consists of using a conflict between warm and cool colours as well as using a heavy hand when perceiving the brush strokes he creates. It is said that this organized arrangement of tones in a landscape is called Aerial Perspective. This refers to a technique that was introduced in 1725, it is explained that this technique is used to create a perspective of depth in a painting by modifying the tone, hue or distinctness of objects identified from the picture.

Conclusion:

In conclusion I believe art movements are like a row of dominoes, each one impacting another as it moves, and Fauvism is no exception. The ‘Wild Beasts’ sprang from impressionist and post-impressionist influences, like Cezanne and Van Gogh and subsequently influenced other movements such as Abstract Impressionism and Surrealism.

Fauvism had an impact on other movements such as expressionism meaning that in time it had also influenced a mass number of single artists that were fascinated by the bold colorization that had begun to trend after the movement had taken place.