DE STIJL

We speak of concrete and not abstract painting because nothing is more concrete, more real than a line, a color, a surface

Theo Van Doesburg

Where did the De Stijl Movement began

Netherlands

embraced an abstract, pared-down aesthetic centered in basic visual elements such as geometric forms and primary colors

De Stijl

It is also known as the Neoplasticism

De Stijl

De Stijl believed beauty arose from the absolute “__________ ____ _____ ________”

purity of the work

They sought to purify art by banning:

• naturalistic representation,

• external values and

• subjective expression.

The content of their work was to be ___________ ___________ the order that pervades the universe

universal harmony,

The implications for modern design proved to be ____________

immense

This movement was unique in that it was a new way of thinking and it was a philosophy that did not only appear in artwork but also in the artists’ everyday lives, such as the architecture of their houses.

De Stijl

Those who were followers of this movement kept it in all aspects of their lives

De Stijl

De Stijl advocated the absorption of _____ ____by _________ ____

pure art by applied art

The spirit of art could then infuse society through……….

• architecture,

• product and

• graphic design

Under this system, art would not be subjugated to the level of the everyday object; the everyday object would be elevated to the level of art.

De Stijl

TRUE OR FALSE: De Stijl became a natural vehicle for expressing the movement’s principles in graphic design

TRUE

What was the main purpose of the DE STIJL movement

to find a new aesthetic of art and principles.

What do DE STIJL artists BELIEVED?

De Stijl founders and artists believed that there was a utopian approach to aesthetics through function, line, and specific colors

What do DE STIJL artists SOUGHT after?

De Stijl artists SOUGHT an expression of the mathematical structure of the universe and the universal harmony of nature

is grounded in the idea that the true purpose of art is not to reproduce real objects, but to express the absolutes of life

Neo-Plasticism

Also called NEW ART

Neo-Plasticism

explained his theory of Neo-Plasticism in Pictorial Art( De Nieuwe Beelding in de schilderkunst) in the first dozen or so issues of the journal De Stijl.

Piet Mondrian

In 1920, he published a book entitled Le Neo - Plasticisme

Piet Mondrian

De Stijl was greatly influenced by ___ ___ ___ ________________ a philosophical mathematician.

M. H. J. Schoenmaekers

He related color and lines and stressed the importance of them,

“The three principal colors are essentially yellow, blue and red. They are the only colors exists…yellow is the movement of the ray (vertical)…blue is he contrasting color to yellow (horizontal firmament)…red is the mating of yellow and blue” (Wolf)

M. H. J. Schoenmaekers

He believed in the beauty of pure geometry.

M. H. J. Schoenmaekers

Geometric forms never change and exist beyond physical reality in what Plato called the “______ ___ ______”

World of ideas

TRUE OR FALSE: While De Stijl sought an expression of the harmony of nature, it did not try to imitate nature. Instead, it tried to achieve pure abstraction by reducing everything down to its essential form.

TRUE

TRUE OR FALSE: Their artwork did not show much personality. They used straight lines and rectangular forms.

TRUE

TRUE OR FALSE: The color palette was reduced to primary colors, plus black and white. They avoided symmetry and achieved aesthetic balance by the use of opposition

TRUE

His aim was to promulgate a new design paradigm of harmony and order, by reducing all art to essentials of form and colour.

Piet Mondrian

He expressed that "this new art will find its expression in the abstraction of form and colour, that is to say, in the straight line and the clearly defined primary colour"

Piet Mondrian

He is a Dutch artist best known for his abstract paintings. Art that is abstract does not show things that are recognisable such as people, objects or landscapes. Instead artists use colours, shapes and textures to achieve their effect.

Piet Mondrian

TRUE OR FALSE: When Mondrian made his paintings, he would always mix his own colours, never using the paint directly out of a tube. He often used primary colours – red yellow and blue – as in this painting.

TRUE

Artists of this movement, like Mondrian, strived for reduction of form and simplistic abstraction.

DE STIJL

Partly a reaction against the decorative excesses of Art Deco

DE STIJL

TRUE OR FALSE: the reduced quality of De Stijl art was envisioned by its creators as a universal visual language appropriate to the modern era, a time of a new, spiritualized world order.

TRUE

De Stijl was the brainchild of the Dutch painter, designer, writer, and critic _____ ___ _______

Theo van Doesburg

• While serving in the army, he encountered Mondrian's paintings, in which he saw his ideal.

• He then met him at an exhibition in the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam and, after many discussions, they formed the De Stijl art group

Theo van Doesburg.

At the same time they also founded the De Stijl journal, edited by Van Doesburg, to which He contributed numerous articles

Piet Mondrian

Although its circulation rarely exceeded 300 copies per issue, its readership was influential within artistic circles and widespread

Journal De Stijl (1917)

Led by the painters Theo van Doesburg and Piet Mondrian

DE STIJL

Its members, working in an abstract style, were seeking laws of __________ and _________ applicable both to art and to life

equilibrium and harmony

To this end, De Stijl artists turned their attention not only to fine art media such as painting and sculpture, but virtually all other art forms as well, including:

• industrial design,

• typography,

• literature

• music.

De Stijl's influence was perhaps felt most noticeably in the realm of _______________ helping give rise to the International Style of the 1920s and 1930s.

architecture

The principles were more about ________ and __________ which made de stijl look very minimalist and abstract compared to other art movements.

form and function

De stijls principles were based on a……..

• grid layout with vertical and horizontal lines that did or didn’t intersect each other

• using squares and triangles arranged in a vertical/horizontal layout to convey abstract simplicity with rectilinear forms

There is also a relationship of _________ and _________ _____ always found in De stijl paintings.

positive and negative space

emerged largely in response to the horrors of World War I and the wish to remake society in its aftermath

De Stijl

Simplified definition of De Stijl

The Style

Viewing art as a means of _______ and __________ _________, the members of De Stijl embraced a utopian vision of art and its transformative potential.

social and spiritual redemption

modeled on or aiming for a state in which everything is perfect; idealistic

De Stijl

Expressing the artists' search "for the universal, as the individual was losing its significance," this austere language was meant to reveal the laws governing the harmony of the world

De Stijl

What was the reason of the demise of the De Stijl Movement

Even though De Stijl artists created work embodying the movement's utopian vision, their realization that this vision was unattainable in the real world essentially brought about the group's demise

OBJECTIVES OF DE STIJL

• To rebuild society after WW1- essential ordering of structure.

• Construct an ideal ‘model’ for a new world.

• Achieving a utopian perception of spiritual harmony.

• Would function as a sign for n ethical view of society.

• To show that art and design have the power to change the future.

All of these artists incorporated the characteristic De Stijl elements in their work:

• primary colors red, yellow and blue, complemented by white, grey and black

• dominated by horizontal and vertical lines.

• search for the essence of the art of painting, combined with the notion that, by creating a well-designed living environment, humankind would experience inner improvement

CHARACTERISTICS of DE STIJL:

• ideas of spiritual harmony and order

• simplified visual compositions

• straight lines – vertical, horizontal & diagonal square & rectangular forms

• primary colours – red, blue and yellow

• primary values – black, white and grey asymmetrical geometrical form and shape with very technical construction

• Precise geometric forms of flat squares and rectangles.

• Play on positive and negative emphasis

De Stijl significantly influenced other art movements. For one, several of the members of De Stijl, including Theo van Doesburg, taught at the ___________

BAUHAUS

Furthermore, the geometric visual language and the idea of form following function made a significant impact on the architectural movement from the ‘20s and ‘30s known as ……

The International Style

proponents of the International Style

• Mies van der Rohe

• Walter Gropius

• Le Corbusier