Fauvism: Experiments in Color and Form

Understanding Fauvism: Experiments in Color and Form

Introduction to Fauvism

• This lecture focuses on Chapter Five, "The New Century: Experiments in Color and Form," specifically the early $20^{th}$ century stylistic development of Fauvism.

• Key artists associated with Fauvism are Henri Matisse (French) and André Derain (French).

Lecture Schedule Overview

• French Terms: Define $Fin$ $de$ $Siècle$ and $La$ $Belle$ $Époque$. These terms help art historians distinguish specific time periods.

• Impressionist Precedent: Examine two Claude Monet paintings to understand Impressionist inventions and subject matter.

• Fauvism: Focus on Henri Matisse (born $1869$, lived until $1954$) and André Derain (born $1880$, lived until $1954$).

Historical Context: Fin de Siècle and La Belle Époque

• $Fin$ $de$ $Siècle$: Translated as "the end of the century," specifically refers to the end of the $19^{th}$ century.

• $La$ $Belle$ $Époque$: Translated as "the beautiful age," associated with the beginning of the $20^{th}$ century.

• Reasons for "The Beautiful Age": The $20^{th}$ century promised an easier life due to new inventions:

  • Machines for manual labor.

  • New medicines and treatments for diseases.

  • Increased emphasis on leisure activities, even more than in the $1870s$ and $1880s$ during the Impressionist period.

• Notable $20^{th}$ Century Inventions: Automobiles, airplanes, and the cinema (cinema specifically linked to continued leisurely activities).

Impressionism: A Precursor (Claude Monet)

• Pre-$Fin$ $de$ $Siècle$: The Impressionists (late $19^{th}$ century) often painted scenes of nature.

• Painting Example 1: Claude Monet, The Railroad Bridge in Argenteuil ($1873-1874$)

  • Medium: Oil on canvas.

  • Impressionist Characteristics:

    • Plein Air Painting: Artists painted outdoors, leading to smaller canvases.

    • Subject Matter: Scenes of nature and contemporary leisurely activities.

    • Societal Context: The railroad allowed Parisians easy day or weekend trips outside the city, often to suburbs like Argenteuil, where Monet spent considerable time.

    • Brushstrokes: Quick, thick, visible brushstrokes, giving a "sketchy look." This contrasts with Neoclassical paintings where brushstrokes were hidden to achieve immense detail.

• Painting Example 2: Claude Monet, The Basin at Argenteuil ($1872$)

  • Location: Argenteuil, a suburb easily accessible from Paris via the Seine River and railroad.

  • Typical Impressionist Subject Matter: Nature escapes for Parisians, strolls along the Seine, boating, bathing.

  • Social Commentary (Implied): Figures, though not detailed, suggest upper-middle or upper-class individuals (man with top hat, woman with parasol), indicating their ability to partake in leisure. This aligns with analysis of Seurat's Sunday at La Grande Jatte where symbols distinguish social classes.

  • Technical Side: Thick dashes of paint (e.g., in leaves), focus on depicting a precise moment in time, atmospheric conditions (clouds), and the effect of light on surfaces.

• Summary of Impressionism: Focus on nature, leisure, everyday life, and quick, visible brushstrokes to capture fleeting light and atmosphere.

Transition to the $20^{th}$ Century: New Stylistic Developments

• $La$ $Belle$ $Époque$ (Early $20^{th}$ Century): Rapid emergence and quick abandonment of new stylistic developments.

• Artist's Approach: Artists built upon previous techniques.

• Three Main Stylistic Developments (Early $20^{th}$ Century):

  1. Fauvism (Chapter Five focus)

  2. Cubism (Next week's topic)

  3. Expressionism

• Influence of African Cultures: All these early $20^{th}$ century movements, including Fauvism, were connected to European artists' interest in African cultures.

  • Precedent: Paul Gauguin's focus on "Primitivism" in the late $19^{th}$ century.

  • Critical Lens: It's crucial to remember that these European artists viewed African cultures through a European colonial lens, and their artistic interpretations were a European perspective on African cultures. This awareness will be important for understanding Cubism as well.

Henri Matisse: The Genesis of Fauvism

• Biography:

  • Born: $1869$; Died: $1954$.

  • Late bloomer in art, began studying at age $22$ after initially studying law.

  • $1891$: Began at Académie Julian.

  • $1892$: Entered École des Beaux-Arts, studying under Gustave Moreau.

• Influence of Gustave Moreau:

  • Excellent instructor, encouraged students to discover their unique style.

  • Advised students (including Matisse) to study in Parisian museums (e.g., the Louvre), copy old masters to develop skills.

  • Introduced Matisse to other artists who would become known as the Fauves.

• Early Modern Work: The Dinner Table ($1896-1897$)

  • Considered Matisse's first modern painting.

  • Shows his interest in still life and a developing focus on color.

• Transitional Work: Luxury, Calm and Pleasure ($1904-1905$)

  • Created while staying with Neo-Impressionist Paul Signac in Saint-Tropez on the French Riviera.

  • Technique: Utilized a divisionist-like technique, but with thicker dashes of paint, not small dots.

  • Radical Use of Color: Unlike Neo-Impressionists, Matisse used color in an unnaturalistic manner. Colors did not realistically represent nature (e.g., red ground, blue trees, blue mountains, intense pure color squeezed directly from the tube).

• Comparison with Paul Signac's Work (example from $1893$):

  • Signac used the divisionist technique with small dots, but his imagery remained naturalistic (green grass, green trees).

  • Signac also used aerial perspective (background less clear/lighter than foreground to create $3D$ illusion).

  • Matisse's Departure: No aerial perspective; colors maintained their brightness even in the background.

• Audience Reaction: Radical use of color and lack of traditional perspective would have shocked a Parisian audience in the early $20^{th}$ century.

• The Coining of "Fauvism": The Open Window ($1905$)

  • Exhibited by Matisse and three other artists at the Salon d'Automne of $1905$. A critic, Louis Vauxcelles, described the artists in one room as "wild beasts" ($fauves$ in French) due to their extreme use of color.

  • The Salon d'Automne of $1905$ became known as the "Fauve Salon."

• The Fauve Trio (Principal Fauve Artists):

  1. Henri Matisse

  2. André Derain

  3. Maurice de Vlaminck

• Analysis of The Open Window:

  • Challenges traditional perspective: The view out the window appears to advance towards the viewer rather nowreceding into the background.

  • Builds on Gauguin and Symbolists: Artists don't need to use color naturalistically.

  • Result: Paintings appear flatter due to the use of color to create $3D$ space, defying traditional perspective.

• Impactful Painting: The Joy of Life

  • Purchased by American writer Gertrude Stein and her brother Leo.

  • Instrumental in introducing Matisse to Picasso and vice versa, significant for contextualizing the timeline of early $20^{th}$ century stylistic developments like Cubism.

André Derain: A Key Fauve

• Biography: Born: $1880$; Died: $1954$.

• Collaboration with Matisse (Summer $1905$ in Collioure): They painted together, creating works for the Fauve Salon, consciously developing a new and unique style while anticipating Parisian reactions.

• Subject Matter: Fauves generally favored landscape and figure paintings.

• Technical Characteristics (Example Landscape Painting):

  • No Atmospheric Perspective: Uses color forms to distinguish foreground and background.

  • Example Description: Vertical dashes of yellow and green in the foreground for vegetation, vivid blues and greens for middle ground trees, and vivid forms of blue, red, and orange for the hillside in the background, topped with a green sky.

  • Unnaturalistic Color: Colors do not have to be realistic.

  • Shallow Depth: The painting appears very flat despite color distinguishing different planes.

• Implications: The flatness and radical use of color would significantly influence future art movements discussed in subsequent chapters.

Required Video: Exhibition Tour

• Purpose: Observe exhibition design, artwork arrangement, and curatorial choices (e.g., accent walls, theme, order of artworks).

• Relevance: Directly prepares students for the final assignment: proposing an exhibition.

• Exhibition Example: A tour of an exhibition that ran from $2003$ to $2004$.

• Curators: Two curators from the Metropolitan Museum of Art (The Met) and the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston (a local museum).

• Curatorial Process: Curators spend approximately $2-3$ years researching and organizing an exhibition, becoming highly knowledgeable about the featured artworks.

Conclusion

• Students are encouraged to attend office hours or reach out via email for any questions about the material. Have a great start to the week.