Fauvism

Question 1

Background

Answer 1

• Three French painters, Henri Matisse, Andre Derain, and Maurice Vlaminck
• Exhibited their artwork and shocked people with their use of bright colours
• Fauves means wild beasts in French
• Got their name from negative criticism
• The liberation of colour was their biggest contribution to Modernism

Question 2

Influences

Answer 2

• Vincent Van Gogh- His non-descriptive and emotional use of colour and the emphasis on feeling during the creation process
• Paul Gaughin- His belief in colour being able to convye emotion, sensations and feelings and that it can be used outside natural appearances, also cloisonism
• Georges Seurat- his use of divisionism where small dots of colours are applied to optically mix
• Non-western art- the use of colour, decorative qualities, and coloured textiles
• Synthetic colours- New technology created synthetic colours which helped them achieve vibrancy

Question 3

Characteristics

Answer 3

• Did not paint naturalistically becasue they believed painting had its own reality

Question 4

Subjc

Subject matter

Answer 4

• They worked from reality but depicted their emotional response to that subject
• Colours reflected that emotion

Question 5

Colour

Answer 5

• Colours were pure not mixed
• They were used to portray emotion
• They were used arbitrary/free choice
• The colours were more vibrant than previous artist’s work
• Vibrant patches of the same colour occupied large areas of the canvas
• Was used to express shape ligth, shape, and depth

Question 6

Form/shape

Answer 6

• Shapes were distorted
• Form was subordinate to colour
• Deliberate clumsiness
• Very decorative
• Shapes were outlined
• Had a child-like look

Question 7

Application

Answer 7

• Brushstrokes were energetic and quick
• Paint was applied straight from the tube
• Strokes carried emotion
• Went from broken divisionism to flat plain areas

Question 8

Henri Matisse

Answer 8

• Used to be a lawyer
• Works on his art slowly and labourously
• Early on he took inspiration from Georges Seurat in his divisionism
• His subject matter was mainly still lifes, the female form, and interior views from the outside looking in through a window
• Works gradually became more simplified

Question 9

The green stripe

Answer 9

• Is a portrait of Mrs Matisse
• Shocked people with how simplified and distorted it is
• The use of colour was very unconventional
• Use of colour has no relation to reality
• New and 2-dimensional portrayal
• Said to be an insult to women

Question 10

Harmony in red

Answer 10

• A maid is arranging fruit
• Background is a window looking out to trees, plants, and a house
• The subject is not radical but the way its been communicated is
• The space is flattend by using the red so widely
• All forms are extremely simplified
• Colour is used to create line, shape, and space
• Is not an emotional outburst but an intellectaul work that was carefully thought-out