Fauvism flourished in France during the early part of twentieth century and the Fauve painters were known to break away with Impressionism. The Fauves were known to known for their use vibrant colors and bold brushstrokes and how they sought new picture space with the movement of color planes. The exuberant Fauve artworks style carried highly intense color and has often been compared to German Expressionism because of the spontaneous brushwork with brilliant colors. The short lived phase of the early twentieth-century, Fauvism brought stronger color values over the realistic values of Impressionism. Henri Matisse and André Derain are considered the leaders of the movement (Fauvism 2016).The paper discusses a group of paintings and how they reflect the lemons of Fauvism in them.
The vibrant use of bright colors in "Charing Cross Bridge, London"1906 André Derain, art work is very characteristic of the Fauvist style. The expressive and emotional display of pure color on the canvas creates an illusion of reality in the cityscape. The artist makes use of bold and unrealistic colors in the street and buildings with large flat tones. Small, fragmented touches in the changing sky and water remind one of Neo-impressionist style. The distorted forms of the vehicles give a sensation of speed on the streets. The canvas is filled with contrasting colors of blues, greens, pinks, yellows and reds. This is considered as one of the finest Fauvist compositions that depict the views of London from the perspective of the artist. The splash of colors defy the considered traditional means of art. Each and every form on the canvas carries a significance because of the bright colors and forceful brushstrokes. The artist gives more importance to the color and allows them to project the elevated mood of the artwork. The simplified forms and saturated colors in the canvas draw the attention. Moving on to the next artwork “woman a hat” by Henri Matisse,the oil on canvas as done in 1905 by the artist and belongs to the Genre pf Portrait. The woman, her face, and her costume, as well as the background, are filled with vibrant colors. The artist makes use of unnatural colors on the canvas and is shown to take a risk here. He is ignoring the shadows and discarding the perspective here and thus rejects the distinction between lines and colors as stated by Sparling (325). One gets immediately drawn to the canvas because of its visual dominance. The face of the woman is covered with unnatural strokes of colors and looks like a mask. The blue color of the hat contrasts against the red of her hair. The artist uses pink for the jawline and orange on the neck and dark purpled red for the eyebrows. The artwork challenges the notion of the viewers and critics and how they observe art. However, the more one looks at the painting, the more they get involved with the expressiveness in the artist’s style because of the vivid colors and bold distinctive brushwork. "La gran legislación revolucionaria mexicana y la abolición de la esclavitud" is a mural by José Clemente Orozco, who painted it around 1948-49. José is considered one of the greatest muralists of the 20th century. The mural carrying vibrant colors and vigorous brushwork embodies the history. It shows a group of slaves around the priest of Dolores when the decree abolishing slavery was being signed. The artist makes realistic use of colors and lines here, as one can see in the figures of priest and the plastic rave red and white of the slave. The appealing composition carries a richness of colors and vigorous brushstroke. One can see the touch of Fauvism in the artwork but to a much lesser degree. The background is covered with dynamic strokes in shades of red. However, for the rest of the figures, the artist makes the image a lot more realistic as he tries to create depth with shadows and use of light. The focus of the artwork is more on the history and human suffering. There is a mysticism in the abstract style in the work by the famous Mexican artist and one finds it carrying no visible aspects of Fauvism.
Will Barnet is known to make an essential contribution to the American art. In “Old Man’s afternoon” 1947 oil on canvas, he shows his father with a parrot perched on his head and his grandson under the table, playing with a cat. The mask-like the head of the grandson is merged with the table and so is the parrot with the head of this father. Roosters leaning against the window further brighten the painting and make it lively. Just above the rainbow band is a cat-like a face and the composition get unified by a yellow patchwork quilt. The artist plays with forms and shapes both vertically and horizontally across the canvas, thus making it more dynamic and exciting. The figures of the elderly father, young son, parrot and cat are important here. There is a movement among all these characters and the visual elements, thus creating a visual tension across the canvas. The oil on canvas carries both elements of humor and serious formal ideas. The sensational piece of artwork by Barnet is a synthetic cubist in nature and moves towards more abstraction from figurative. Every form and shape in the canvas carries a definite place and shape and filled with bright solid colors. There are striking colors of yellow, green, red, blue, brown and black and yet they come together in a harmonious display. His work carries a symbolic meaning. There are no elements of Fauvism here although the artist has used bright colors but the artist uses smooth brush work.Hiis work reflects cubism and abstraction.
The oil on canvas, “Church at Ranchos de Taos” 1920 is an impressive piece of artwork by Oscar E. Berninghaus, who was fascinated by the Indians and Mexicans. He was equally impressed by the mountains and architecture and believed to fill his canvas with feeling and not by seeing, so as to create a true psychological understanding of the subject. In the artwork, one finds the ochre tone of the church building making a rich contrast with the aqua blue of the sky. The white church towers and the cross evoke the feelings of worship. The group of figures standing in front of the church and the muddy path dotted with greenery add to the peaceful settings. He uses short but quick brush strokes to give a unique texture to the painting. One can see an impressionistic manner in his way of working. The painter memorializes a particular time in the landscape and culture he portrays here, thus commemorating his subject. His primary subject matter revolved around the sights and scenes of Taos, and he was captivated by the landscape. He painted with his inner eye and one can make an emotional connection here.
“Cotton pickers” 1952 by William Gropper, an oil on canvas shows a vivid portrayal of several African Americans picking cotton in the fields. The painter of social concerns shows the hardworking blacks working under the capitalist system. His sympathy lies with those laborers that are portrayed vividly from the top. The background is done in a dark color while the field is done in reddish geometrical patch filled with green and covered with white dots showing the cotton. The dark-skinned workers wear brightly colored clothes and large hats. They are deeply engrossed in their work, and huge sacks are filled with the cotton lie near them. The African-Americans work under the shadow of a huge and ominous scarecrow wearing a white robe-like costume. The artist was a political cartoonist, and it is no surprise to see him choose the subject for his canvas, where he makes a sympathetic portrayal of minority workers, during adverse conditions of the time. In such figure compositions, the painter make use of the background to suggest the location. The canvas carries carefully ordered elements so as to deliver the right effect and vitality.
Clearly, only two of the artworks "Charing Cross Bridge, London" and “Woman with a hat” carry elements of fauvism. Recast of the works carry characteristics of cubism, abstraction and realism in them.
Works Cited
"Fauvism." metmuseum. 2016. Web. 7 May. 2016.
Hilary Spurling (2001) The Unknown Matisse: A Life of Henri Matisse : The Early Years, 1869- 1908
