6.2 — Post-Impressionism
Post-Impressionism (c. 1880s–1900s) gathers diverse artists who extended or reacted against Impressionist opticality. They pursued structure, symbolism, emotion, and personal vision—opening pathways to modernism.
Key Currents
- Color as Structure: Using hue to model form and space (Cézanne’s planes of color).
- Expressive Line and Distortion: Contour and pattern to convey emotion (Van Gogh, Gauguin).
- Pointillism/Divisionism: Scientific color dots for optical mixing (Seurat, Signac).
- Symbolic Content: Allegory, inner states, and “synthetic” color/form beyond naturalism.
Definition: Divisionism (Pointillism)
A technique of applying small, distinct dots or strokes of pure color so that they optically mix in the viewer’s eye, based on contemporary color theory.
Paul Cézanne
Cézanne sought to “make of Impressionism something solid and durable.” He built form with layered strokes and shifting planes, influencing Cubism.
- Motifs: Mont Sainte-Victoire, still lifes with apples and drapery, bathers.
- Method: Faceted brushwork, modulation of warm/cool to turn form, multiple viewpoints within one scene.
Vincent van Gogh
Expressive impasto, rhythmic line, and heightened color convey inner feeling.
- Key Works: “Starry Night,” “Sunflowers,” “Night Café,” Arles landscapes.
- Techniques: Thick, directional strokes; symbolic color for mood and spirituality.
Georges Seurat and Paul Signac
Scientific approach to light and color; measured composition.
- Seurat: “A Sunday on La Grande Jatte” — pointillist surface, classical order beneath leisure subject.
- Signac: Maritime scenes with prismatic Divisionist touch.
Paul Gauguin
Flattened forms, bold outlines (cloisonné), and non-natural color for spiritual or symbolic effect.
- Sites: Brittany (Pont-Aven), Tahiti.
- Works: “Vision after the Sermon,” “Where Do We Come From? What Are We? Where Are We Going?”
Beyond France
- Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec: Paris nightlife posters and paintings with daring crops and flat color.
- Édouard Vuillard & Pierre Bonnard (Nabis): Intimate interiors; patterned, decorative color fields.
- Symbolist Affiliations: Connections to artists seeking dreamlike, literary, or mystical themes (bridge to 6.3).
Note: From Vision to Modernism
By prioritizing structure, emotion, or symbolism over optical transcription, Post-Impressionists set foundations for Fauvism, Expressionism, Cubism, and abstraction.
Looking Ahead
Next, Chapter 6.3 explores Symbolism and Art Nouveau, where dream imagery, ornate line, and decorative design reshape art at the fin de siècle.