Bielessann Ahmad, ba160@uakron.edu
What comes to mind when you hear “art movements”? Maybe Pablo Picasso’s Cubism? Possibly Georges Seurat and Paul Signac’s Pointillism, Or even the verisimilar Realism? Among these popular and greatly applauded movements, many are unfamiliar with their short-lived sibling, Fauvism.
Flourishing in 1920s France, with its brutalist and intense use of pure complementary colors, sporadic brush strokes, and bountiful line weight, was Fauvism. No single artist can take credit for this movement, as many contributed to its development and upbringing, although, there are individuals who truly brought the movement to life. Two of these renowned mavens include Henri Matisse and André Derain. Both fauvists were members of “Les Fauves” meaning “the Wild Beasts”. This name was coined by art critic Louis Vauxcelles when attending the annual Salon d'Automne exhibition in 1905. Vauxcelles found the fauvists' works appallingly aberrant and wild, hence the name and drastically different style compared to the norm of art at the time.
Fauvism received plenty of backlash due to its outlandishness in 1920s France, but today we recognize it for establishing boldness in the art world. It is well-loved today by many art connoisseurs for further developing Impressionism and inspiring Cubism.
One of the most quintessential and prominent pieces was “Woman with a Hat” (1905) by Henri Matisse. (Photo 1 Insert) This work is considered fauvism as it uses intense color, heavy line weight, and tenuous dimension. The cool and warm tones in play enhance one another, creating subtle pops of contrast where thick lines are barren. When it comes to Fauvism, colors speak louder than subjects. “Woman with a Hat” is one of the more ironically serene pieces of the Fauvism movement. This earlier work of Matisse’s shows the other end of the spectrum.
This is “Luxe, Calme et Volupte” (1904), a Matisse. (Photo 2 Insert) This unique spread of complementary colors explodes within the tiny stipples scattered spasmodically. This can be defined as Fauvism due to the irregular and broad array of colors, and unique application of paint, taken from pointillism. The use of stipples to create dashed heavy lines also causes this work to be classified as Fauvism.
Fauvism was a big player in art history along with its influential leaders, forever impacting the art world with its bright spotlight on colors rather than subjects. Simply, fauvism was seeing the world through your own colorful lens with no attention to reality. So the next time you find yourself in an art museum, or purely viewing art on the internet, hopefully, you’ll search for traces of the beloved Fauvism.