Symbolism1880-1910

Klimt,Pallas Athene, 1898•decadence, opulence•paint is the carrier of symbolic meaning •Athena usually holds figure of Nike (Victory) but this Athena holds a woman with a mirror, for modern man to see his reflection

Fin de

Siecle Styles

Art Nouveau1890-1905

What artists of the past can we think of who used symbolismto interject meaning into their artwork?

Botticelli

Durer

Fusili

Giorgione

Bosch

Wagnerian heroic symbolism also had a huge impact on many artists

Gustave Moreau1826-98

“the beauty of inertia”love of symbolism of Hindu art

The Apparition, 1874Salome viewing the head of John the Baptist

Jupiter and Semele, 1878…she dies by seeing great god

But the “New Symbolism” of the turn of the centuryrejected representations of:

virtuemoralityprogresshistoryseascapesdomestic animalsstill lifeorientalismrealismrationalism

X

What was left?

“Suggestion, that is the Dream…”

To the Symbolists, great art should be:•ideative (stating an idea)•symbolist (the idea comes in a form)•synthetic (the idea is generally recognizable)•subjective (as seen through the artist and interpreted through the viewer)•decorative (visually suggestive and interesting)

De Chevannes, The Dream, 1893

Odilon Redonlooked through the

microscope of the mindto create his images

Crying Spider, 1881Guardian Spirit of the Waters, 1874

Cyclops, 1914

Henri RousseauSleeping Gypsy, 1897

•personal fantasy•sleeping subconscious•also naïve, also fauve

Poet Rimbaud, in 1874: “To be a seer, you must be deranged”

Paul Gauguin, Vision after the Sermon, 1888

Heroes of the Symbolist movement (coming from many different “schools”) were:

Edvard MunchNorwegian

Yes, he could be called an Expressionist,but Symbolism also applies…emotion andsubject matter are intertwined

Madonna, 1902

The Cry, 1893

Paul Serusierpart of the Nabi (“prophet”) School of paintersthat included Vuillard and Denis

“I believe in a last judgement where...

(Romantics, showing sentiment, will all go

to hell)... while the faithful disciples of

Great Art will be glorified and

surrounded by…rays, perfumes and

melodious sounds…for all eternity in the

divine source of harmony.”---Wagner

Interestedin theendless,not the immediate

Talisman, 1888

Gustav Klimtan Art Nouveau artistfrom Austria --- the Secessionistswho saw beauty in the dream

The Kiss, 1907

Aubrey Beardsleyan Art Nouveau artist

from England,sometimes referred toas a “decadent artist”

who leaned on theoccult and mystical

in his graphic designs

Paganismwas experiencing a revival

now that Darwin had openedthe debate of the origin of

mankind

Peacock Skirt, 1893

Art Nouveau1890-1914

Gesamtkunstwerk!!

Unified art

Art is in everything

…furniture, clothing,

fabrics, jewelry,

buildings

Lalique’s Dragonfly Pin

Art Nouveau was a concerted attempt to create an international style based on

decoration

“The New Art”

.

Art Nouveau was a response to theIndustrial Revolution.Some artists were excited by the new materials and potential of the Industrial Age, while others feared the destruction of culture and beauty with the emergence of mass production.

Japanese art, with its beautiful,

flowing lines and focus on nature,

was inspiration for the Art Nouveau movement

Hiroshige, Plum Estate, One Hundred Famous Views of Edo, 1856Lautrec’s copy is on the right; Edo=Tokyo

Hokusai, Waterfall, 1832

The Paris Exhibition of 1900A mammoth, chaotic event, the Universal International Exhibition held in Paris in 1900 was a late celebration of nineteenth-century values, imperialism and eclecticism. It included displays of real live “natives” from African colonies compete with camels and exotic animals.

But the exhibition was also intended to look forward to the new century: an elevated electric railway surrounded the site, and it held examples of what the general public considered to be the last word in modern architecture and design, epitomized by Art Nouveau.

A true international style, Art Nouveau stretched itself around the world

Louis Tiffany (American, 1848-1933)

Louis Sullivan (American, 1856-1924)

Antonio Gaudí (Spanish, 1852-1926)

Alphonse Mucha (Czechoslovakian, 1860-1939)

Gustav Klimt (Austrian, 1862-1918)

Rene Lalique (French, 1860-1945)

Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec (French, 1861-1901)

Hector Guimard (French, 1867-1942)

Charles Mackintosh (Scottish, 1868-1928)

Aubrey Beardsley (English, 1872-1898)

Mucha bust, Czech

Guimard Metro sign, Paris

Mackintosh windowGlasgow

Zsolnay vase, 1899

Artists were inspired by the organic….

Galle, Dragonfly bowl, 1904

…including insects...

Tiffany Lamp

Furniture was part of the “Gestamkunstwerk” of Art Nouveau

Wallpaper, clothing and jewelry were organically designed

Louis TiffanyAmerican craftsman

stained glassjewelry

lamps, glassware

Art Nouveau posters and prints, inspired by Lautrec, displayed the elegance of the new, turn-of-the century art...

Toulouse Lautrec, 1890

Fin

Mucha,JOB cigarette paper poster, 1898