Arts and Music Atlas

Works, Makers, Traditions
Movements

De Stijl

duh-STAIL (Dutch: [de STAIL]), meaning The Style
Also Known As Neoplasticism Neoplasticism names the movement's own founding art theory (Dutch Nieuwe Beelding) and is reused throughout English-language sources for the movement itself, not only the theory.

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De Stijl was a circle of Dutch abstract artists who promoted a style of art based on a strict geometry of horizontals and verticals. Originally the name of a journal, the movement was founded in 1917 by two of its pioneers, Piet Mondrian and Theo van Doesburg.

Facts
Start Year
1917 1
End Year
1931 1
Founded In Place
Leiden, Voorburg and Laren, Netherlands 1
Key Principle
Neoplasticism, the programme Piet Mondrian set out in the movement's own journal, called for abstraction to ignore natural appearance, form and colour altogether, expressing itself instead only through the straight line and the primary colours. 1
Quoted from Mondrian's own programmatic essay for the movement's journal De Stijl, founded 1917 by Theo van Doesburg, rather than from a single dated founding manifesto text quoted in full by the source.
Key Principle
Pursuit of an ideal fusion of form and function through a reduced, universal visual language of geometric forms and primary colors, meant for the modern era rather than as mere decoration. 2
Cross-Tradition Connections

Expressed In

Source Wikipedia
Painting, Art Forms
Source Wikipedia

Movement Members

A 1930 painting by Piet Mondrian, co-founder of De Stijl, standing among the clearest statements of his Neoplasticism, the movement's own key-principle.

Source Wikipedia
Piet Mondrian, Artists

Co-founder of De Stijl with Theo van Doesburg in 1917; his own Neoplasticism essay is already cited as the movement's key-principle source.

Source Wikipedia
Sources
1. Wikipedia
Wikimedia FoundationDe Stijl, opening section and Principles and influences section
Quote, De Stijl, opening section and Principles and influences section
De Stijl was a Dutch art movement founded in 1917 by a group of artists and architects based in Leiden, Voorburg and Laren. / This theory initially adopted only primary colours and non-colours, only squares and rectangles, only straight and horizontal or vertical lines.
View the Source
1. Wikipedia
Wikimedia FoundationDe Stijl, opening section
Quote, De Stijl, opening section
De Stijl is pronounced /de STAIL/ in English; Dutch pronunciation: [de STEIL], meaning The Style.
View the Source
1. Wikipedia
Wikimedia FoundationDe Stijl, opening infobox
Quote, De Stijl, opening infobox
Years active 1917-1931.
View the Source
1. Wikipedia
Wikimedia FoundationDe Stijl, After van Doesburg's death section
Quote, De Stijl, After van Doesburg's death section
Theo van Doesburg died in Davos, Switzerland, in 1931. Because of van Doesburg's pivotal role within De Stijl, the group did not survive.
View the Source
1. Wikipedia
Wikimedia FoundationDe Stijl, Principles and influences section
Quote, De Stijl, Principles and influences section
this new plastic idea will ignore the particulars of appearance, that is to say, natural form and colour. On the contrary, it should find its expression in the abstraction of form and colour, that is to say, in the straight line and the clearly defined primary colour
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1. Wikipedia
Wikimedia FoundationDe Stijl, lead section
Quote, De Stijl, lead section
it was later translated to Neoplasticism in English
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1. Wikipedia
Wikimedia FoundationMovement Members: Piet Mondrian, Piet Mondrian, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Piet_Mondrian
Quote, Movement Members: Piet Mondrian, Piet Mondrian, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Piet_Mondrian
Art is higher than reality and has no direct relation to reality
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1. Wikipedia
Wikimedia FoundationMovement Members: Composition with Red, Blue and Yellow, Composition with Red, Blue and Yellow, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Composition_with_Red,_Blue_and_YellowView the Source
2. TheArtStory
The Art Story FoundationDe Stijl, Summary of De Stijl section
Quote, De Stijl, Summary of De Stijl section
The Netherlands-based De Stijl movement embraced an abstract, pared-down aesthetic centered in basic visual elements such as geometric forms and primary colors...the ideal fusion of form and function.
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Tate
Tate, United KingdomArt Terms: De Stijl
Quote, Art Terms: De Stijl
De Stijl was a circle of Dutch abstract artists who promoted a style of art based on a strict geometry of horizontals and verticals. Originally a publication, De Stijl was founded in 1917 by two pioneers of abstract art, Piet Mondrian and Theo van Doesburg.
View the Source

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