Fauvism was the first avant-garde movement of twentieth century France, breaking with Impressionist and academic traditions of representing color as it naturally appears. Centered on Henri Matisse and Andre Derain, who worked side by side in Collioure in the summer of 1905, the Fauves applied vivid, often unmixed color in bold, expressive strokes, using color itself, not tone or line, as the primary vehicle of emotional and formal expression. When their canvases appeared at the 1905 Salon d'Automne in Paris, the critic Louis Vauxcelles derided them as fauves, or wild beasts, a label the group embraced as its name. Though short-lived as a coherent group, Fauvism was pivotal in moving European painting toward abstraction and directly influenced the German Expressionists and, through Derain's and Matisse's later work, subsequent modernist developments.
Facts
Start YearMusee d'Orsay dates the practical origin to summer 1904 (Luxe, Calme et Volupte); 1905, the year of the Collioure summer and the Salon d'Automne naming, is used here as the movement's founding year. End YearSources vary between 1908 (Met) and 1910 (Tate) for the point at which the core Fauve painters moved on to other styles. Founded In PlaceParis and Collioure, France 1 Key PrincipleBold, non-naturalistic color applied often straight from the tube, loose and thick brushwork, and simplified forms, with color itself used as the primary expressive means rather than as a description of visual reality. 2 Connections
Expressed In
Influenced
Influenced By
Fauvisms bold, non-naturalistic color drew directly on Post-Impressionist painters, especially Gauguin and Van Gogh.
Movement Members
One of the movement's principal figures alongside Matisse, working with him at Collioure in summer 1905.
Source Wikipedia
Widely regarded as the acknowledged leader of the Fauvist group.
Source Wikipedia
Source Gardner's Art Through the AgesFred S. Kleiner (after Helen Gardner)
Source Gardner's Art Through the AgesFred S. Kleiner (after Helen Gardner)
Sources
1. The Metropolitan Museum of Art
2. Tate
Tate, United KingdomArt Terms: Fauvism
Fauvism is the name applied to the work produced by a group of artists (which included Henri Matisse and Andre Derain) from around 1905 to 1910, which is characterised by strong colours and fierce brushwork.
- In Category: Movements
- Expressed In: Painting
View the Source Wikipedia
Wikimedia FoundationFauvism, opening section
Fauvism ([/foʊvɪzəm/] [FOH-viz-em]).
- Movement Members: Henri Matisse
- Movement Members: Andre Derain
Influenced: Expressionism, Expressionism, In Germany and Austria section
They were also aware of the work being done by the Fauves in Paris, who influenced Expressionism's tendency toward arbitrary colours and jarring compositions.
View the Source Gardner's Art Through the Ages
Fred S. Kleiner (after Helen Gardner), Cengage Learning- Movement Members: Open Window, Collioure, chapter on Fauvism, section on Henri Matisse
- Movement Members: Mountains at Collioure, chapter on Fauvism, section on Andre Derain
Frequently Asked Questions
Why are the Fauves called wild beasts?
A hostile critic gave them the name. When canvases by Henri Matisse and Andre Derain, who had worked side by side in Collioure in the summer of 1905, appeared at that year's Salon d'Automne in Paris, the critic Louis Vauxcelles derided the painters as fauves, French for wild beasts, because of their vivid, often unmixed color applied in bold, expressive strokes. The group embraced the insult as its own name.
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