Form, Content, and Subject Matter

While the painters after the Impressionism period were collectively called the “Post-Impressionists,” the label is quite reductive. Each artist had their own unique style, from Seurat’s pointillism to Signac’s mosaic-like divisionism, Cezanne, Émile Bernard, and others. These artists were all connected in that they were reacting to the aesthetics of Impressionism. Two of the more influential painters from this movement were Vincent van Gogh and Paul Gauguin, who aimed to connect with viewers on a deeper level by access Nature’s mystery and meaning beyond its superficial, observable level. However, each artist’s approach to achieving this goal was different. In close examination of Vincent van Gogh’s Self-Portrait (Dedicated to Paul Gauguin) and Paul Gauguin’s Self-Portrait with Portrait of Émile Bernard (Les misérables), one may clearly see the two artists’ contrasting styles on display.

     Van Gogh's use of line really gives depth and character to the piece. The first line that caught my eye was the line outlining the bottom of the bed. The strong stroke really gives you a sense of distance between the bottom of the frame and the floor. Had it been a thin line like those to depict the floorboards, it would look like the bed was sitting directly on the floor. His use of brush strokes and the thickness of them vary immensely in the painting to create depth. The strong strokes of

“The Nighthawks”, by Edward Hopper is a unique form of art for the time period (1942) that it is based in because it is a very natural oil painting. Along with this piece of art, there is another significant oil painting done by the artist Edouard Manet called, “Corner Of A Cafe-Concert” (1880). These paintings both symbolize a restaurant setting during the time in which they were created but in doing this they have different structures based on what was happening around them during their time periods.

Art by its nature is a subject of the philosophical, social, economic, political or religious context surrounding its creator. More often than not, a work of art addresses a specific topic or somewhat revolves around a particular person. Therefore, it is impossible to separate the context of a piece of painting, either historical or cultural, to its intrinsic value or the artwork's meaning. On the other hand, different cultures and time utilized specific conventions that govern the representation of objects of creativity. This essay highlights various pieces of art and their relationship to particular cultural, political, economic, or social settings. Moreover, it pinpoints how different times influence art presentation.

The innovative and passionate presence in both Jackson Pollock’s and Wassily Kandinsky avant-garde paintings exemplifies the redefinition of boundaries throughout their art making practices. Both artists challenged traditions both materially and conceptually using innovative and diverse approaches to materials and techniques when painting. Wassily Kandinsky goes against traditions and academies to create vivid, sensual and symbolic large-scale semi abstract expressionist oil paintings in a heightened state of mind. Many artworks of his convey bright and cheerful spontaneous colours that make the audience fully consumed within his works due to hypnotic and distorted semi realist shapes. Consequently, Jackson Pollock also goes against

One strong aspect of this painting is it has a strong sense of both harmony and unity. The painting achieves harmony by using similar elements throughout the work and unity by making a quality of wholeness or oneness to the painting. Even though there are many different hues in this painting none have an overpowering feeling over the work which brings wholeness to the work. The work has repetition and rhythm of colors such as blue and patterns like the swirling brush strokes which brings many elements throughout the work.

Wassily Kandinsky was a Russian-born artist, whose contributions to the world of modern art are innumerable. On an artistic level, Kandinsky's maturation process from representational art to abstract art is fascinating. From his earliest work, with an impressionistic flair, to his later work, which was pure abstraction, Kandinsky was an innovator and a genius. He bridged the gap between reality painting of earlier decades and the fantasy pastime of the twentieth century.

A great artist once wrote, “If you hear a voice within you say 'you cannot paint,' then by all means paint, and that voice will be silenced”. This artist was Vincent van Gogh, soon to be an appraised artist known all around the world for his works, such as Starry Night. He is one of the very first artists of the post-impressionist style than is now adored in every continent. However, there is much more to the man than one painting. Creating a full timeline that stretches beyond Gogh’s life, this paper will discuss the life of Vincent van Gogh and the impression he made on the world.

The art world has been host to a vast menagerie of talent, intellect, and creativity for about as long as human culture has existed. It has grown, developed, and changed just as humanity has. Naturally, with such an impressively expansive history, various avenues of art are visited time and time again by new artists. Artists seek not only to bring their own personal flavor and meaning to timeless concepts, but to find new ways to approach them. While not every single creator and craftsman can make such a great impact on art or the world, their efforts have given birth to some truly magnificent and unique works. In an effort to create a more meaningful understanding, as well a deeper appreciation, of the nuances, techniques, and design choices employed in these attempts, a comparison will be made between Edouard Vuillard’s Interior With a Screen (1909-1910) and Henri Matisse’s Blue Nude (Souvenir of Biskra) (1907). In this essay, each artist’s approach to the subject of the female nude will be closely analyzed, compared, and contrasted, as will their styles of painting, handling of visual elements, and their use of the principles of design. An interpretation of each work and what the artist intended when creating it will also be provided.

Kandinsky’s Sketch I for Painting With White Border (Moscow), created in 1913 is an oil study inspired by a trip Kandinsky took to Moscow in the fall of 1912. Sketch I for Painting With White Boarder is an oil study located in the Phillips Collection in Washington, DC. The canvas is 55 1/4 by 78 7/8 inches; upon returning to Munich after a recent visit to Russia, Kandinsky’s native land, he created this work in search for a way to visual record the “extremely powerful impressions” of his native Russia from his memory. He created many variations and studies of this one composition and in May of 1913 finally came to the composition we see today. Sketch I for Painting With White Border (Moscow) is an example of how Kandinsky’s creative process

Art is an object or piece of work that brings one pleasure. Art is also something you see or feel and you cannot even begin to describe the ways you like it or how it makes you feel. Art is something that portrays beauty and happiness. Art lets you see the world through another person’s perspective. Most art seems to tell a story about where a person has been and the things they have encountered along the way. It lets you connect with the artist and see things through their eyes. Art is a way of expressing one’s self without words. When I think of art, I think of paintings, portraits, sketches, and sculptures.

Abstract Expressionism is making its comeback within the art world. Coined as an artist movement in the 1940’s and 1950’s, at the New York School, American Abstract Expressionist began to express many ideas relevant to humanity and the world around human civilization. However, the subject matters, contributing to artists, were not meant to represent the ever-changing world around them. Rather, how the world around them affected the artist themselves. The works swayed by such worldly influences, become an important article within the artists’ pieces. Subjectively, looking inward to express the artist psyche, artists within the Abstract Expressionism movement became a part of their paintings. Making the paintings more of a representation

The use of geometric shapes in this painting allows the subject to be viewed in both a recognizable and unrecognizable state at the same time. Overall, geometric shapes and patterns play an essential role in what the viewer sees, which is further supported by a powerful color palate.

The “point and line to plane” (Kandinsky 1979:6) is the painting element, such as the letters that make up the word, different combinations will have different effects. As Kandinsky (1979:12) has demonstrated, that point, line and plane is the basic building material of the artwork itself, and that in every different art the elements of art are certainly different. However, it is necessary to first distinguish the basic elements from the other elements, no artwork does not have these artistic elements. Therefore, the common feature between Wassily Kandinsky’s paintings and Guan Zhong Wu’s paintings are point, line

"A picture can paint a thousand words." I found the one picture in my mind that does paint a thousand words and more. It was a couple of weeks ago when I saw this picture in the writing center; the writing center is part of State College. The beautiful colors caught my eye. I was so enchanted by the painting, I lost the group I was with. When I heard about the observation essay, where we have to write about a person or thing in the city that catches your eye. I knew right away that I wanted to write about the painting. I don’t know why, but I felt that the painting was describing the way I felt at that moment.