Post-Impressionist

A Post-Impressionist refers to an artist, or a style of art, that emerged in France, primarily between 1886 and the early 1900s, following Impressionism. While building upon the Impressionist foundations of vibrant color, visible brushstrokes, and depictions of contemporary life, Post-Impressionists rejected its fleeting, objective focus. Instead, they emphasized individual expression, symbolic content, and formal properties like structure, pattern, and emotional response to the world, seeking to capture the essence of their subjects and convey deeper meaning, emotions, and personal interpretations, often exploring subjective reality. Distinct styles developed, characterized by their unique approaches to color, form, and composition, differentiating this movement from the Impressionist approach.

Post-Impressionist meaning with examples

• Vincent van Gogh, a seminal Post-Impressionist, used thick impasto and swirling brushstrokes in his paintings, like 'Starry Night,' to convey intense emotion and psychological depth. His focus on individual expression set him apart from the earlier Impressionists. He moved beyond capturing a scene in his painting and attempted to capture the emotions of the scene.
• Paul Cézanne, another key Post-Impressionist, explored form and structure in his still lifes and landscapes, deconstructing and reassembling shapes to create a sense of permanence. His focus on formal principles influenced the development of Cubism. He saw the world not as a fleeting impression but as a series of composed structures that could be captured.
• The works of Paul Gauguin, a Post-Impressionist, often depicted scenes from Tahiti, employing bold colors and simplified forms to represent a sense of exoticism and spiritual longing. His symbolic approach moved beyond the pure visual representation. He used art to look at spiritual feelings and connection, rather than physical views.
• Georges Seurat, a key Post-Impressionist, developed Pointillism, a technique using tiny dots of pure color to create an optical blending effect and achieve a high degree of luminosity. This use of color departed from the loose brushstrokes and subjective impressions of Impressionism. The composition uses small, concise points.
• The Post-Impressionist movement represented a shift in artistic priorities, moving away from the purely visual and towards a more subjective and expressive engagement with the world. These artists paved the way for Modern art and its focus on subjective interpretations. These artists moved away from capturing just the physical forms and colors, looking deeper.