In today’s class we looked primarily at works from the Post-Impressionist movement. These works focused mainly on form and expression, and there was a great importance placed on color as well. We started first with Paul Cezanne, who was attempting to emulate Pouissin from nature, and his influence on Cezanne’s work was very clear to see. His brushstrokes were interesting to see, as they made his paintings appear flatter and some of the forms looked more like blocks due to his use of black paint as an outline. We shifted to Seurat, discussing one of my favorite paintings, Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte, a fascinating pointillist work. I was shocked as to how many different versions Seurat made before finally painting the final result.
Of course, it would be impossible to discuss Post-Impressionism without discussing Vincent Van Gogh, and we did just that. We looked through a lot of different works throughout his life, and it was interesting to see his opinion on his painting through his letters to his brother Theo. Finally, we briefly discussed Gaugin, who had a very interesting use of color in his paintings.