Famous Paintings From The Late 19Th Century

what paintings became popular between 1870 and 1900

Between 1870 and 1900, the art world witnessed a plethora of artistic movements and styles that challenged traditional norms. This period marked the rise of modern art, with artists breaking free from the constraints of the past and embracing new forms of expression. Impressionism, which emerged in the 1870s in France, revolutionized painting by rejecting academic rules and embracing landscapes and social situations over grand, dramatic scenes. Artists like Claude Monet, Édouard Manet, and Pablo Picasso pushed the boundaries of art, with Manet's nude depiction of a prostitute and Picasso's controversial Les Demoiselles d’Avignon challenging societal norms. This era also saw the emergence of female artists like Elin Danielson-Gambogi and Emily Carr, who brought a unique feminine perspective to their work. The Fauvist movement, led by Henri Matisse, celebrated the expressiveness of colour, while Symbolists like Maxfield Parrish created evocative and recognizable works. During this time, traditional styles like Neoclassicism and Romanticism continued to thrive, with artists such as Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres and William-Adolphe Bouguereau making significant contributions.

Characteristics Values
Time Period Between 1870 and 1900
Art Movements Impressionism, Symbolism, Fauvism, Neoclassicism, Romanticism, Pre-Raphaelism
Notable Artists Claude Monet, Pablo Picasso, Édouard Manet, Andy Warhol, Henri-Émile-Benoît Matisse, Xavier Martinez, Maxfield Parrish, Emily Carr, Alphonse Mucha, Elin Danielson-Gambogi, Mikhail Vasilyevich Nesterov, Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres, William-Adolphe Bouguereau
Notable Works Impression, Sunrise, Les Demoiselles d’Avignon, Campbell's Soup Cans, Slav Epic, Ecstasy, Vision of Youth Bartholomew
Characteristics Breaking away from traditional art forms, challenging existing notions of art, exploring new subjects and themes, experimenting with colour and form, focusing on landscapes and social situations, elevating everyday subjects, exploring nationalistic themes, expressing heartfelt emotions, depicting nature with reverence

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Impressionism

The Impressionists were a group of Paris-based artists who gained recognition through independent exhibitions during the 1870s and 1880s. Their work was characterised by visible brush strokes, open composition, an emphasis on accurately capturing light and its changing qualities, and the inclusion of movement and unusual visual angles. They often depicted landscapes, trees, houses, and urban scenes, utilising a free approach to technique and subject matter.

While the Impressionists faced opposition from the traditional art community in France, they were united by a shared interest in objectively recording contemporary life and the transient effects of light and colour. Their work marked a departure from the favoured historical, biblical, and allegorical subjects of the time, challenging conventional notions of art.

Some notable Impressionist works from this period include:

  • Frédéric Bazille, "Paysage au bord du Lez", 1870
  • Alfred Sisley, "Bridge at Villeneuve-la-Garenne", 1872
  • Claude Monet, "Impression, Sunrise", 1872
  • Berthe Morisot, "The Cradle", 1872
  • Armand Guillaumin, "Sunset at Ivry (Soleil couchant à Ivry)", 1873
  • Édouard Manet, "Boating", 1874
  • Edgar Degas, "After the Bath, Woman Drying Herself", c. 1884–1886 (reworked between 1890 and 1900)
  • Pierre-Auguste Renoir participated in Impressionist exhibitions in 1874, 1876, 1877, and 1882.

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Symbolism

One of the key Symbolist painters was Gustave Moreau, whose works included "Oedipus and the Sphinx" (1864), "Orpheus" (1865), "Jason and Medea" (1865), "Diomedes Devoured by his Horses" (1870), "Salome" (1876), and "Cleopatra" (1887). Moreau's paintings are known for their ornamental style, with densely populated compositions that reflect his fears and obsessions, often portraying an ambiguous woman, caught between innocence and perversity.

Another important Symbolist painter was Lucien Lévy-Dhurmer, who combined Impressionist techniques with Symbolist themes, creating fantastical scenes with chromatic harmony and idealised subjects. His work was influenced by the music of Beethoven, Fauré, and Debussy. Alexandre Séon was an illustrator and decorator, considered one of the most talented disciples of Puvis de Chavannes. He co-founded the Salon de la Rose+Croix with Péladan and Antoine de la Rochefoucauld, and his finest work is considered to be "Lament of Orpheus" (1896).

Other notable Symbolist painters include Edgar Maxence, a disciple of Moreau, whose work exhibited strong idealism with medieval-inspired subjects; Otto Greiner, known for his sensual and refined style; and Ferdinand Keller, who turned to Symbolism around 1900, creating landscapes of saturated colours and decorative appearances.

While Symbolism as a movement emerged towards the end of the 19th century, it is worth noting that some artists who gained recognition in the early 20th century were influenced by Symbolism in their earlier works. For example, Franz Marc, who trained in an academicist environment, was influenced by Symbolism during his youth, before devoting himself to painting animals from 1906 onwards.

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Neoclassicism

The most important painter of the Neoclassical style is considered to be Jacques-Louis David (1748-1825). David's work includes the monumental Oath of the Horatii (1784), which symbolised and captured the French spirit in the years before the Revolution. Other works by David include Lictors Bringing to Brutus the Bodies of His Sons (1789) and The Death of Marat (1793). David's work influenced Romantic artists such as Eugène Delacroix and Théodore Géricault.

Other notable Neoclassical painters include Joseph-Marie Vien, Anton Raphael Mengs, Pompeo Batoni, Angelica Kauffmann, and Gavin Hamilton, who were active during the 1750s, 1760s, and 1770s. Benjamin West, a British artist, also derived his compositions from works by Nicolas Poussin.

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Romanticism

Romantic painters sought to express their emotions and ideas freely, prizing their individual sentiments over formal rules and traditional procedures. The German painter Caspar David Friedrich, for example, declared that "the artist's feeling is his law". Paintings in the Romantic style often featured bold, linear drawing and strong juxtapositions of light and shadow, with a sketchy, grainy appearance. They frequently depicted nature, including its beauty and power, as well as its uncontrollable and unpredictable aspects. Romantic painters also explored human psychology and emotions, often through portraiture. They were interested in folk culture, spiritual beliefs, and the medieval era, and often portrayed heroes and geniuses.

The Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood, a group of British artists who sought to revive British art by making it more creative and dynamic, evolved from the Romantic movement in painting. Established in 1848, the group included artists such as John Everett Millais, William Holman Hunt, and Dante Gabriel Rossetti. They were influenced by the art critic John Ruskin, who championed the connections between nature, art, and society.

Some notable examples of Romantic paintings from the late 18th and early 19th centuries include:

  • Wanderer Above the Sea of Fog by Caspar David Friedrich (c. 1817)
  • Hannibal and his Army Crossing the Alps by J.M.W. Turner (1812)
  • Raft of the Medusa by Théodore Gericault (1819)
  • Evening: Landscape with an Aqueduct by Gericault (1839)
  • Landscapes of John Constable
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Fauvism

Henri Matisse, often regarded as the most important French painter of the 20th century, is considered the principal founding artist and leader of Fauvism. Other notable artists associated with the movement include André Derain, Albert Marquet, Maurice de Vlaminck, Kees van Dongen, Charles Camoin, Robert Deborne, Jean Puy, and Georges Rouault. These artists shared a common interest in intense colour as a means of describing light and space, redefining pure colour and form to communicate their emotional states.

Frequently asked questions

Impressionism, which emerged in the 1870s in France, became popular across Europe for the next 50 years. The movement was pioneered by a group of radical Parisian painters who defied the strict rules of academic painting. Pre-Raphaelites, who were influenced by art critic and writer John Ruskin, also gained prominence in the Victorian era with their nature-inspired works. Neoclassicism, which was popular in the early 1900s, was championed by artists like Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres and William-Adolphe Bouguereau.

Édouard Manet, Claude Monet, Pablo Picasso, and Andy Warhol are some of the most famous painters of this period. Manet's nudes and Monet's "Impression, Sunrise" are considered groundbreaking works. Picasso's "Les Demoiselles d’Avignon" and Warhol's "Campbell's Soup Cans" are known for their controversial styles. Henri-Émile-Benoît Matisse, often regarded as the most important French painter of the 20th century, led the Fauvist movement, which was characterised by vivid and expressive use of colour.

Elin Danielson-Gambogi, a Finnish artist known for her mastery of light and feminine touch in her realist paintings, created art during this period. Mexican-born Xavier Martinez explored the tonalist style after moving to the United States. Canadian artist Emily Carr captured the landscapes and First Nations people of Vancouver Island.

Romanticism was a broader artistic movement that included literature and architecture, in addition to painting. Artists also explored Symbolism, Fauvism, and tonalist styles.

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