Japonisme and the Impressionists

As Japan finally opened trade with Europe in the late 19th century, many European artists were fascinated and inspired by the Japanese art and skill referred by the French as "Japonisme." It would set the stage for not only inspiring the Impressionists, but also set for the future of Art Nouveau and Art Deco.

 

The Impressionists were particularly interested in the flat dimensions, bold colors and stylized dramatic subjects of Japonisme. From imported wrapping paper Monet saw in a spice shop to Japanese silks inspiring Van Gogh, many felt that a door opened to combining their style with that of another culture.

 

 

 Each artist combined their talent with the Japanese influence of everyday matters and objects. It might be a bridge or a woman washing her hair. Through the Japanese woodblock prints and paintings, it might be the perspective where the artist's view was above the scene they were painting. Some artists took inspiration from the flat composition without shading for perspective sometime involving a mix of textile designs. 

 

 The list of Impressionist whose works were inspired by Japonisme includes such luminaries as: Cassatt, Whistler, Degas and the aforementioned Van Gogh and Monet. (How many can you identify?)

 

 

 

 

It changed the rules and lead to one of the most fertile creative periods for Europe into the 20th Century.

Van Gogh: In the Eyes of the Beholder

This last weekend on NPR, I listened to an interview of a Dutch musician and artist by the name of Van Eck. He was describing and promoting his album titled, "Van Gogh by Van Eck."

Personally, I have always felt that Van Gogh's painting "The Potato Eaters" was a sad comment on the daily lives of farm peasants in those days. The people in the painting are gathered around a single light, a plate of potatoes and what looks like a tea drink. The conversation between the subjects seems intense. The first time I saw this painting, I felt a sadness for what seemed like a harsh life.

Van Eck saw something quite different. In the interview, he stated that upon his examination of Van Gogh's life, he observed that Van Gogh had a difficult relationship with his father. Therefore, Van Eck felt that based on Van Gogh's family yearnings, the artist wanted to portray a poor family sharing a meal and the happenings of the day with the pleasure of being in the bosom of the family. That is the basis for an upbeat mood in Van Eck's musical piece titled, "One of the Family." (You can listen to a sampling by clicking here and scrolling down to song)

What do you feel when you look at " The Potato Eaters?" If you listened to the music sampling, did you find your opinion of the painting shift?

The Compulsion to Make Art

It's so interesting how the muse of art continues to whisper into the ear of the artist no matter what infirmity the artist may experience. I can think of so many artists in history who found a way to continue even after they have experienced physical or mental handicaps.

Beethoven continued to compose music even after he was deaf. Van Gogh painted up to the last day before his deteriorating mental state led to his suicide. Quite a few well-known artists of the 19th century would continue to make art even as their ability to see became impaired.

Both Mary Cassatt (1844-1926) and Claude Monet (1840-1926) kept painting in spite of the cataracts each had developed. In Cassatt's case, she went from painting very detailed oils to looser pastels because pastels gave her more latitude and required less detail. Beginning in his thirties, Edgar Degas' (1834-1917) faced diminishing vision. At first, he did what Cassatt did and made the switch to pastels. However, his vision problems continued to worsen.

Degas vision reached the point that he could no longer read, discern colors or see anything with his right eye. He needed to make art and so he began to sculpt. He would eventually make 150 sculptures. The one of the 14-year old ballerina being his most famous.

While the records show that these artists experienced all the emotions of anyone grieving loss, they continued to make art. Why do you think that is? Is there a compelling need to make art? If so, is it as strong in other professions or trades?