「Look at the Picture and Talk about the Painting」Post-Impressionism: The Awakening of Self-Expression

Post-Impressionism
Post-Impressionism is not about painting landscapes; rather, it is about expressing one’s own spiritual world through the landscapes. Post-Impressionism was an artistic rebellion that broke free from the constraints of objective light and shadow, thus kicking off the modern art era.

It broke away from the Impressionist practice of merely replicating the instantaneous colors of nature, shifting the core of the creation from “what the eyes see” to “what the heart feels”, advocating the use of colors, lines and composition to convey subjective emotions and the spiritual core.

Cézanne structured the order of the picture with geometric forms, laying the foundation of the form of modern art; Van Gogh used intense colors and bold brushstrokes to achieve the ultimate expression of subjective emotions; Gauguin, distancing himself from urban civilization, explored the deep expression of the spiritual world through primitive imagery and symbolic language. Post-Impressionism, relying on Cézanne’s form construction, Van Gogh’s emotional expression, and Gauguin’s exploration of symbolism, broke the dogma of “imitating nature” and opened up a century of flourishing modern art.

Post-Impressionism did not have a unified artistic paradigm, but it was a crucial dividing line between classical and modern art. It made painting a vehicle for self-expression, sowing the seeds of change for Cubism and Expressionism, and becoming an indispensable spiritual turning point in the history of art.

The tea for today is all gone. Next time, I’ll brew a fresh pot and enjoy art with you again.