Formalism and Modernism
A detailed Summary of Formalism and Modernism
I. Discuss the idea of 'formalism' in relation to Whistler's, Nocturne and Cezanne's, Madame
The term 'formalism' applies to any type of artwork in which the artist places emphasis solely
on form rather than allegorical or contextual qualities. In this mode of artistic creation the
main goal of the work is the effective organization of the elements of art through the
principles of design. It can also be considered nearly synonymous with Modernism which was 'art
for art's sake', with no reference to the world outside of the piece. It was to be to the eyes
what music is to the ears. Impressionism and fauvism are just two of the styles created from
this way of thinking and in the formalist tradition.
One highly notable artist who experimented with formalism was Paul Cezanne. He was a formalist
in that he was more concerned with form rather than content, so subject matter was always
secondary to the act of painting itself. In Cezanne's work, his the methods and skills were more
important than the image. "That meant the subject of the painting couldn't be so dynamic as to
overshadow [Cezanne's] act of creation. The more he concentrated on this, the less
viewer-friendly his works became. But that suited

abandonment of convention led the use of innovative forms of expression carried out to create
contrast to Impressionism, Primitivism tended toward outlines and areas of flat color for the
Modernism positively changed the face of high art by letting the artists fully express
that contrasted with not only traditional academic art, but with modern Impressionism as well.
abstractions and fantasies rather than simply mirroring the physical world. Due to its
His style in this work is classic formalism and is truly 'art for art's sake'. There is
Some common words found in the essay are:
McNeill Whistler, Impressionism Symbolists, Woman Modernism, Woman Picasso, Cezanne Cezanne, Madame Cezanne, Paul Cezanne, Primitivism Symbolism, Picasso Gauguin's, Analytic Cubist, subject matter, art's sake', analytic cubism, 'art art's sake', portrait woman, 'art art's, academic art, nearly synonymous modernism, nearly synonymous, departure naturalism, contrast impressionism, world gauguin,
Approximate Word count = 1278
Approximate Pages = 5 (250 words per page double spaced)
Category: Arts
Saved Paper
Newest Essays
- My Personal Value System
- Iraq and High Energy...
- The Development of English...
- Critique of a Research...
- Visiting the Elderly in...
- Ad Critique: Peters, Jeremy...
- Catell's Structure-Based...
- Current Diabetes Epidemic:...
- Job Search: Push Pull...
- Proposal: Social...
Testimonials
-
"Thank You So Much!!! You have saved me once again!!!"
Jack M. -
"With so many papers to chose from, I was able to get ideas to help me with all of my classes. Thank You!"
Brian P. -
"I've used this site for the last 3 years to help me come up with ideas for my papers."
Sara J. -
"I use this site every week to help me write my own papers!"
Rachel W. -
"I love this site!!!"
Marie N.
