1. The influence of Post-Impressionism on art, leading to the
emergence of Abstract Expressionism.

2. The development of Abstract Expressionism developed not just from its precursor artists’,
such as Salvador Dali of the Surrealism era, but from the ideas and works as far back as
Post Impressionism. Artists including Paul Cezanne and Vincent Van Gogh from the Post
Impressionism period and Pablo Picasso from the Cubism period, directly had influence on
the expression and development of artists’ during the Abstract Expressionism period. With
the innovative approach and style created with Post-Impressionism, art began to shift and
become more expressive and push the limits of abstractness within art as seen throughout
time.
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to

3. Mont Sainte-Victoire (1885-1895)
Paul
Cezanne
• The piece entitled Mont Sainte-Victoire
by Paul Cezanne serves as one of the
first pieces of framework that outlined the
way art was created. Cezanne created a
series of paintings with oil on canvas, of
a mountain in southern France, roughly
between 1885-1895 that features a vast
little countryside town. Throughout the
entire piece, Cezanne used very harsh
brushstrokes, which help convey the
formal structure within the piece. For
example, the viewer can really get a
sense for the movement and feeling of
the trees without Cezanne using complex
detail to do so, as seen in the periods
before. The same element can be seen
clearly within the mountain as well.
Another element of this piece that
translates into artworks of later periods is
the use of a small palette of vibrant
colors. Cezanne is constantly changing
between colors, warm and cold, dark and
light, to represent depth.
- Oil on canvas, 72.8 x 91.7 cm

4. Vincent Van Gogh
The Potato Eaters (1885)
- Oil on canvas, 82 x 114 cm
• The Potato Eaters (1885), does an
excellent job in infusing Post-
Impressionist ideas of emotional
content, in a way that allowed Van Gogh
to express himself and still keep the
integrity of the painting. Van Gogh
distinctly creates strong facial
expressions on each character visible,
but also allows each figure to look
somewhat disfigured. It was strategy
that may not have been purposely done
but certainly maintained the elements of
Post Impressionism.

5. Starry Night Over the Rhone
(1888)
- Oil on canvas, 72.5 x 92 cm
Starry Night (1889)
- Oil on canvas, 73.7 x
92.1 cm
Both paintings use very visible brush strokes that the viewer can follow all over each
piece, as well as a very bright use of color. Both paintings use the same palette of color,
and use bright yellow on blue to create life in the piece. Van Gogh was able to maintain
the formal structure of both depictions in his paintings, however he was able to
dramatically impose his distinct own style in the painting.

6. Edvard Munch
The Scream (1893)
- Oil, tempera and pastel on
cardboard, 91 x 73.5 cm
• Edvard Munch’s The Scream
(1893) is a prime example of the
influence Van Gogh and Cezanne
had using artist expression in
conveying emotional content in
artwork. Munch depicts a man
screaming, in an unconventional
way that creates an anxiety feeling
to the viewer. The vibrant use of
orange, yellow and blue colors is
also very important to catch the
viewer’s emotion. His use of harsh
brushstrokes is also a key variable
in maintaining the new style of Post-
Impressionism.

7. Pablo Picasso
The Old Guitarist (1903)
- Oil on panel, 122.9 x 82.6 cm
• The artwork was created among the time
of Picasso’s “Blue Period” in which all his
works maintained a constant hue of
blueness to them. The piece features
characteristics built upon ideas created
during the Post-Impressionism era. This
includes Picasso’s expression in using
blue as the sole color throughout the
entire painting. Another key element is the
use of clear outlines, in the guitarist’s
body, as well as, the guitar and wall
behind the guitarist. Even though the body
of the man is distorted and exaggerated,
Picasso makes sure to maintain the
necessary level of anatomy to still convey
formal structure. All in all, the painting
helps propel forward the elements of
abstraction and artist’ expression that
developed during Post-Impressionism art.

8. Pablo Picasso
Girl Before a Mirror (1903)
- Oil on canvas, 162.3 x 130.2 cm
• Pablo Picasso’s emphasis of artist
expression helped in contributing to the
large movement of Cubism. During this
era, he created a piece entitled Girl
Before a Mirror (1903), which
completely leaped forward in
encompassing the artist own expression
in a unique abstract way. Picasso no
longer relied on restricting his work to
classical anatomical figures, but now
had enough understanding to create
abstract human figures that the viewer
could still interpret. Girl Before a Mirror,
also feature very vibrant colors and
strong outlines throughout the entire
piece, which stems from the artwork of
the Post-Impressionism era.

9. Salvador Dali
The Persistence of Memory (1931)
- Oil on canvas, 24 x 33 cm
• With the growing use of artist
expression within art, the movement
known as Surrealism quickly emerged
following the Cubism era. Similar to the
abstract ideas of Cubism, Surrealism
expanded on that as well as engaging
the viewer even deeper within each
piece. It encompassed being
spontaneous and picking upon the
viewer’s intellect and mind. Salvador
Dali created The Persistence of
Memory (1931), which expanded upon
the basic principles established back
during the Post-Impressionism period.
Dali creates a dreamlike world in which
clocks seem to be melting. This
painting does an excellent job in
creating emotional context, yet
expressing Dali’s particularly style and
feeling at the time of this painting.

10. Willem De Kooning
Woman and Bicycle (1952)
- Oil on canvas, 194.3 x 124.5 cm
• Abstract Expressionism was a movement that
completely embodied an artist expressing oneself
visually without having to use formal structures
and disciplines. In each piece, the artist was able
to clearly and effectively show their emotion
through the use of rapid and animated
brushstrokes that were completely unconventional
in relation to previous eras. One of the products of
this movement was Willem De Kooning’s Woman
and Bicycle (1952). This painting was able to
convey a message through the use of color,
rhythm, and brushstrokes, without having use
definite figures or shapes. Artist of this era
believed that you did have to stick to structural
forms and figures, to create emotions within your
artwork. This painting holds onto fundamental
principles of using vibrant colors and sharp
outlines that were used by artist of the Post-
Impressionist period. Along with the use of color, is
the intensity in brushstrokes that De Kooning used.
They slash and swerve, and vary in sizes and
thickness in the amount of pressure applied. This
painting is a direct descendent from the innovative
ideas and characteristics introduced from the Post-
Impressionist period.