The Wild Beasts

Paris, 1905. Henri Matisse, age thirty-six, has just arrived from the South of Frane !ith fifteen ne! "aintings,
in#uding this one. Fina##y, he is "#eased !ith his !or$. %ut !hen he su&mits the anvases to the Sa#on d'automne,
the season's major "u&#i art event, the Sa#on "resident(fearing for Matisse's re"utation(tries to dissuade him.
Matisse and o##eagues, in#uding )ndr* +erain, Maurie de ,#amin$, and )#&ert Mar-uet, "ersevere, and their
"aintings are hung in .oom /. 0he "u&#i jeers at the 1orgy of "ure o#ors,1 judging the !or$s "rimitive, &ruta#, and
vio#ent. 0he artists are du&&ed 1fauves1(!i#d &easts. .oom / &eomes 1#a age.1 0he term fauve, atua##y oined
&y a genera##y sym"atheti riti, has stu$. 2t desri&es a sty#e that, !hi#e short-#ived, !as the first avant-garde
!ave of the t!entieth entury. 0he jeering audienes in .oom / got an ear#y #oo$ at !hat the entury !ou#d &ring.
Most of these fauve "aintings !ere done in the years immediate#y after the 1905 exhi&ition.
1. )ndr* +erain, Charing Cross Bridge, London, 1903, 4ationa# 5a##ery of )rt, 6ashington, 7ohn Hay 6hitney
8o##etion 199:./3.;
:. )ndr* +erain, Mountains at Collioure, 1905, 4ationa# 5a##ery of )rt, 6ashington, 7ohn Hay 6hitney 8o##etion
199:./3.<
;. )ndr* +erain, View of the Thames, 1903, 4ationa# 5a##ery of )rt, 6ashington, 8o##etion of Mr. and Mrs. Pau# Me##on
1995.3<.1:
<. )#&ert Mar-uet, Posters at Trouville, 1903, 4ationa# 5a##ery of )rt, 6ashington, 8o##etion of Mr. and Mrs. 7ohn Hay
6hitney 1999./<.1
5. Maurie de ,#amin$, Tugboat on the Seine, Chatou, 1903, 4ationa# 5a##ery of )rt, 6ashington, 8o##etion of Mr.
and Mrs. 7ohn Hay 6hitney 1999./<.<
3. 5eorges %ra-ue, The Port of La Ciotat, 190/, 4ationa# 5a##ery of )rt, 6ashington, 8o##etion of Mr. and Mrs. 7ohn
Hay 6hitney 1999./<.3

0he saturated o#ors of fauve "aintings(a## reated &et!een a&out 190< and 1909(!ere not desri"tive of
nature. 0he "aintings' &o#d stro$es had an autonomous existene that often had #itt#e to do !ith mimi$ing surfae
a""earanes. 0he o#ors !ere un&#ended, !ithout the su&t#e shading that suggests three-dimensiona#ity. 0heir
very &ri##iane and the strong rhythms of the &rushstro$es !or$ed against any "ere"tion of de"th.
0hese !ere "aintings on the edge of a&stration. 0hey negotiated ne!, unsta&#e territory(!ere they essentia##y
f#at, "atterned surfaes or a 1!indo!1 onto the !or#d= Fauve "itures stand at the &order &et!een "itoria# i##usion
and the $ind of 1"ure "aint1 that !ou#d &eome a "reou"ation of t!entieth-entury modernism. )s Matisse #ater
o&served, 1Fauve "ainting is not everything, &ut it is the foundation of everything.1
An Open Window
Open Window, Collioure is among the very first fauve !or$s. 2t !as "ainted during the summer of 1905, !hen
Matisse, together !ith )ndr* +erain, !or$ed in the sma## Mediterranean fishing "ort of 8o##ioure, near the S"anish
&order.
When put a green, it is not grass! When put a blue, it is not the s"#!
(Matisse
0he vie! is fu## of #ight, inviting and vi&rant. 0hrough the !indo!, sma## &oats &o& on "in$ !aves under a s$y
&anded !ith tur-uoise, "in$, and "eri!in$#e. 0his sene, ref#eted in the g#ass, me#ts into retang#es of smeary
green, !atery y#amen, and #i#a. 0he surrounding !a##s are fuhsia and &#ue-green(these are hard#y the o#ors
of nature.
2nstead of imitating nature, they have their o!n, a#most a&strat #ogi. Matisse !as om"osing "aintings, not just
"ainting things. 8o#or !as ho! he oneived and strutured his image. 2t does not sim"#y onvey !hat he sa!(
the &oats, the vine gro!ing around the &a#ony, the !indo! "anes(&ut is a#so deorative "attern in its o!n right.
Constru$tion b# $olored surfa$es! Sear$h for intensit# of $olor, sub%e$t matter being unimportant! &ea$tion against
the diffusion of lo$al tone in light! Light!!!e'pressed b# a harmon# of intensel# $olored surfa$es!
(Matisse
0o maximi>e the intensity of his o#ors(and ahieve the #ight he !as #oo$ing for(Matisse organi>ed his "iture
!ith "airs of om"#ements. ?range masts rise from &#ue hu##s. Potted "#ants on the &a#ony s"rout red &#ossoms
amid green fo#iage. .ef#etions o""ose "in$ and tur-uoise, and in the !a##s these o#ors are reversed and
dee"ened. 2so#ated &y &are areas of anvas, these om&inations generate a sort of visua# vi&ration.
%eause in om"osing Open Window Matisse #arge#y used red, &#ue, and greens(in different forms(he
enhaned the effet of #ight. 0hese are the additive "rimaries(the !ave#engths of orange-red, &#ue-vio#et, and
green that om&ine to ma$e !hite #ight.
0he om"osition is a nested set of o"ening 1!indo!s.1 6a##s on eah side frame the g#ass "anes, !hih frame the
&a#ony, !hih frames the har&or vie!. 2n eah of these areas, Matisse has used different $inds of &rushstro$es@
A #ong, &#ending vertia# s!ee"s of the &rush for the !a##s
A a f#urry of short, s-uigg#y mar$s in the &a#ony
A #onger "u##s, some vertia#, some hori>onta#, for the sea and s$y
0he very notion of an o"en !indo! is an invitation to #oo$ into the distane. Bet, the differentiation of &rushstro$es
does not onvine our eye that !e are seeing a reession of "#anes. 0he different rhythms they set u" reate an
overa## deorative effet that om"resses our "ere"tion of s"ae. 0he vi&rany of the o#or a#so tends to tra" our
eyes on the surfae, and the tona# gradations that !ou#d have more #ear#y defined near and far, inside and
outside, are gone. Most of these are "ure, un&#ended o#ors.
1?ut the !indo!1 is the i##usion of vo#ume and de"th. ) s#ight s-uint and !e an a#most see the image as an
overa## "attern of o#or, #osing our ho#d on the 1rea#1 sene.
Matisse is moving "ainting in a ne! diretion, to!ard greater autonomy from the thing de"ited. 2t is sure#y no
aident that he does so !ith a "ainting of a !indo!. From the time of the .enaissane, the om"arison of a
"ainting to a !indo! !as a oneit "ointing to the "ainter's a&i#ity to reate an i##usion of an outside rea#ity. 4o!
the "ainting asserts its o!n rea#ity, as o#or and form.
Influences
Fauve "ainters !ere inf#uened &y severa# "ostim"ressionist artists, es"eia##y 5eorges Seurat, Pau# 5auguin,
and ,inent van 5ogh. 0hese "ainters had turned a!ay from the im"ressionists' aim of a"turing "rimari#y visua#
effets of #ight and atmos"here.
6hen Matisse arrived in 8o##ioure in 190<, he had &een !or$ing in the neoim"ressionist sty#e of Seurat, Pau#
Signa, and others. Ho"ing to give sientifi rigor to im"ressionism, these artists had &een ex"erimenting !ith the
use of "ure, unmixed o#ors.
htt"@CC!!!.nga.govCfeatureCartnationCfauveCinf#uenesD:.shtm
Seurat's Seas$ape i##ustrates their tehni-ue, a##ed "ointi##ism. )""#ying ontem"orary o#or theory in a rigorous
!ay, the neoim"ressionists juxta"osed tiny individua# touhes of "ure o#or. 0hey &e#ieved that these !ou#d &#end
in the eye to reate a fu## range of o#ors more vi&rant than ou#d &e ahieved &y &#ending "igments on the "a#ette.
Matisse, though, did not #i$e the !ay the overa## image &eame mutedE the &ri##iane of the individua# o#ors !as
#ost !hen vie!ed at a distane. )nd he fe#t the neoim"ressionist re#iane on theory !as #imiting. 1My hoie of
o#ors does not rest on any sientifi theoryE it is &ased on o&servation, on fee#ing, on the very nature of eah
ex"eriene.1 ) retros"etive of Pau# 5auguin's "ainting had a""eared at the 190; Sa#on d'automne, and !hi#e
Matisse and +erain !ere !or$ing in 8o##ioure, they !ere a#so a&#e to see some of 5auguin's #ast !or$s in a to!n
near&y. 5auguin used o#or ex"ressive#y and sym&o#ia##y to ommuniate interior states rather than surfae
a""earanes. ?rdering and sim"#ifying sensory data to its fundamenta#s, he urged other "ainters, 1don't o"y
nature too #itera##y.1 Massing o#ors into #arge, f#at areas, 5auguin used their inherent emotive -ua#ities to ex"ress
intangi&#es.Matisse !as de#i&erate and reserved, the o""osite of !i#d. %ut Maurie de ,#amin$ did math the
"u&#i "ere"tion of !hat fauve "ainting re"resented@ re&e##ion, roughness, disorder. ) &ig, musu#ar man,
,#amin$ raed &iy#es, !rote ray nove#s, "#ayed the vio#in #oud#y, and em&raed anarhy@ 16hat 2 ou#d have
done in rea# #ife on#y &y thro!ing a &om&...2 tried to ahieve in "ainting.1 He u#tivated the fauve myth. ,#amin$
!as a se#f-taught artist. Fi$e +erain he #ived in 8hatou, a su&ur& of Paris, and the t!o often "ainted there together.
,#amin$'s !or$ ex"#oded !ith &o#d ne! o#or and &rush!or$ after he sa! the "aintings Matisse and +erain
&rought &a$ from 8o##ioure in 1905.
Mar-uet !as a native of the northern Frenh ity of Fe Havre, and his most im"ortant fauve !or$s !ere those that
he "ainted at oasta# resorts in 4ormandy(#i$e this vie! of 0rouvi##e. 0he o#orfu# ro!ding of "osters seems
ready-made for the &o#d stro$es and unmixed o#ors of fauve "ainting. 4otie, ho!ever, ho! the s$y and ta!ny
sand are treated !ith more &#ended &rush!or$ and nuaned o#oring.
Henri Matisse was born as the son of a grain merchant in the Picardy region of northern France He
studied law and wor!ed as a law cler! When Henri Matisse was "# years old he became seriously ill
$uring the phase of con%alescence Matisse started painting and disco%ered his lo%e for art& which
should become his life'long passion
0!o years #ater, in 199:, he gave u" his areer as a #a!yer. He attended art #asses at the ($ole des Beau')*rts
in Paris and da&&#ed in different sty#es. He then !as inf#uened &y the im"ressionist and "ost-im"ressionist
"ainters Pisarro, 8e>anne, van 5ogh, 5auguin and Pau# Signa and &y the "aintings of 6. 0urner. )round the
year 1905 he fina##y found his o!n sty#e harateri>ed &y daring, &right o#ors exeuted in a &road &rush stro$e.
The Master of Colors
)fter an exhi&ition of their !or$s in 1905 at the Salon d+*utomne the grou" around Matisse and )ndre +erain !as
ironia##y and "ejorative#y du&&ed Les ,auves, !hih #itera##y means The Wild Beasts. From 1905 to 1903 Matisse
"ainted one of his &est "aintings, The -o# of Life. 2t is onsidered to &e one of the most im"ortant !or$s of 0!enty
8entury art and !as &ought &y the famous art o##etor +r. )#&ert 8. %arnes. 0his "ainting and the !ho#e %arnes
o##etion !as vei#ed from the "u&#i for /: years. Fina##y the o##etion of the %arnes Foundation !as o"ened to
the art !or#d again in 199; and an &e visited outside Phi#ade#"hia. 0he )merian !riter 5ertrude Stein and her
&rother Feo !ere ear#y o##etors and su""orters of Matisse "aintings. )nother admirer &eame Pa&#o Piasso
!ith !hom he exhanged "aintings in 190/. )fter 6or#d 6ar 2, Matisse had gained a high re"utation and !as an
internationa##y reogni>ed artist. 2n 191/ he #eft Paris and sett#ed in 4ie in the South of Frane !here he
remained unti# the end of his #ife. 2n 19:5 he reeived the Frenh Fegion of Honor a!ard.
The Late Years
2n 19<1 Matisse had an a&domina# aner surgery !hih had a devastating effet on his hea#th and a&i#ity to "aint.
He !as una&#e to stand u"right in front of an ease#. 0he artist therefore turned to another form of artisti
ex"ression. He reated "a"er ut-outs in the same vivid, strong o#ors and daring om"ositions $no!n from his
"aintings. He had an assistant and ou#d !or$ #ying in &ed or sitting omforta&#y in an arm-hair. Henri Matisse
died on 4ovem&er ;, 195< in 4ie as an internationa##y !e## $no!n and high#y re"uta&#e artist. He had ontinued
reating "a"er utout !or$s unti# the day of his death. Pa&#o Piasso one said a&out the artist@ 1)## things
onsidered, there is on#y Matisse1.
Henri Matisse
French painter &
sculptor
1869 - 1954
Matisse !as &orn in Fe 8ateau-8am&r*sis in northern Frane on +eem&er ;1,
1939. 0he son of a midd#e-#ass fami#y, he studied and &egan to "ratie #a!. 2n
1990, ho!ever, !hi#e reovering s#o!#y from an atta$ of a""endiitis, he &eame
intrigued &y the "ratie of "ainting. 2n 199:, having given u" his #a! areer, he
!ent to Paris to study art forma##y. He joined 5ustave Moreau's studio at the Go#e
des %eaux-)rts !here he met 8amoin, Manguin, Mar-uet and 7ean Puy.
His first teahers !ere aademia##y trained and re#ative#y onservativeE Matisse's
o!n ear#y sty#e !as a onventiona# form of natura#ism, and he made many o"ies
after the o#d masters. He a#so studied more ontem"orary art, es"eia##y that of the
im"ressionists, and he &egan to ex"eriment, earning a re"utation as a re&e##ious
mem&er of his studio #asses.
6oman .eading, 199<
8entre 5eorges Pom"idou, Paris
Matisse's true artisti #i&eration, in terms of the use of o#or to render forms and
organi>e s"atia# "#anes, ame a&out first through the inf#uene of the Frenh
"ainters Pau# 5auguin and Pau# 8*>anne and the +uth artist ,inent van 5ogh,
!hose !or$ he studied #ose#y &eginning a&out 1999. 0hen, in 190; and 190<,
Matisse enountered the "ointi##ist "ainting of Henri Gdmond 8ross and Pau#
Signa. 8ross and Signa !ere ex"erimenting !ith juxta"osing sma## stro$es Hoften
dots or 1"oints1I of "ure "igment to reate the
strongest visua# vi&ration of intense o#or. Matisse
ado"ted their tehni-ue and modified it re"eated#y,
using &roader stro$es.
%y 1905 he had "rodued some of the &o#dest o#or images ever reated, in#uding a
stri$ing "iture of his !ife, 5reen Stri"e HMadame MatisseI H1905, Statens Museum for
Junst, 8o"enhagenI. 0he tit#e refers to a &road stro$e of &ri##iant green that defines
Madame Matisse's &ro! and nose. 2n the same year Matisse exhi&ited this and simi#ar
"aintings a#ong !ith !or$s &y his artist om"anions, in#uding )ndre +erain and Maurie
de ,#amin$. 0ogether, the grou" !as du&&ed #es fauves H#itera##y, 1the !i#d &easts1I
&eause of the extremes of emotiona#ism in !hih they seemed to have indu#ged, their use
of vivid o#ors, and their distortion of sha"es.
6hi#e he !as regarded as a #eader of radia#ism in the arts, Matisse !as &eginning to gain the a""rova# of a num&er of
inf#uentia# ritis and o##etors, in#uding the )merian ex"atriate !riter 5ertrude Stein and her fami#y. )mong the many
im"ortant ommissions he reeived !as that of a .ussian o##etor !ho re-uested mura# "ane#s i##ustrating dane and
musi H&oth om"#eted in 1911E no! in the Hermitage, Saint Peters&urgI.
Suh &road#y oneived themes idea##y suited MatisseE they a##o!ed him
freedom of invention and "#ay of form and ex"ression. His images of daners,
and of human figures in genera#, onvey ex"ressive form first and the "artiu#ar
detai#s of anatomy on#y seondari#y. Matisse extended this "rini"#e into other
fie#dsE his &ron>e su#"tures, #i$e his dra!ings and !or$s in severa# gra"hi
media, revea# the same ex"ressive ontours seen in his "aintings.
)#though inte##etua##y so"histiated, Matisse a#!ays em"hasi>ed the
im"ortane of instint and intuition in the "rodution of a !or$ of art. He argued
that an artist did not have om"#ete ontro# over o#or and formE instead, o#ors,
sha"es, and #ines !ou#d ome to ditate to the sensitive artist ho! they might
&e em"#oyed in re#ation to one another. He often em"hasi>ed his joy in a&andoning himse#f to the "#ay of the fores of
o#or and design, and he ex"#ained the rhythmi, &ut distorted, forms of many of his figures in terms of the !or$ing out of
a tota# "itoria# harmony.
From the 19:0s unti# his death, Matisse s"ent muh time in the south of
Frane, "artiu#ar#y 4ie, "ainting #oa# senes !ith a thin, f#uid a""#iation of
&right o#or. 2n his o#d age, he !as ommissioned to design the deoration of
the sma## 8ha"e# of Saint-Marie du .osaire at ,ene Hnear 8annesI, !hih
he om"#eted &et!een 19</ and 1951. ?ften &edridden during his #ast
years, he ou"ied himse#f !ith deou"age, reating !or$s of &ri##iant#y
o#ored "a"er utouts arranged asua##y, &ut !ith an unfai#ing eye for design,
on a anvas surfae.
Matisse died in 4ie on 4ovem&er ;, 195<. Kn#i$e many artists, he !as
internationa##y "o"u#ar during his #ifetime, enjoying the favor of o##etors, art
ritis, and the younger generation of artists.
Microsoft( )ncarta( Online )ncyclopedia "***
Fuxe, 8a#me, et ,o#u"t*, 190<-05
8entre 5eorges Pom"idou, Paris
5reen Stri"e, 1905
8o"enhagen
Musi, 1910
0he Hermitage at St. Peters&urg
+eurat& ,eorges
H&. +e. :, 1959, Paris--d. Marh :9, 1991, ParisI
Painter, founder of the 19th-entury Frenh shoo# of 4eo-2m"ressionism !hose tehni-ue for "ortraying the "#ay
of #ight using tiny &rushstro$es of ontrasting o#ours &eame $no!n as Pointi##ism. Ksing this tehi-ue, he
reated huge om"ositions !ith tiny, detahed stro$es of "ure o#our too sma## to &e distinguished !hen #oo$ing at
the entire !or$ &ut ma$ing his "aintings shimmer !ith &ri##iane. 6or$s in this sty#e in#ude .ne Baignade H199;-
9<I and .n diman$he apr/s)midi 0 l+le de la 1rande -atte H199<-93I.
) Frenh "ainter !ho !as a #eader in the neo-im"ressionist movement of the #ate 19th entury, 5eorges Seurat is
the u#timate exam"#e of the artist as sientist. He s"ent his #ife studying o#or theories and the effets of different
#inear strutures. His 500 dra!ings a#one esta&#ish Seurat as a great master, &ut he !i## &e remem&ered for his
tehni-ue a##ed "ointi##ism, or divisionism, !hih uses sma## dots or stro$es of ontrasting o#or to reate su&t#e
hanges in form.
5eorges-Pierre Seurat !as &orn on +e. :, 1959, in Paris. He studied at the Go#e des %eaux-)rts in 19/9 and
19/9. His teaher !as a disi"#e of 7ean-)uguste-+omini-ue 2ngres. Boung Seurat !as strong#y inf#uened &y
.em&randt and Franiso de 5oya.
)fter a year of mi#itary servie at %rest, Seurat exhi&ited his dra!ing *man)-ean at the offiia# Sa#on in 199;.
Pane#s from his "ainting Bathing at *snieres !ere refused &y the Sa#on the next year, so Seurat and severa# other
artists founded the Soiete des )rtistes 2nde"endants. His famous anvas Sunda# *fternoon on the sland of the
1rande -atte !as the enter"iee of an exhi&ition in 1993. %y then Seurat !as s"ending his !inters in Paris,
dra!ing and "roduing one #arge "ainting eah year, and his summers on Frane's northern oast. 2n his short #ife
Seurat "rodued seven monumenta# "aintings, 30 sma##er ones, dra!ings, and s$eth&oo$s. He $e"t his "rivate
#ife very seret, and not unti# his sudden death in Paris on Marh :9, 1991, did his friends #earn of his mistress,
!ho !as the mode# for his "ainting 2oung Woman 3olding a Powder Puff.

Painted 1999 H130 J&IE ?i# on anvas, :/ ;C< x ;< inE Signed, &ottom #eftE Phi#ade#"hia Museum of )rt. 6a#ter H.
)nnen&erg 8o##etion.
%y his o!n desri"tion, Seurat set out to disi"#ine the reation of "aintings through the systemati a""#iation of
arefu##y a#u#ated formu#as onerning o#or, om"osition, and #ine, !hih su"erseded those !or$s of the o#der
generation of 2m"ressionists. +uring the seond ha#f of the 1990s he #aid a foundation for a ne!, o&jetive mission
for the many artists of his o!n generation !ho !ere dra!n to his methods. Bet, for a## the rigor of intention and
a""#iation of his theories, the outome a#!ays seemed to om"rise a &a#ane of systemati a""#iation and
"oeti ex"ression. 0his dua#ity is no more a""arent than in the vigorous#y ana#ytia# yet su&t#y evoative "ainting
1ra# Weather, 1rande -atte.
0his "iture sho!s a du##, overast summer's day on the 5rande 7atte, devoid of the ro!ers, &oaters, and fun
see$ers !ho "o"u#ate the 1993 "ainting, !hih ontains some forty figures. 0he id#e &oats are tied u" to the
mooring "osts driven into the sha##o!s a#ong the &an$@ a #itt#e sai#&oat on the far #eftE t!o "unts !ith "ennants
H"erha"s from their ro!ing #u&sI f#uttering from the mooring "o#esE and a steam-"o!ered raft firm#y seured
&et!een t!o other "o#es, its dinghy tied u" se"arate#y. )s #arge as the #atter &oat seems in this ontext, it is
"ro&a&#y just a sma## "#easure raft of the $ind that moves gai#y do!nriver in the 1993 "ainting, its guide sai#,
!hih goes u" over the meta# arh on the stern, fur#ed a!ay.
0he vie! aross the gent#y f#o!ing river to the su&ur& of 8our&evoie &ehind a onrete em&an$ment is framed &y
the trees of the is#and. ) "ath !orn on the grass moves strong#y aross the foreground, the &o#dness of its
diagona# some!hat dissi"ated as it !eaves in and through the #itt#e grove of trees on the #eft. 0he surfae of the
"ainting is dense#y, &ut not even#y overed &y a series of sma## &rush stro$es a""#ied !ith great de#i&eration.
+iret#y "#aed "ure o#ors a#ternate !ithin eah area of definition@ orangeCgreen, &#ueCye##oy, and !hiteCgray. )
&order of a#ternating stro$es of red and &#ue surrounds the entire anvas. 0he effet is at one fresh#y "anorami
and s"atia##y f#attened. )s .o&ert 5o#d!ater noted, the diagona# "#aement of the tree trun$s is &a#aned &y the
visua# union of the fo#iage to the surfae of the "iture "#ane, just as the strong ang#e of the "ath is s"atia##y
th!arted &y the even hori>on of the &an$ &eyond.
2t is unusua# for Seurat, !ho !as very "rudent a&out his tit#es, to have given a desri"tive tit#e to this "ainting@
15ray 6eather.1 )t #east three of his har&or "itures &ear the notation LGvening' a#ong !ith the name of the to!n in
!hih they !ere "ainted, &ut never !as he as s"eifi in noting the #imati nature of the moment as he !as here.
2n this he !as dra!ing #ose to the intention --at #east in tit#e--of the 2m"ressionists, "artiu#ar#y Monet, !hose
de#ared "ur"ose !as to a"ture s"eifi #imati effets. 5iven Seurat's re#ationshi" to the o#der generation of
2m"ressionists and his su""osed de"endeny on their attitudes and sty#e--a #in$ that has &een serious#y
-uestioned in reent ritiism--this is an idea !orth testing. 2s this, indeed, a #ose#y !itnessed reord of a
tem"ora# and #imati ondition in nature=
Fe#ix Feneon, the riti and friend of Seurat, !as among the first to note that one of the grave dangers of
+ivisionist "ainting !as that through its inreasing refinement of the a""#ied, se"arate stro$e that harateri>e its
"ratie, the interation of o#ors tended to ane# one another out, reating a some!hat du##ed o#oristi effet
that may have &een just the o""osite from the vi&rany intended. 0hat is ertain#y not the ase here, !here
des"ite the intensity and degree of density of o#or stro$es, the re#ationshi" is so refined and de#iate#y &a#aned
that the overa## muted effet is as intended. 0his "henomenon "roved a danger on#y for those fo##o!ers of Seurat
!ho "ratied his +ivisionist tehni-ues !ith #ess rigor and strongmindedness. 0he su&t#ety and degree of
forethought exerised here argue for a om"#ete#y a#u#ated effet, an effet that is desri&ed &y the tit#e. 0he
stro$es, for exam"#e, are not a""#ied !ith an even denseness. 0hey vary mar$ed#y in their thi$ness and degree of
o#or ontrast from one >one of the "iture to another, just as the "riming #ayer is not a""#ied even#y &ut, rather,
!ith onsidera&#e forethought to a#ign !ith the &ands of "attern !ithin the "iture@ the #ighter "ath, the !ater, and
the s$y are "ainted diret#y on un"rimed anvas, !hereas a !hite under"ainting sho!s in s"aes &et!een the
stro$es in dar$er areas, to further enhane the ontrasted o#or stro$es and reate i##usionist s"ae. 0he fina#
effet is one of great forma# #uidity and a&so#uteness, yet it has a definite sense of the "#ae and the atmos"here
in !hih it !as !itnessed. 0he su&jetive e#ement is in enhanting aord !ith the o&jetive a#u#ations of its
rea#i>ationE the 1sientifi1 and the 1"oeti1 dua#ity is reso#ved on the highest "ossi&#e aestheti and ex"erimenta#
"#ane.
0he &order is "ainted, a##o!ing the "iture to distane itse#f from its origina# !ooden frame, ta$ing the shado! of
the frame a!ay from the image !ith an aura of gent#e vita#ity. 0he "ainted &order has &een fre-uent#y disussed
and its origina#ity -uestioned on the assum"tion that Seurat returned to this "iture at some #ater date to adjust its
surround, as he !as $no!n to have done in other ases. Ho!ever, arefu# o&servation of the edge of the "iture
suggests that this is not the ase. 0he image of the #andsa"e is arefu##y &rought u" to a fine edge of ex"osed,
ungrounded anvas !e## !ithin the "erimeter of the outer edge of the anvas. 0his dar$ ra>or #ine is "artiu#ar#y
evident in the high#ight of the tree trun$ to the right, !hih "#ays so effetive#y in and out of the third dimension, in
ontrast to the dar$ &order just &eyond--!ith the &#ue and red a#terations a""#ied on the same ex"osed anvas
!ith great method.