Symbolism was one of the most important artistic movements
of the 19th century. Born in France in 1886, it made use of symbols (related to
the abstract) to represent emotions and a boundless imagination.
The symbolism stood out for its poetic content with an inner
search for universal truths such as spirituality, imagination and dreams. In
this article, contemporary artist Ari Glass will speak about the importance,
the manifesto, works and most important representatives of this movement.
With an emphasis on spirituality and the subconscious, Ari
Glass' paintings draw on a sense of emotionality and the viewer’s individual
connection with the work. The influence on the Symbolism movement ties Ari Glass
to a number of modern masters and contemporary artists, who have taken his meditations
in an exciting new direction.
Beginnings of symbolism
Symbolism was a late 19th century movement whose artists
communicated ideas through symbols rather than representing reality. It was
created as a reaction to art movements that represented the natural world
realistically: Impressionism, Realism, and Naturalism.
Symbolism emerged and was codified in the work of artists like
Gustave Moreau and Jean Moréas, who first used the term "symbolism"
in 1886. This movement chronologically followed Impressionism, being the
antithesis of it since it paid special attention to the meaning behind the shapes
and colors.
Symbolism in the visual arts had its origins in the early
1800s, with a romantic emphasis on imagination, rather than reason. For the
conventional symbolists the inner life was more important than the outer
reality.
Principles of symbolism
The Symbolists sought to escape from reality, expressing
their dreams and personal visions through color, form, and composition. They
had an almost universal preference for broad strokes of unmodulated color and
flat shapes.
In the development of symbolism, the idea of the spiritual was very important and reflected the anti-materialist philosophies related to mysticism. An interest in the occult was related to this concept, as were representations of the morbid and the perverse.
Symbolist painting
and emotions
Although symbolism began as a literary concept, it was soon identified with the artwork of a generation of young painters who rejected the conventions of naturalism.
The Symbolist works of art were created mostly with
unmodulated colors, broad brush strokes, and flat, abstract shapes. The
Symbolists were a varied group with different styles and artistic techniques.
However, all stressed the importance of imagination and emotions over realism
and rationalism.
In painting, symbolism represented a synthesis of form and
feeling, of reality and the artist's internal subjectivity. Inspired by
psychoanalysis, the symbolists often portrayed the inner life of the subjects.
In the artworks of Ari Glass, a large part of the symbolism comes
from his understanding of art as a language which communicates through color,
lines and forms.
