Synthetism

Synthetism is a style of painting that developed out of Cloisonnism. Synthetism formed a current within symbolism. It was practised by Paul Gauguin, Émile Bernard, Louis Anquetin, and others in the late 1880s and early 1890s. The term synthetism derives from the French verb synthétiser (to synthesize or to combine so as to form a new, complex product). It is based on the idea that art should be a synthesis of three features: the outward appearance of natural forms, the artist’s feelings about his subject and purely aesthetic considerations of line, colour and form. The term was coined in 1889 when Gauguin and Emile Schuffenecker organized L’Exposition de peintures du groupe impressioniste et synthétiste, an exhibition in the Café Volpini at the Exposition Universelle in Paris. The confusing title acknowledged the artists’ roots in Impressionism, with its adherence to natural forms and the depiction of light, while at the same time highlighting their more recent attempts to abandon nature as the focal point of art. Although realistic (tangible subjects served as the starting-point for synthetist artists), these artists distorted these images in order to express more clearly certain moods or interpretations. Synthetism emphasized two-dimensional flat patterns, thus breaking with Impressionist art and theory. The style shows a conscious effort to work less directly from nature and to rely more upon memory. In 1890, Maurice Denis summarized the goals of Synthetism: ‘It is well to remember that a picture before being a battle horse, a nude woman, or some anecdote, is essentially a flat surface covered with colours assembled in a certain order.’ However, Denis preferred the label Symbolism for the new style.