Back to the full dot-point answer
SingaporeVisual ArtsQuick questions
Art-Historical Movements and Contexts
Quick questions on Impressionism to Cubism explained: H2 Art
6short Q&A pairs drawn directly from our worked dot-point answer. For full context and worked exam questions, read the parent dot-point page.
What is impressionism?Show answer
Impressionism arose in France in the 1860s and 1870s (Monet, Renoir, Pissarro, Degas). Its aim was to capture the fleeting effects of light, colour and atmosphere as the eye actually perceives them in a moment, rather than to produce a smooth, finished, idealised image. Characteristics: broken, visible brushstrokes; bright, often unmixed colour placed side by side to be blended by the eye; an emphasis on changing light and times of day; everyday modern subjects (boulevards, cafes, leisure); and frequent painting outdoors, en plein air. Solid form begins to dissolve into shimmering colour, the first major loosening of realistic representation.
What is post-Impressionism?Show answer
Post-Impressionism is an umbrella for several artists working in the 1880s and 1890s who built on Impressionism's colour but rejected its fleeting, surface-bound quality, each in a personal direction. Cezanne sought solidity and structure, building form from planes of colour and treating nature in terms of underlying geometry. Van Gogh pushed colour and gestural, expressive brushwork toward raw emotion. Gauguin used flat areas of bold, non-naturalistic colour and simplified, symbolic forms.
What is cubism?Show answer
Cubism, invented around 1907 to 1914 by Picasso and Braque, was the most radical break. Aim: to represent objects more completely than a single viewpoint allows, by showing multiple viewpoints simultaneously and analysing form into its underlying geometric facets. Characteristics: fragmented, faceted planes; the collapse of single-point perspective; a shallow, ambiguous space; and, in the Analytic phase, a near-monochrome palette of browns and greys so that structure, not colour, dominates. Later Synthetic Cubism reintroduced brighter colour and collage.
What is q1?Show answer
What was the main aim of Impressionism, and name one characteristic that served it. [3 marks]
What is q2?Show answer
Why is Cubism described as the most radical break from realistic representation? [3 marks]
What is q3?Show answer
How did Post-Impressionism differ in aim from Impressionism? [3 marks]
Have a question we have not covered?
This dot-point answer is short enough that we have not extracted many short questions yet. Read the full dot-point answer or ask Mo, our study assistant, in the chat for follow ups.