Thursday, 22 May 2008

Signac on painting subjects


This article was first published in my newsletter "Notes From My French Easel" – April 2008. [Note: This newsletter is not published anymore]



Notre-Dame-de-la-Garde (La Bonne-Mère), Marseilles, 1905–6
Paul Signac (French, 1863–1935)
Oil on canvas; 35 x 45 3/4 in. (88.9 x 116.2 cm) - Gift of Robert Lehman, 1955 (55.220.1)

Source: Metropolitan Museum of Art


Signac was asked to write an article for the « Encyclopédie française » on « the subject in painting ». The artist’s views on this topic are well summarized by this quote:

«There is no good subject for a painter. In a painting, the subject should go unnoticed, like the style in a novel. Picturesque goes out of fashion; only the pictorial element does not go out of fashion. » (Paul Signac)

Who was Paul Signac?

Paul Signac (born in Paris on November 11, 1863 - died on August 15, 1935 in Paris) was part of the neo-impressionist mouvement together with Georges Seurat. He used the division of colours in his paintings and explained the theory behind pointillism in his book "From Delacroix to neo-impresionism". He became president of the Société des Artistes Indépendants (Society of Indepenent Artists) in 1908 and kept this tenure until his death.

Related articles
More on Paul Signac
Books on Paul Signac








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