Journal Entry 3
Fauvism through Cubism, Georges Rouault, Vasily Kandinsky, Paul Klee, and Cubism
are all artists or genres of art explained in week three’s assignment. These presentations
contained art that were all visually unique to any art that had ever been seen in the past.
First topic touched on was Fauvism through Cubism and the art that was created in this
era. Furthermore, students are challenged to look deeper into the church and how the art of this
time influenced it. More specifically, theater and its role in spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ.
George Rouault’s pieces at face value look very simplified, but clearly all have meaning.
Religious themes are consistent throughout his art. His art has an overall muted tone in terms of
color. However, some pieces do contain bits of color. In an article titled,“The Monk of Modern
Art,” Seamus L. Gaffney describes Rouault, “His work is highly individualistic and it is not
possible to classify him with any school.” Roualt’s work manages to have a consistency that
many other artists do not. Rouault’s religious stylings are completely unique and rank him
among the great artists in history.
Vasily Kandinsky is synonymous with chaos and randomness: as described by Helen
Mirren in MoMA’s video on the artist. Kandinsky’s art is very vibrant and strikingly unique.
However wild the art may look, Kandinsky, surprisingly, planned out each of his works.
Improvisation is not a word that should be associated with his art, although it has that quality at
face value.
Tate Modern’s exhibit of swiss-german artist, Paul Klee, presents his vibrant and
personal style. Rectangles are a common theme in his early art; Klee used rectangles to mimic
musical symphonies. Klee’s art fled from his once colorful, refreshing themes and ran to somber,
dark hues as events in his personal life took a turn.
The final presentation is on Cubism and how at it’s core rejected all conventional art
guidelines. This was the first abstract movement in modern art. Around the time of Cubism’s
birth technology, politics, and social structures were all rapidly evolving. Because photography
was gradually replacing portraiture, artists needed to create a new art style to combat this.
Cubism is a form of two dimensional art that is painted from many different viewpoints to
convey a sense of ‘totality.’ This art form went on to influence literature and the way authors
wrote their stories. Gradually this art form became more and more accepted. Pablo Picasso is
credited with creating Cubism.
Gaffney, Seamus L. “Georges Rouault: ‘The Monk of Modern Art.’” The Irish Monthly, vol. 78, no.
.926, 1950, pp. 383–387. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/20516226.
