Abstract | Abstract Expressionism | Art Deco | Cubism | Expressionism | Fauvism | Impressionism | Neoclassicism | Neo-Impressionism | Photo-Realism | Pointilism | Pop Art | Post-Impressionism | Primitivism | Realism | Religious | Romanticism | Sculptures | Surrealism | Art Printing Types | Sources

Abstract - Having an intellectual and affective artistic content that depends solely on intrinsic form rather than on narrative content or pictorial representation. A representation having no reference to concrete objects or specific examples. 1

Abstract artists felt that paintings did not have to show only things that were recognizable. In their paintings they did not try to show people, animals, or places exactly as they appeared in the real world. They mainly used color and shape in their paintings to show emotions. Some Abstract art is also called Non-objective art. In non-objective art, you do not see specific objects. It is not painted to look like something specific. 4

Abstract Expressionism - A painting movement in which artists typically applied paint rapidly, and with force to their huge canvases in an effort to show feelings and emotions, painting gesturally, non-geometrically, sometimes applying paint with large brushes, sometimes dripping or even throwing it onto canvas. Their work is characterized by a strong dependence on what appears to be accident and chance, but which is actually highly planned. Some Abstract Expressionist artists were concerned with adopting a peaceful and mystical approach to a purely abstract image. Usually there was no effort to represent subject matter. Not all work was abstract, nor was all work expressive, but it was generally believed that the spontaneity of the artists' approach to their work would draw from and release the creativity of their unconscious minds. The expressive method of painting was often considered as important as the painting itself.4

Art Deco - An art movement involving a mix of modern decorative art styles, largely of the 1920s and 1930s, whose main characteristics were derived from various avant-garde painting styles of the early twentieth century. Art deco works exhibit aspects of Cubism, Russian Constructivism and Italian Futurism -- with abstraction, distortion, and simplification, particularly geometric shapes and highly intense colors -- celebrating the rise of commerce, technology, and speed. 4

The growing impact of the machine can be seen in repeating and overlapping images from 1925; and in the 1930s, in streamlined forms derived from the principles of aerodynamics. The name came from the 1925 Exposition Internationale des Arts Decoratifs Industriels et Modernes, held in Paris, which celebrated living in the modern world. It was popularly considered to be an elegant style of cool sophistication in architecture and applied arts which range from luxurious objects made from exotic material to mass produced, streamlined items available to a growing middle class. 4

Cubism - A nonobjective school of painting and sculpture developed in Paris in the early 20th century, characterized by the reduction and fragmentation of natural forms into abstract, often geometric structures usually rendered as a set of discrete planes. 2

An artistic movement in France beginning in 1907 that featured surfaces of geometrical planes. 1

Cubism is modern art made up mostly of paintings. The paintings are not supposed to look real The artist uses geometric shapes to show what he is trying to paint. Early cubists used mainly grays, browns, greens, and yellows. After 1914, Cubists started to use brighter colors. Cubism was the beginning of the Abstract and Non-objective art styles. 4

Expressionism - A movement in the arts during the early part of the 20th century that emphasized subjective expression of the artist's inner experiences. 2

An art movement early in the 20th century; the artist's subjective expression of inner experiences was emphasized; an inner feeling was expressed through a distorted rendition of reality 1

In Expressionist Art, the artist tries to express certain feelings about some thing. The artists that painted in this style were more concerned with having their paintings express a feeling than in making the painting look exactly like what they were painting. 4

Fauvism - An early-20th-century movement in painting begun by a group of French artists and marked by the use of bold, often distorted forms and vivid colors. 2

An art movement launched in 1905 whose work was characterized by bright and non-natural colors and simple forms; influenced the expressionists. 1 The leader of the Fauves was Henri Matisse (French, 1869-1954).

Fauvism was an art style that lasted only four years, beginning in 1905. The leader of this movement was Henri Matisse. The word Fauvism is french for "wild beasts". It got this name because the paintings had bright and unusual colors. The subjects in the paintings were shown in a simple way, and the colors and patterns were bright and wild. 4

Impressionism - theory or style of painting originating and developed in France during the 1870s, characterized by concentration on the immediate visual impression produced by a scene and by the use of unmixed primary colors and small strokes to simulate actual reflected light. 2

A school of late 19th century French painters who pictured appearances by strokes of unmixed colors to give the impression of reflected light. 1

Impressionism was developed in France during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. These pieces of art were painted as if someone just took a quick look at the subject of the painting. The paintings were usually in bold colors and did not have a lot of detail. The paintings in this style were usually outdoor scenes like landscapes. The pictures were painted to look like they were shimmering. 4

Neoclassicism - A French art style and movement that originated as a reaction to the Baroque in the mid-eighteenth century, and continued into the middle of the nineteenth century. It sought to revive the ideals of ancient Greek and Roman art. Neoclassic artists used classical forms to express their ideas about courage, sacrifice, and love of country. 4

Neo-Impressionism - A movement in painting which was an outgrowth of and reaction to Impressionism. It was originated by Georges-Pierre Seurat (French, 1859-1891), who employed a technique called pointillism (also called divisionism, or confettiism), based on the scientific juxtaposition of touches or dots of pure color. His most famous painting is A Sunday on La Grande Jatte, 1884, 1884-1886, oil paint on canvas, in the collection of the Art Institute of Chicago). The brain blends the colors automatically in the involuntary process of optical mixing. Other neo-impressionists include Camille Pissaro (French, 1830-1903), Paul Signac (French, 1863-1935), Theodoor van Rysselberghe (Belgian, 1862-1926), and Henry Edmond Cross (French, 1856-1910). 4

Photo-Realism - Realist paintings and sculptures involving thorough reproduction of detail. In painting the results were nearly photographic-- in fact made from photographs (although painters had been working from photographs since the early days of photography). 4

Although its center was in the United States, the Photo-Realism movement was also strong in Europe from the late 1960s into the 1970s, where his type of illusionism is known principally as superrealism. Among the most highly regarded American photorealist painters are Richard Estes (1932-), Chuck Close (1940-), Audrey Flack (1931-), Charles Bell (1935-1995), and Ralph Goings (1928-). 4

Pointilism - a genre of painting characterized by the application of paint in dots and small strokes; developed by Georges Seurat and his followers in late 19th century France. 1

In Pointillism, the artist uses small dots or strokes of paint to make up the pictures. From far away, these dots blend together to form the picture and give the impression of different colors as they blend together. 4

Pop Art - A form of art that depicts objects or scenes from everyday life and employs techniques of commercial art and popular illustration. An American school of the 1950's that imitated the techniques of commercial art (as the soup cans of Andy Warhol) and the styles of popular culture and the mass media. 2

Pop art can be any every day item that is drawn in a brash and colorful way. Pop Art is short for Popular Art. It is inspired by billboards, comic strips, advertising, and popular entertainment. 4

Post-Impressionism - A school of painting in France in the late 19th century that rejected the objective naturalism of impressionism and used form, color, and shadows in more personally expressive ways. Majority of this style of art is comprised of still lifes and landscapes. 2

In the broadest sense, the theory or practice of any of several groups of recent painters, or of these groups taken collectively, whose work and theories have in common a tendency to reaction against the scientific and naturalistic character of impressionism and neo-impressionism. In a strict sense the term post-impressionism is used to denote the effort at self-expression, rather than representation, shown in the work of C['e]zanne, Matisse, etc.; but it is more broadly used to include cubism, the theory or practice of a movement in both painting and sculpture which lays stress upon volume as the important attribute of objects and attempts its expression by the use of geometrical figures or solids only; and futurism, a theory or practice which attempts to place the observer within the picture and to represent simultaneously a number of consecutive movements and impressions. In practice these theories and methods of the post-impressionists change with great rapidity and shade into one another, so that a picture may be both cubist and futurist in character. They tend to, and sometimes reach, a condition in which both representation and traditional decoration are entirely abolished and a work of art becomes a purely subjective expression in an arbitrary and personal language. 1

Postimpressionism began in the 19th century. It was mainly still lifes and landscapes. The postimpressionists liked to use lots of colors and shadows. 4

Primitivism - The condition or quality of being primitive. The style characteristic of a primitive artist. A belief that it is best to live simply and in a natural environment. 2

Primitive Art looks like art that is done by a child. Usually the picture is painted very simply, and the subjects are "flat", or two-dimensional. 4

Realism - An inclination toward literal truth and pragmatism. The representation in art or literature of objects, actions, or social conditions as they actually are, without idealization or presentation in abstract form. 2

An artistic movement in 19th century France; artists and writers strove for detailed realistic and factual description. 1

Realism is a type of art that shows things exactly as they appear in life. It began in the 18th century, but the greatest Realist era was in the mid-19th century. Most Realists were from France, but there were some famous American painters who were Realists also. 4

Religious - Concerned with sacred matters or religion or the church. Having or showing belief in and reverence for God or a deity. 2

Romanticism - art movement and style that flourished in the early nineteenth century. It emphasized the emotions painted in a bold, dramatic manner. Romantic artists rejected the cool reasoning of classicism -- the established art of the times -- to paint pictures of nature in its untamed state, or other exotic settings filled with dramatic action, often with an emphasis on the past. Classicism was nostalgic too, but Romantics were more emotional, usually melancholic, even melodramatically tragic. 4

Sculptures - The art or practice of shaping figures or designs in the round or in relief, as by chiseling marble, modeling clay, or casting in metal. To fashion (stone, bronze, or wood, for example) into a three-dimensional figure. 2

Surrealism - A 20th-century literary and artistic movement that attempts to express the workings of the subconscious and is characterized by fantastic imagery and incongruous juxtaposition of subject matter. 2

A 20th century movement of artists and writers (developing out of Dadaism) who used fantastic images and incongruous juxtapositions in order to represent unconscious thoughts and dreams. 1

Surrealists paintings were generally based on dreams. Their paintings were filled with familiar objects which were painted to look strange or mysterious. They hoped their odd paintings would make people look at things in a different way and change the way they felt about things. They thought that their paintings might stir up feelings in the back of peoples minds. 4

Art Printing Types

1. Lithograph - art printed on paper or canvas - Lithography is a method for printing using lithographic plates or stone with a completely smooth surface. Lithography is a printing process that uses chemical processes to create an image and typically uses one color per plate. Modern high-volume lithography is used to produce posters, maps, books, newspapers, and packaging — just about any smooth, mass-produced item with print on it. Most books, indeed all types of high-volume text, are now printed using offset lithography. In offset lithography, which depends on photographic processes, flexible aluminum or plastic printing plates are used in place of stone tablets, and it uses color separation to print color pages of a magazine, ART print, or poster. Lithographs are usually signed by the artist (Hand signed, stamp signed, estate signed, etc. and numbered).
   
   As a special form of lithography, the Serilith process is sometimes used. Serilith are mixed media original prints created in a process where an artist uses the lithograph and serigraph process. The separations for both processes are hand drawn by the artist. The serilith technique is used primarily to create fine art limited print editions.
   
   
2. Serigraph - art printed on finely woven canvas - Screenprinting, silkscreening, or serigraphy is a printmaking technique that creates a sharp-edged image using a stencil. A screenprint or serigraph is an image created using this technique. A screen is made of a piece of porous, finely woven fabric (originally silk, but typically made of polyester since the 1940s) stretched over a frame of aluminum or wood. Areas of the screen are blocked off with a non-permeable material to form a stencil, which is a negative of the image to be printed; that is, the open spaces are where the ink will appear. It is truly a hand created multiple using a few plates to a hundred or more plates making a serigraph look close to an original painting. Serigraphs are usually signed by the artist (Hand signed, stamp signed, estate signed, etc. and numbered).
   
   
3. Giclée - fine art canvas print - (pronounced "zhee-klay") - The French word "giclée" is a feminine noun that means a spray or a spurt of liquid. The word may have been derived from the French verb "gicler" meaning "to squirt". The term "giclée print" connotes an elevation in printmaking technology. Images are generated from high resolution digital scans and printed with archival quality inks onto various substrates including canvas, fine art, and photo-base paper. The giclee printing process provides better color accuracy than other means of reproduction.
   
   Giclée prints are created typically using professional 8-Color to 12-Color ink-jet printers. These modern technology printers are capable of producing incredibly detailed prints for both the fine art and photographic markets. Giclée prints are sometimes mistakenly referred to as Iris prints, which are 4-Color ink-jet prints from a printer pioneered in the late 1970s by Iris Graphics. Once an image is digitally archived, additional reproductions can be made. Archived files will not deteriorate in quality as negatives and film inherently do.
   
   The quality of the giclée print rivals traditional silver-halide and gelatin printing processes and is commonly found in museums, art galleries, and photographic galleries. Numerous examples of giclée prints can be found in New York City at the Metropolitan Museum, the Museum of Modern Art, the Chelsea Galleries, and Art Channel Galleries. Recent auctions of giclée prints have fetched tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands of dollars. A wide variety of substrates are available including various textures and finishes such as matte photo paper, watercolor paper, cotton canvas, or artist textured vinyl. (Giclée information provided by Giclée Print Net, Inc.) All Art Channel Galleries giclée reproductions are hand-signed and numbered by the artist.
   
   
4. Sang raal (pronounced "sang real") - textured canvas print - TEXTURAL PRINTING - Sang Raal is a special unique process in which multiple layers of ink are used to create dimensional art pieces that often look more real than the original. With special printers, artists and photographers can print their works directly on canvas stock as limited run textured reproductions. These art reproductions are often artist enhanced making each reproduction unique.
   
   
5. Artist Enhanced - printed on paper, canvas, or anything else - The artist paints or touches up his own print by hand adding more ink and texture to a reproduction art print. Some artists will paint on top of the printed image to create a more individual image.