Western painting

Western painting has a long history that started a long time ago and continues today. At first, it focused on making pictures that looked like real life and followed traditional ways of making art. Later, new styles like modern, abstract, and conceptual art became popular.

Johannes Vermeer's Girl with a Pearl Earring (1665–1667)

At first, Western painters created artwork for emperors, private homes, cities, and churches. Later, their work also interested kings and queens and people from the middle class. During the Middle Ages and the Renaissance, painters mainly worked for the church and very rich families. But during the Baroque period, more artists began to get jobs from ordinary people who were becoming richer and more educated.

The Renaissance was a special time for Western painting, especially in Europe. It was when artists learned new ways to draw, use perspective, and create amazing buildings, tapestries, stained glass, and sculptures. This period happened just before and after the printing press was invented. After the Renaissance, Western painting kept growing and changing from the Baroque period all the way to modern times today.

Pre-history

Greece and Rome

Bronze Age Aegean Civilizations

Minoan painting is the art made by people on the island of Crete a long time ago. From around 3000 to 1100 BC, they made beautiful paintings on walls and pottery. Their art shows landscapes, people, and animals. It was influenced by cultures like Ancient Egypt.

The best collections of Minoan art are in museums, such as the Heraklion Archaeological Museum. Minoan art helped shape later Greek art.

Classical Antiquity

Around 1100 BC, new tribes changed the art of Greece. Greek artists became famous for painting on pottery with black and red designs. Though most paintings on wood did not survive, old writers told us about great artists like Apelles.

Roman artists were inspired by Greek art but created their own styles. They painted walls in homes, especially in Pompeii, with scenes that looked real. Some of the few surviving portraits from ancient times come from Egypt.

Middle Ages

Main articles: Medieval art, Byzantine art, Illuminated manuscript, Middle Ages, and Dark Ages (historiography)

The Middle Ages brought big changes to painting, especially with the rise of Christianity. In the Byzantine Empire, artists created icons — special religious paintings — that followed strict traditions. These icons were formal and serious, like holy pictures. Many colorful wall paintings did not survive, but we still have beautiful tile pictures called mosaics.

In Europe, early paintings were small and found in books called illuminated manuscripts. One famous example is the Book of Kells, full of detailed designs and pictures. Over time, paintings began to show more realistic scenes. Two important artists, Cimabue and Giotto, helped make paintings look more like real life. Churches used colorful stained glass windows to tell stories. As societies grew wealthier, artists began painting for noble families and wealthy city people, creating a style known as International Gothic.

Early modern period

Renaissance and Mannerism

Main articles: Renaissance painting, Italian Renaissance painting, Early Netherlandish painting, Dutch and Flemish Renaissance painting, Mannerism, and High Renaissance

The Renaissance, meaning 'rebirth,' was a cultural movement from the 1400s to the mid-1600s. It brought new ways to make paintings look more real. Artists in Italy and the Low Countries developed these styles in their own ways.

In the Low Countries, artists became very good at painting things that looked natural. They used oil paint to create richer colors and glowing light. This made their paintings very different from older, flatter styles.

In Italy, artists looked to ancient Roman art for inspiration. They aimed for balance and ideal beauty. Famous artists like Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, and Raphael used new techniques to make their paintings more realistic and detailed.

Later, a style called Mannerism appeared. Mannerist artists liked to create unstable and dramatic paintings. This style was popular in Italy and spread to other parts of Europe.

Baroque and Rococo

Main articles: Baroque, Baroque painting, Rococo, Quadratura, Dutch Golden Age painting, and Flemish Baroque painting

Baroque painting began around 1600 and lasted through the 1600s. It was known for its drama, rich colors, and strong contrasts of light and dark. Artists like Caravaggio and Rembrandt were famous for their realistic and emotional scenes.

In the 1700s, Rococo painting became popular. It used soft colors and often showed playful or romantic scenes. Artists like Antoine Watteau and François Boucher were important in this movement. Rococo spread across Europe and was loved in palaces and homes.

Eventually, Rococo was replaced by Neoclassicism, which focused on order and seriousness, inspired by the French Revolution.

19th century

Main articles: Neoclassicism, History painting, Romanticism, Impressionism, Post Impressionism, and [Symbolism](/wiki/Symbolism_(arts)

After the Rococo period, a style called neo-classicism became popular. This style was serious, with artists like David and Ingres leading the way. Ingres' work showed some ideas from Romanticism, which focused on strong feelings.

By the middle of the 1800s, painters could choose what to paint. They were not limited to religious or historical scenes. Artists like Francisco Goya, John Constable, and J. M. W. Turner helped make landscape painting more important. Other famous painters included Eugène Delacroix, Théodore Géricault, and Caspar David Friedrich.

A new style called Realism began with Gustave Courbet. He painted everyday people in an honest way. This style influenced many younger artists. The Barbizon School, led by Jean-François Millet, focused on realistic scenes of nature and farm life.

Impressionism started later in the 19th century with artists like Édouard Manet, Claude Monet, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Camille Pissarro, and Edgar Degas. They painted what they saw outdoors, using bright colors and loose brushstrokes. They focused on light and how it changed during the day.

Post-Impressionists like Paul Cézanne, Vincent van Gogh, Paul Gauguin, and Georges-Pierre Seurat explored new ways of using color and form. Impressionism influenced painters all over the world, including in the United States, where artists like Childe Hassam and John Singer Sargent were inspired.

Symbolist painters, such as Gustave Moreau and Odilon Redon, used dreams and myths in their paintings. Their work inspired later artists, including those who worked in styles like Art Nouveau and Les Nabis.

20th century

Main article: 20th-century Western painting

The work of artists like Van Gogh, Cézanne, Gauguin, and Seurat was important for the growth of modern art. At the start of the 20th century, Henri Matisse and young artists, including Georges Braque, André Derain, Raoul Dufy, and Maurice de Vlaminck, changed the art world in Paris with bright, colorful paintings. This style was called Fauvism.

Pablo Picasso began Cubism using simple shapes. With Les Demoiselles d'Avignon (1907), Picasso created a new style. Cubism was developed by Picasso and Georges Braque from 1908 to 1912.

The Salon d'Automne in 1905 brought attention to Matisse and Fauvism. The group got its name after a critic called their work “wild beasts.”

In the early 20th century, many new art movements appeared, including Futurism, Abstract art, Der Blaue Reiter, Bauhaus, Orphism, Synchromism, De Stijl, Suprematism, Constructivism, Dadaism, and Surrealism. Modern painting influenced other arts, like architecture, film, and dance.

Fauvism, Der Blaue Reiter, Die Brücke

Main articles: Fauvism, Der Blaue Reiter, and Die Brücke

Fauvism was a group of early 20th-century artists who used strong colors and simple shapes. The leaders were Henri Matisse and André Derain. Fauvism lasted from 1905 to 1907 and had only three exhibitions.

Die Brücke was a group of German artists formed in Dresden in 1905. The members included Fritz Bleyl, Erich Heckel, Ernst Ludwig Kirchner, and Karl Schmidt-Rottluff. Later members were Max Pechstein and Otto Mueller. They had a big effect on modern art.

Der Blaue Reiter was a German art movement from 1911 to 1914. It was started by Wassily Kandinsky, Franz Marc, August Macke, Alexej von Jawlensky, Marianne von Werefkin, and Lyonel Feininger. They formed the group after Kandinsky’s painting Last Judgement was rejected from an exhibition.

Expressionism, Symbolism, American Modernism, Bauhaus

Main articles: Expressionism, Symbolism (arts), American Modernism, Modernism, and Bauhaus

Expressionism and Symbolism were important in 20th-century painting. They included many movements in Western, Eastern, and Northern Europe. Fauvism, Die Brücke, and Der Blaue Reiter are well-known groups of Expressionist and Symbolist painters. Artists like Marc Chagall, Gustav Klimt, Egon Schiele, and Edvard Munch were influential.

American artists between the World Wars often went to Europe for recognition. Artists like Marsden Hartley, Patrick Henry Bruce, and Stuart Davis created reputations there. During the 1920s, photographer Alfred Stieglitz showed artists like Georgia O'Keeffe and Arthur Dove in his New York gallery.

Pioneers of abstraction

Wassily Kandinsky is often seen as the first important modern abstract painter. He believed that abstract art could express deep feelings. Other early abstract artists include Hilma af Klint, Kazimir Malevich, and Paul Klee. Robert Delaunay was a French artist linked to Orphism, known for his use of color and shape.

Dada and Surrealism

Marcel Duchamp became famous after the New York City Armory Show in 1913 with his painting Nude Descending a Staircase, No. 2. He was linked to the Dada movement, which started in Zürich, Switzerland during World War I. Dada included artists like Francis Picabia, Man Ray, and Kurt Schwitters.

In 1924, André Breton published the Surrealist Manifesto. Surrealism became a major art movement, with artists like Yves Tanguy, René Magritte, and Salvador Dalí.

Neue Sachlichkeit, Social realism, regionalism, American Scene painting, Symbolism

In Germany, Neue Sachlichkeit (“New Objectivity”) emerged as artists like Max Beckmann, Otto Dix, and George Grosz made paintings about their times.

During the Great Depression and World War II, American art was influenced by Social Realism and American Scene Painting. Regionalism was also popular, with artists like Ben Shahn, Thomas Hart Benton, and Grant Wood.

Abstract expressionism

The 1940s in New York City saw the rise of American abstract expressionism. Artists like Jackson Pollock, Willem de Kooning, and Mark Rothko were key figures. Abstract expressionism was influenced by Surrealism and European Modernists.

Realism, Landscape, Seascape, Figuration, Still-Life, Cityscape

During the 1930s to 1960s, while abstract painting grew, many artists continued to work in realistic styles. Artists like Edward Hopper and Andrew Wyeth created famous paintings in these areas.

Pop art

Pop art began in the mid-1950s in New York City with artists like Robert Rauschenberg and Jasper Johns. By the 1960s, it became a major movement with artists like Andy Warhol, Claes Oldenburg, and Roy Lichtenstein. Pop art combined everyday objects and images with fine art.

Art Brut, New Realism, Bay Area Figurative Movement, Neo-Dada, Photorealism

In the 1950s and 1960s, some artists reacted against abstraction with movements like Art brut, Fluxus, Neo-Dada, and New Realism. The Bay Area Figurative Movement in California was an important example.

Geometric abstraction, Op Art, Hard-Edge, Color field, Minimal Art, New Realism

During the 1960s and 1970s, abstract painting developed in many ways. Geometric abstraction, Op art, hard-edge painting, Color Field painting, and Minimal Art were some of the directions. Artists like Josef Albers and Frank Stella were influential.

Shaped canvas, Washington Color School, Abstract Illusionism, Lyrical Abstraction

Color Field painting led to new directions in American art. Artists like Clyfford Still, Mark Rothko, and Morris Louis used color in powerful ways. The Washington Color School was another group using Color Field techniques.

Lyrical Abstraction began in the mid-1960s as artists returned to expressive, process-oriented painting. It included artists like Dan Christensen and Ronnie Landfield.

Abstract Illusionism, Monochrome, Minimalism, Postminimalism

One of the first artists linked to Minimalism was Frank Stella. Other artists like Larry Poons and Kenneth Noland explored stripes, monochromatic, and hard-edge styles. Minimalism often moved away from painting toward sculpture.

Neo-expressionism

In the late 1960s, Philip Guston helped shift from abstract expressionism to Neo-expressionism. In the late 1970s and early 1980s, Neo-expressionism became popular in Europe and the UK. Artists like Gerhard Richter and Jean-Michel Basquiat worked in this style.

Contemporary painting

Main articles: Contemporary art, Postmodern art, and Late Modernism

In the 20th and 21st centuries, new kinds of art like Modern and Postmodern styles changed how we think about art. The line between serious art and everyday art became less clear. This happened because modern art often connects with popular culture.

Many artists during this time chose to work with many different kinds of art, not just traditional painting. Some people thought that anything could be art, which made it a bit confusing to understand what was happening in the art world.