Lecture

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At the 1905 Salon d’Automne a group of young artists which included Matisse, Derain, Marquet, Vlaminck and Van Dongen exhibited their work together in a room which had in its centre a traditional piece of sculpture. The art critic Louis Vauxcelles was surprised by the violent colours of the young artists and described them as Wild Animals or in French’ Les Fauves’.

Fauvism was a short lived art movement influenced by the bold colours and brushwork of Van Gogh and the highly coloured canvases that Gauguin had sent back from Tahiti. Another influence was the stunning colours of the South of France where the painter Paul Signac had his house and studio. Derain and Vlaminck met in Chatou on the Seine and worked together painting dramatic views of the river with tug boats and bridges. In 1905 Matisse discovered the small fishing town of Collioure on the French/Spanish border and invited Derain down to work with him. Derain and Matisse were back in Collioure in 1906 and Derain was commissioned by the dealer Vollard to paint the Thames in London in 1906 and 1907.

Other artists in the group include Marquet, early Braque, Camoin and Manguin all of whom painted in Provence, while Dufy and Friesz worked in Normandy. The movement started in the early years of the century and was over by 1910, although artists like Marquet and Van Dongen continued to work in a Fauve manner for many years.

This is a lecture full of Southern light and colour as the paintings of the Fauves dazzle, shock and surprise. Often the artists leave areas of the canvas bare and you feel that they are pushing the boundaries of technique. A truly spectacular lecture!