During our recent visit to the Van Gogh exhibition in Athens, one element particularly caught our attention and made us discover one of the many hidden aspects of this special artist.
Η Japanese influence in his works or otherwise Japanism (japonism). A world of simple lines, pure colors and serene landscapes that seems to come from another continent. And yet, it is deeply engraved in Van Gogh's universe. As Japanism, also known as exoticism The particular current of visual arts from the East, which influenced Impressionism as an artistic movement in the early 19th century, was mentioned as early as 1872. The arrival of Japanese woodblock prints, ceramics, textiles, and other objects sparked a wave of interest among Western artists and collectors. This fascination, known as Japanese, profoundly influenced the development of modern art.
Vincent Van Gogh considered Japanese art not simply a kind of exoticism, but an aesthetic utopia in its relationship with nature, especially in the Arles period. A representative work with influences from Japanese art is "The Whore of Luxury (according to Aizen)".
In our upcoming articles, we will refer in more detail to the way that Japonism influenced many areas of the arts, including the Paris metro and this work by Van Gogh.
After Japan's opening to the West, European artists were enchanted by its aesthetics, its flat surfaces, its strong contours, its simple but expressive forms.
Van Gogh was no exception. On the contrary, he found in Japonism a new perspective to render light, nature and the soul. He studied Japanese woodblock prints avidly and often copied them, not to imitate them, but to learn from their purity and silence. A characteristic work influenced by this movement is the painting Almond Blossom, which is one of his best-known works. More information about the work can be found at here.
In his letter to his brother Theo, he wrote characteristically:
“All my art is based in a way on the Japanese spirit.”
In his works, such as “The almond blossom” ή “The Bridge of Langlois”, we clearly see this oriental influence. Not only in the colors and lines, but also in the feeling of calm and spiritual clarity that they exude.
Japanism is not just a technical approach. It is a philosophy. The search for beauty in simplicity. And perhaps, at this point, East and West truly met on the canvas of a man who sought harmony in chaos.
Art is a dialogue. And Van Gogh, through his brushstrokes, united two worlds that did not speak the same language, but felt the same light.
Watch the video of pianist Remko Kühne composing music for Van Gogh's painting Almond Blossom.
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