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The initial desire of a painter who is optimistic about painting is that it will move, that it will exist beyond its frame."

These remarks of Gertrude Stein, a prominent American novelist, echo the ideas of an art enthusiast who sees a painting as a portal to a world beyond the ordinary. This passage transports an art enthusiast to a world of unrivaled inventiveness and imagination. Figurative paintings and art is one such type of art that is capable of transcending the world of mere appearances.

Midst the learning about figurative paintings, you can also buy Indian art with us! 

This phrase simply refers to artwork with the subject(s) that have a lot of real-life elements. No matter how much reality is involved in the construction of the art, it is always representational, and the audience can immediately understand what they are looking at.

After the emergence of abstract art, the term figurative became widely used in art discussions.

What is the definition of figurative art?

One of the long-standing ambitions of painters has been to depict the world realistically on paintings or in sculptures. Mimesis was the ancient term for the art genre that dealt with realistic representations of persons and their surroundings; presently, it is known as figurative art. As a result, figurative art is a type of art that has a strong connection to the real world, particularly the human figure.

Figure sculpture in Greek antiquity was not naturalistic, since its forms were idealised and geometric, and it was founded on a tacit understanding of abstracted shapes. The strictures of this schematic imagery, the adherence to what was already known rather than what was seen, were dubbed the "Egyptian technique" by Ernst Gombrich, a reference to the memory-based clarity of imagery in Egyptian art. By 480 B.C., idealisation had given way to observation, and Classical sculpture had evolved into a figurative art that blended ideal geometry with more realism. Mimesis was the Greek term for relying on visual observation. Until the Impressionists, figurative painting was defined by attempts to reconcile two diametrically opposed concepts.

Since the introduction of abstract art, the term 'figurative art'/'figurative paintings' has been widely used to refer to works by artists who have employed real-world elements and features as their subject matter. In retrospect, the phrase "figurative art" also refers to all art made before the invention of abstract art.

Modern figurative art is distinguished from modern realism by the employment of contemporary idioms by modern figurative painters, whereas modern realists use styles that precede post-impressionism. Modern figurative art resembles the overall tendency of expressionism that began in the early twentieth century and continues today. Alberto Giacometti and Pablo Picasso are two great exemplars of modern figurative painting and sculpture, respectively. Figuration can be found in the works of illustrious painters like Francis Bacon and Lucian Freud, as well as pop art, new expressionism, and even new spirit painting.

In the early twentieth century, figurative art was popular.

Figurative paintings fell out of favor in the early twentieth century. Although the emergence of the camera and its widespread appeal is blamed for the disappearance of persons in paintings, the true cause was the painters' creative, expressive, and unusual impulses. The Impressionists were the first of the group of artists to let the figure dissolve and emphasize surface effects. It's worth noting that the word 'Impressionism' was used to criticize these artists' work since their paintings simply gave a general idea of the real objects they were depicting rather than accurately depicting them.

Although human beings did not have the same prominence in twentieth-century art as they did in earlier periods, they were crucial to two styles: Social Realism and Expressionism. While social realists used figures to try to accurately reflect current communal life, expressionists used the human figure as the focal point of a style dedicated to celebrating human longings and concerns.

During Abstract Expressionism, Figurative Art was popular.

The lack of figuration in Abstract Expressionism is emblematic of the postwar period when anti-leftist politics shattered social realism's place and the humanism at the foundation of the Expressionist style was shaken by World War I. Except for Andrew Wyeth, only a few realists acquired prominence during this time.

While figurative painting was largely ignored by the Western avant-garde for much of the twentieth century, that changed with the emergence of figurative painters like Anselm Kiefer, Jean-Michel Basquiat, and David Salle in the 1980s; this renewed interest in turn shed light on figurative painters who had long worked in the same vein, from Lucian Freud and Alice Neel to Alex Katz, Gerhard Richter, and countless others. Today, figurative artists like as John Currin, Kehinde Wiley, Jenny Saville, and Elizabeth Peyton reflect a variety of methods.

Though many Abstract Expressionists' works are abstract, other painters restored human beings into their paintings. Willem de Kooning, the renowned artist most known for his series of paintings depicting women, began work on the series in the early 1950s. The employment of figures was critical for de Kooning in depicting the history of Western art. His example would have been tremendously influential, but as colored abstraction grew in popularity and patronage backing in the 1950s, de Kooning's decision to continue with realistic works became increasingly viewed negatively.

Wrap up:

Abstract Expressionism's demise prepared the door for the resurgence of figurative painting. Many painters, notably Philip Guston, began returning to figuration in the 1960s.

It is not an exaggeration to claim that artists are once again focusing on the principles of painting with the rebirth of neo-figurative paintings in the 1990s. Figurative art has withstood the test of time, rising from the ashes like a phoenix. Without a question, figurative art is a genre that will endure.

If you have successfully reached his line- you have versed yourself with the idea of what Figurative art is. Post this, you can buy Indian art with utmost confidence. Grab in the best art form with Indian Art Ideas and enjoy the best of your home!