fauves

Fauves, or the Fauve movement, refers to a short-lived but influential group of early 20th-century French painters whose works emphasized bold, unnatural color and expressive brushwork. The name Fauves, meaning "wild beasts," was applied by the critic Louis Vauxcelles at the 1905 Salon d'Automne to describe their vivid, non-naturalistic use of color and simplified forms.

Although not a formal school, the Fauves shared an interest in liberated color and direct painting. The core period is usually dated 1905–1908. The most prominent members were Henri Matisse and André Derain, whose experiments with color and flat patterns defined the style. Other notable Fauves included Maurice de Vlaminck, Albert Marquet, Raoul Dufy, and Kees van Dongen; Georges Rouault and others were associated through early works.

Stylistically, Fauve works are characterized by large blocks of pure color, energetic brushwork, simplified forms, and a preference for painting en plein air. Color often serves as an independent element rather than a descriptive tool; trees, skies, and faces may be painted in slabs of unexpected hues. The subjects commonly included landscapes, scenes from daily life, and portraits; the compositions tended toward bold, flattened forms rather than subtle modeling.

Impact and legacy: Fauvism influenced later movements such as German Expressionism and simplified color fields, and helped usher in modernist experimentation with color. By around 1908 many Fauves gradually moved toward other styles, with some artists engaging in elements of Cubism or returning to more conventional approaches. Although short-lived, the Fauves left a lasting mark on the development of modern painting.