Lilla Cabot Perry, Girl Reading a Book, 19th century, Sotheby’s
Fabric is one of art history’s most iconic and enduring motifs, draping, flapping or drifting through many of the best-known artworks of all time. Throughout the Renaissance period artistic portrayals of drapery were stretched in incredible new directions, illustrating just how evocative, expressive and emotive they could be, and setting the stage for centuries to come. Since then, the legacy of drapery has lived on through art, existing as a traditional motif that can be worked and reworked in a wide variety of ways to reflect the ever-changing visual and cultural landscape. In this new series, we will explore the ways fabric has been represented in western art history since the 18th century, travelling through the sensuous folds of the Romanticist period to the dazzling patterns and playful experimentation of Modernism and beyond.
Jules Bastien-Lepage, Pauvre Fauvette, 1881
Throughout the late 18th and early 19th century, Romanticism was the dominant artistic style, focussing on heightened emotions, subjectivity and the wild realms of the imagination. Fabric was a vital ingredient, crumpling into sensuous folds around naked flesh or flapping wildly into the wind. French painter Eugene Delacroix was particularly enamoured with drapery, experimenting with the ways it could emphasise and build upon the brooding, atmospheric drama of his paintings. One of the most iconic works of all time, his Liberty Leading the People, 1830, captured the defiant spirit of the French revolution with a richly expressive display of fabric, from the ragged, torn clothing of fallen soldiers to the golden gown falling from Liberty’s body and the triumphant French flag flying high above them. Romanticist painter Jean Auguste Dominique Ingres’ fabric was more sensuous and considered, with sumptuous layers of satin and velvet, folded, draped or crumpled to add volume and weight to his sitters – his small, devotional painting The Virgin Adoring the Host, 1852, is a particularly fine example.
Jean Auguste Dominique Ingres, The Virgin Adoring the Host, 1852, Met Museum
Realist painters of the mid-19th century moved past erotica and fantasy, exploring instead how drapery could convey the lives of ordinary working people. French artist Jules Bastien-Lepage painted young children at work in rural locations, while their rugged, worn-out or oversized clothes added emotional depth and weight to their life stories. During the Impressionist period, a realist approach to conveying fabric remained ever-present, but the way artists captured folds and creases was increasingly expressive and painterly. American painter Lilla Cabot Perry’s outdoor observations were filled with crisp, fresh fabric lit up by sunlight, painted with broad, bold streaks of paint. Similarly, American-French artist Mary Cassatt’s intimate everyday portraits were punctuated by the varying textured, coloured and patterned fabrics that adorned her daily life, painted in a loose, fluid style.
Mary Cassatt, Girl Arranging her Hair, 1886, Washington Post
Towards the latter end of the 19th century and beginning of the 20th, artistic approaches to fabric became increasingly adventurous and unconventional as artists increasingly broke away from traditional forms of representation. Austrian Symbolist and Art Nouveau painter Gustav Klimt drenched his dreamy, otherworldly figures in luminescent gold fabric, adorned with all manner of jewelled patterning and details. Klimt’s protégé, the young Austrian artist Egon Schiele was also experimental with fabric in his angst-ridden portraits, introducing shocking shards of colour or eye-catching prints to ignite his elegant line drawings with body and weight.
Gustav Klimt, Adele Bloch-Bauer I, 1907
Early 20th century art was splintered into a wide array of avant-garde styles and -isms, but the draping of fabric and clothing persisted as a painterly device that could be manipulated and upturned for dramatic effect. French artist Henri Matisse led the way with his flattened interior scenes filled with clashing Moroccan prints, transforming humble interior views into prismatic patterns of colour and light, while French intimiste artists Pierre Bonnard and Edouard Vuillard conveyed domestic fabrics as lively, animated passages of colour and light. Others explored fabric as a marker of cultural identity, such as Mexican artist Frida Kahlo, whose art is filled to the brim with the celebratory patterns and colours of Mexico. The way fabric appears in art continues to evolve today, from the closely observed creases and folds of Scottish painter Alison Watt to the theatrical, exaggerated costumes of Portuguese artist Paula Rego and the wax-batik creations of British-Nigerian artist Yinka Shonibare, demonstrating just how wide open the role of fabric in art continues to be.
FAQs
Although textiles are often only considered for their utility, many cultures, both ancient and contemporary, have also used textile art to weave cultural narratives, establish hierarchies, display political affiliation or resistance, and express vivid emotion.
What is the key characteristic of modernism in art? ›
Although many different styles are encompassed by the term, there are certain underlying principles that define modernist art: A rejection of history and conservative values (such as realistic depiction of subjects); innovation and experimentation with form (the shapes, colours and lines that make up the work) with a ...
How do you define modernism in art? ›
Modernism, in the fine arts, a break with the past and the concurrent search for new forms of expression. Modernism fostered a period of experimentation in the arts from the late 19th to the mid-20th century, particularly in the years following World War I.
What was one of the issues critics had with the work of Courbet? ›
Confronted with the unvarnished realism of Courbet's imagery, critics derided the ugliness of his figures and dismissed them as “peasants in their Sunday best.” Courbet's career was punctuated by scandal, often deliberately courted by the artist himself.
What is fabric and why is it important? ›
It serves a variety of purposes because it is such a flexible medium. Cloth can be wrapped tightly or draped loosely, woven to one shape or knitted to stretch and conform to changing shapes, or pieced together and combined with other materials to create items as different as rag dolls and tents.
What is the true meaning of fabric? ›
noun. a cloth made by weaving, knitting, or felting fibers: woolen fabrics.
What did modernism art focus on? ›
Early Modernism in Europe
While artists and styles amongst these groups were diverse, they were united by several shared ideas, namely a focus on innovation and experimentation, a tendency towards abstraction and an emphasis on the expressive use of materials.
What are five characteristics of modernism? ›
In other words, Modernism seeks to find new forms of expression and rejects traditional or accepted ideas. The Main Characteristics of Modern Literature: The characteristics of the Modern Literature can be categorized into Individualism, Experimentation, Symbolism, Absurdity and Formalism.
What elements make the art pieces modernist art? ›
Characteristics of Modern Art:
- Use of vibrant colors and bold brushstrokes.
- Abstract, expressive forms and shapes.
- Exploration of new concepts such as movement, time, and space.
- Rejection of mainstream values and traditional techniques.
Modernism was influenced by widespread technological innovation, industrialization, and urbanization, as well as the cultural and geopolitical shifts that occurred after World War I. Artistic movements and techniques associated with modernism include abstract art, literary stream of consciousness, cinematic montage, ...
Modernism is a period in literary history which started around the early 1900s and continued until the early 1940s. Modernist writers in general rebelled against clear-cut storytelling and formulaic verse from the 19th century.
How did modernism change art? ›
Artists embraced their newfound freedom of expression, experimentation, and discrimination. They tried to break down the community's view of art, analyzing theories of color and composition and frequently presenting these explorations on canvas.
Was Courbet a romantic? ›
Gustave Courbet (1819–77) is best known as the leading exponent of realism in French painting. Initially a Romantic in outlook, Courbet pioneered a manner of making history paintings which incorporated the drama and excitement of Romanticism in portrayals of everyday life of rural people.
What is the Realist artist Courbet known for his portrayal of? ›
Courbet's paintings of the late 1840s and early 1850s brought him his first recognition. They challenged convention by depicting unidealized peasants and workers, often on a grand scale traditionally reserved for paintings of religious or historical subjects.
What art movement is Courbet? ›
Gustave Courbet (born June 10, 1819, Ornans, France—died December 31, 1877, La Tour-de-Peilz, Switzerland) was a French painter and leader of the Realist movement. Courbet rebelled against the Romantic painting of his day, turning to everyday events for his subject matter.
What is fabric design meaning? ›
Fabric Design is the process of creating and preparing designs for fabric production. The designs themselves can be painted or drawn and then manipulated using the Adobe Design suite of products, or created digitally, using original art or copyright free images such as antique fabrics or ephemera.
What is the meaning of cloth painting? ›
Fabric painting is a skill of applying colors on the fabric to make it attractive which is very exciting experience. Painting techniques make stunning creativeness which is made by the depth of hue and shades or the creativity of the textures formed.
What is the meaning of canvas fabric? ›
Canvas is a plain-woven fabric typically made out of cotton and, to a lesser extent, linen. Canvas fabric is known for being durable, sturdy, and heavy duty. By blending cotton with synthetic fibers, canvas can become water resistant or even waterproof, making it a great outdoor fabric.
What is fabric art called? ›
Today, textile art which can also be known by the terms fiber art or fabric art, is much more than the medieval tapestries you may immediately associate with the medium — but can take myriad forms.
