7.1 Symbolism: Mysticism, Dreams, and the Subconscious

Symbolism emerged as a powerful artistic movement, rejecting realism in favor of mysticism, dreams, and the subconscious. Artists explored the inner world of imagination, using enigmatic imagery and personal symbols to convey complex ideas and emotions.

Influenced by philosophers and poets, Symbolists embraced the irrational and spiritual. Their work featured dreamlike scenes, mythological subjects, and atmospheric colors, paving the way for later movements like Surrealism and abstract art.

Philosophical Influences on Symbolism

The Role of the Irrational and the Subconscious

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• Symbolist movement influenced by philosophers Arthur Schopenhauer and Friedrich Nietzsche
  • Emphasized the role of the irrational, the will, and the subconscious in human experience
  • Schopenhauer believed that the world was driven by a blind, irrational force he called the "Will"
  • Nietzsche explored the idea of the Übermensch (superman) who could transcend conventional morality and embrace the irrational aspects of life

Poetic Inspiration and Dreamlike Imagery

• Symbolist artists inspired by poetry of Charles Baudelaire, Paul Verlaine, and Stéphane Mallarmé
  • Featured dreamlike imagery, mystical themes, and a focus on the inner world of the individual
  • Baudelaire's "Correspondences" suggested that the material world was a series of symbols reflecting a higher, spiritual reality
  • Mallarmé's complex, enigmatic poems sought to evoke the ineffable through the power of suggestion and symbolism

Romantic and Pre-Raphaelite Influences

• Symbolists influenced by Romantic movement's emphasis on emotion, imagination, and the sublime
  • Romantics like Caspar David Friedrich and William Blake explored mystical and metaphysical themes in their work
• Pre-Raphaelites' interest in medieval and mythological subjects also appealed to Symbolist sensibilities
  • Pre-Raphaelite paintings often featured intricate symbolism and a sense of mystery or otherworldliness (John Everett Millais' "Ophelia")

Theosophy and Mystical Traditions

• Theosophical Society, founded by Helena Blavatsky, promoted synthesis of Eastern and Western mystical traditions
  • Attracted many Symbolist artists with its emphasis on the spiritual and the occult
  • Theosophical ideas about the unity of all religions and the existence of hidden, esoteric knowledge resonated with Symbolist ideals
  • Symbolist painter Jean Delville was a prominent member of the Theosophical Society and incorporated its teachings into his work

Dreamlike Imagery in Symbolist Art

Enigmatic and Irrational Scenes

• Symbolist paintings depict enigmatic, dreamlike scenes evoking mystery, ambiguity, and the irrational
  • Gustave Moreau's "The Apparition" shows the biblical figure of Salome hallucinating the severed head of John the Baptist
  • Odilon Redon's "The Cyclops" presents a fantastical, nightmarish vision of the mythical one-eyed giant

Mythological and Biblical Subjects

• Symbolist artists used mythological and biblical subjects to explore universal human experiences and emotions
  • Moreau's paintings often featured figures from Greek mythology, such as Orpheus and the Chimera
  • Redon's "The Fall of Icarus" reinterprets the classical myth as a metaphor for the artist's struggle and the dangers of hubris

Atmospheric Color and Decorative Style

• Symbolist artists employed muted, atmospheric color palette and flattened, decorative style
  • Creates a sense of otherworldliness and detachment from everyday reality
  • Pierre Puvis de Chavannes' murals feature pale, ethereal colors and simplified, almost abstract forms (The Sacred Grove)
  • Gustav Klimt's paintings combine gold leaf, intricate patterns, and stylized figures to create a dreamlike, decorative effect (The Kiss)

Introspective and Melancholic Figures

• Many Symbolist works feature introspective, melancholic figures lost in reverie or contemplation
  • Reflects artists' interest in the inner world of the psyche
  • Fernand Khnopff's "I Lock the Door Upon Myself" depicts a solitary, androgynous figure in a claustrophobic, dreamlike space
  • Edvard Munch's "Melancholy" series explores themes of isolation, anxiety, and existential despair

Symbolism in Artworks

Personal and Universal Symbols

• Symbolist artists used wide range of personal and universal symbols to convey complex ideas and emotions
  • Viewers often required to decipher hidden meanings in their works
  • Paul Gauguin's "Vision After the Sermon" juxtaposes Breton peasant women with a mystical vision of Jacob wrestling an angel, suggesting the coexistence of the mundane and the sacred
  • Jean Delville's "The Treasures of Satan" employs esoteric and occult symbols to comment on the corrupting influence of materialism

Flowers, Mirrors, and Mythical Creatures

• Common symbols in Symbolist art include:
  • Flowers representing innocence, purity, or decay (Maurice Denis' "April")
  • Mirrors suggesting introspection or the duality of the self (Fernand Khnopff's "Who shall deliver me?")
  • Mythical creatures embodying primal desires or fears (Odilon Redon's "The Temptation of Saint Anthony")

Religious and Occult Symbols

• Religious and occult symbols often incorporated into Symbolist works
  • Evokes a sense of spirituality or mysticism
  • Carlos Schwabe's "The Wave" features a Christ-like figure surrounded by a halo of light, symbolizing the soul's journey towards enlightenment
  • Jean Delville's "Satan's Treasures" includes a pentagram and other occult symbols to represent the seductive power of evil

The Female Figure as Symbol

• Female figure a central symbol in many Symbolist paintings
  • Represents ideals of beauty, sensuality, and the eternal feminine
  • Also symbolizes potential for destruction and temptation
  • Gustav Klimt's "Pallas Athene" depicts the Greek goddess of wisdom as a seductive, mysterious figure
  • Franz von Stuck's "The Sin" portrays a nude woman with a serpent, evoking the biblical story of Eve and the temptation of Adam

Symbolism and the Subconscious

Shift from External to Internal World

• Symbolism marked significant shift in focus of art from external world to internal world of artist's imagination and psyche
  • Rejected realism and naturalism in favor of subjective, emotional expression
  • Explored dreams, visions, and the irrational as sources of artistic inspiration
  • Odilon Redon's "The Eye Like a Strange Balloon Mounts Toward Infinity" suggests the limitless power of the imagination to transcend the material world

Anticipation of Surrealism

• Symbolists' emphasis on dreams, visions, and the irrational anticipated later development of Surrealism
  • Surrealists further explored role of the subconscious in artistic creation
  • Symbolist works like Alfred Kubin's "The Prey" and Max Klinger's "A Glove" prefigure the haunting, dreamlike imagery of Surrealist artists like Salvador Dalí and René Magritte

Paving the Way for Abstract Art

• Symbolist artists' use of personal and archetypal symbols to convey meaning paved way for development of abstract art in early 20th century
  • Wassily Kandinsky and Piet Mondrian were influenced by Symbolist ideas about the spiritual and emotional power of color and form
  • Symbolist emphasis on the expressive potential of line, color, and composition anticipated the formal innovations of abstract art

Influence on Later Artists

• Symbolist movement's interest in psychological and spiritual dimensions of art influenced work of many later artists
  • Edvard Munch's "The Scream" expresses existential angst and alienation, themes that would be further explored by Expressionist artists
  • Wassily Kandinsky's abstract compositions were inspired by Symbolist ideas about synesthesia and the correspondence between colors and emotions
  • Marcel Duchamp's readymades and conceptual art challenged traditional notions of art and meaning, echoing the Symbolists' rejection of artistic conventions