Fauvism: an art movement, is the topic of my project. When I came across the definition, it was hard to comprehend. But the more I read about it, the more it left me inspired. Fauvism was established around the 20th century, it was characterised by its bold use of colour creating an explosion on the raw canvas and its harsh/ textured brush strokes. Its USP is its vibrant and unusual juxtaposition of colours. I can write so much about how one can differentiate it from other art, but what inspired me the most and what matters the most is what it stood for. The revolt against rationalism, the reduction of dependence and other "traditional art rules" concerned the creatives during that time. That’s when they needed to find a new language, so they decided to revolt against tradition through art. The term ‘fauvism’ literally translates to ‘wild beast’ in French. In my eyes, It was a revolutionary movement that later gave birth to a lot of other revolutionary movements (like cubism) by chain reaction. The sheer shock it caused in the public’s and the critic’s eyes through the extreme use of colour was no less than a cultural shift which in turn also brought us one step closer to the legendary style of painting- abstraction. Legends of the painting world like Matisse, Derain and Van Gogh had a big role to play in this movement, they set the colours free and painted iconic pieces (like ‘Woman with a Hat’ ). Matisse was a lawyer before he became an artist, through fauvism, he was expressing his emotional angst through the violent use of colour. He said these paintings are not meant to depict history, they have books for that, and these are meant to depict our inner vision. Breaking the boundaries of their minds, it was just pure colour not being tied to the natural world. It celebrated individual expression, colour and emotions. I love that we can still see traces of fauvism in modern and contemporary art. What I’ve done here, is, I chose the subject to be a girl, whose story is that she is oppressed and bullied by her friends and loved ones for being quirky and weird. Taking all of that in, she chooses to give an answer to those bullies in a non-violent manner, by using bold colours, be it make-up or the way she dresses. It is her way of expressing her emotions and going against the grain in turn telling the world that she doesn’t accept it the way it is, and she will give it back in the best way she knows how. My project is a compilation of snaps of this girl if she were on Snapchat.
Styling, Makeup & Hair, Photography, Direction, Concept: Siya Chicker
Model: Deepanshi Sharma
Mentor: Nayantara Kotian
