The Final Flourish

Your Playlist:

Description

Starting with the last exhibition the Impressionists organized as a group, this program examines the late years of the movement. British critic Waldemar Januszczak looks in depth at the work of Georges Seurat, taking into consideration Seurat's academic training at the Beaux-Arts School in Paris and the artists that influenced him, such as Piero della Francesca and Puvis de Chavannes. Meanwhile, Januszczak studies the fascinating intersection between optics and art and the ways in which the Impressionists used new discoveries about light and vision in their work. Van Gogh's time in Paris is also covered, especially regarding his transition from somber-hued social commentary to the dazzling palette he adopted on the cusp of his departure for the south of France. Then, coming in a sense full circle, the film finishes by revisiting Monet and his late water lily cycle - a lingering, masterful swan song produced despite the artist's near blindness.