[eldagrimm]

Do any of you INFJ art appreciators who know what the symbolist movement was have a strong attraction to the decadence of that time period and the religious/moral/psychological undertones of it? I swear I feel like this movement was built based around our psyche (or is it just me and my mildly diseased imagination?). If y'all don't know what I'm talking about, Google painters such as Jan Toorop (love him to death), Odilon Redon (love him even more) and Gustave Moreau. I just remember someone on this forum calling INFJ's conservative bohemians. That kind of stuck with me... XD

[GreenCoyote]

I am going to come back to your thread and check these painters out cause I am currently making something with lots of symbols. I love um. I design my own all the time.

there is a certain style and composition to mine that feels particular.

[umbrellasky]

Wow! I just checked out those artists, amazing work! There is so much going on visually.

[penchant]

My taste of visual art is a tad to conservative for that - I'm more of a realist. But I can see why others are attracted to it.

[eldagrimm]

My taste of visual art is a tad to conservative for that - I'm more of a realist. But I can see why others are attracted to it.

Tell me my good man, do you fancy yourself some neoclassicism or romanticism? You could never go wrong with David, or Eugene DelaCroix.

[SarahWilliams]

I had never seen those artists before! Love it!

(ps, I also love the phrase 'conservative bohemians' I would consider us that. Sometimes I feel like I don't belong with Artists, or with the more straightlaced types. Somewhere in the middle. I like structure and logic, but I also like creativity and playing in human emotions....)

[umbrellasky]

Gustav Klimt is also a favourite of mine. I think he is a symbolist painter

[Linus]

I've taken art history classes before but we never reached this movement for some reason, although we talk about romanticism, art nouveau etc. They seem like they happened around the same time --Toorop's work has strong similarities to Klimt
Do you have any specific books or online sources you could recommend on this subject? Personally I relate more to expressionism, I tend to not like to use symbols.. Rather it's more about meanings said through specific colour palette, brushstrokes, medium of choice. To the point where I don't even use -form- anymore, completely abandoned it a few years ago due to frustration and my work is more spare or broken down like Agnes Martin or Josef Albers. Though I find Odilon's expressive like this too, whom I'm a fan of and other symbolist painters.
At times I feel symbolist work is so hard to get, it can be so personal and closed, so all I focus on is the visual aspect.. But I imagine it must be very therapeutic for the maker. Thank you for making this interesting thread =)

[penchant]

Tell me my good man, do you fancy yourself some neoclassicism or romanticism? You could never go wrong with David, or Eugene DelaCroix.

OK. I'm probably about to contradict myself now.

I adhere to a minimalist philosophy when it comes to stuff in general, and Delacroix is to intense for me. I think I appreciate art more on the use of light and concept than on details or use of color. So, basically minimalist in a sense yes, but romanticism as long as it isn't to heavy. Think J. M. W. Turner... I probably could've like the impressionists if I didn't dislike their technique so much. I think they are trying to capture, exactly what I'm looking for, just not expressing it in a way I find appealing. Neoclassicism, I could admire for the technique, but it would bore me after a while. I suppose it's to realistic for me. Yes, I'm picky.

[umbrellasky]

OK. I'm probably about to contradict myself now.

I adhere to a minimalist philosophy when it comes to stuff in general, and Delacroix is to intense for me. I think I appreciate art more on the use of light and concept than on details or use of color. So, basically minimalist in a sense yes, but romanticism as long as it isn't to heavy. Think J. M. W. Turner... I probably could've like the impressionists if I didn't dislike their technique so much. I think they are trying to capture, exactly what I'm looking for, just not expressing it in a way I find appealing. Neoclassicism, I could admire for the technique, but it would bore me after a while. I suppose it's to realistic for me. Yes, I'm picky.

J.M.W.Turner is one of my faves. I also love the impressionists because it's as if they have captured the 'essence' or the "aura" of the scene they are painting through their use of colour and light.

I have a hard time when it comes to minimalist or modern art. I find that boring. To me most of it is just a bunch of colour shapes put together to create an interesting composition. I don't find it memorable at all. For me they just look like some sort of interior design, something to brighten up your living space.

I suppose I like paintings that have something in them that I can recognise like a person or a landscape. In my creative writing class next week we will be discussing conceptial art so it will be interesting to hear what opinions people have.