Divisionism

See also: Pointillism
Charles Blanc’s color wheel, which was influential in Divisionist theory

Divisionism, also called chromoluminarism, is the characteristic style in Neo-Impressionist painting defined by the separation of colors into individual dots or patches that interact optically.[1][2]

By requiring the viewer to combine the colors optically instead of physically mixing pigments, Divisionists believed that they were achieving the maximum luminosity scientifically possible. Georges Seurat founded the style around 1884 as chromoluminarism, drawing from his understanding of the scientific theories of Michel Eugène Chevreul, Ogden Rood and Charles Blanc, among others. Divisionism developed along with another style, Pointillism, which is defined specifically by the use of dots of paint and does not necessarily focus on the separation of colors.[1][3]

  1. ^ a b Tosini, Aurora Scotti, "Divisionism", Grove Art Online, Oxford Art Online.
  2. ^ Homer, William I. Seurat and the Science of Painting. Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press, 1964.
  3. ^ Ratliff, Floyd. Paul Signac and Color in Neo-Impressionism. New York: Rockefeller UP, 1992. ISBN 0-87470-050-7.