Post-Impressionism at the de Young

Starry Night Over the Rhone, 1888 by Vincent Van Gogh

How often do you get to visit a famous Parisian art museum in under one year? Quite a few times, if you're in San Francisco, that is. Once again the incomparable Musée d'Orsay has shared its contents with the de Young Museum in a follow-up exhibition to its Birth of Impressionism show from earlier this year. The new show, lengthily entitled Van Gogh, Gauguin, Cézanne and Beyond: Post Impressionist Masterpieces from the Musée d'Orsay, presents an even stronger collection than the original show.

Impressionism, while beautiful, tends to have such a mass-market appeal that its imagery is now ubiquitous. Conversely, Post-Impressionism's cerebral philosophies and stylistic experimentation make its artworks more difficult to digest as popular art. For those of us that love this more intellectual type of work, Post-Impressionism is akin to luxury goods: rich, beautifully crafted, intelligently produced, and layered in complexity. True, you can simply look at certain pieces at face value and appreciate their overt beauty, but the essence of Post-Impressionism is what's going on beneath the surface.

Still Life with Onions, 1896-1898 by Paul Cézanne

Oftentimes what's going on beneath the surface (alcoholism, drug addiction, health concerns, bad marriages, family disputes, poverty...) are intensely traumatic, but as is usually the case these things drive people to create great art. That's why this period is particularly fascinating to art aficionados. This is the period when art gets really "out there". Artists collaborate with each other, learn, play, and philosophize on new ways of seeing. The results may be a touch disturbing, but just by looking at these paintings you can feel the culture moving forward.

A large selection of notable Van Gogh paintings are a part of this show, including the famous Bedroom at Arles from 1889. Although most viewers would simply look at this somewhat sweet depiction of the artist's room and take it in, I'm always saddened by the image. It's incredibly lonely. The angles of the walls and odd perspective of the furniture make the room look as though it's shrinking; you can feel Van Gogh's own feelings of entrapment, this in a room that is meant to bring him comfort.

Indeed, all of the Van Gogh paintings are worth their own trip to this exposition. The images are quite famous, but there is nothing like seeing a Van Gogh in real life. The brush strokes are so strong and pronounced, and there is just no way to describe the intensity of the colors. In a simple bit of curatorial genius, the walls in the Van Gogh room are painted "Benjamin Moore Old Navy Blue" (this, according to Jill Lynch of the FAMSF) which make the paintings appear to leap from the walls. A true gem in the exhibition, Starry Night Over the Rhone from 1888 is truly astounding to see on this background. Later on in the exhibition, the backgrounds turn to a rich carmel brown color, setting off the work of the Nabis paintings with a similar vibrancy.

Sunlight on the Terrace, 1890 by Maurice Denis

The show presents all of Post-Impressionism, but takes care to break out a number of different subgenres, which really helps to explain the stylistic developments that happen as the movement progresses over time. Post-Impressionism involves interesting spatial changes due to the influence of Japanese prints, while the content itself seems to move away from quotidien life (common in Impressionism) to the artists' own fantasies. Experimentation and abstraction propel groups such as the Symbolists and Nabis, with the Nabis seeking to develop a purely decorative art with their murals and large panel paintings.

It is with these new developments that we later reach Art Nouveau, Cubism, Expressionism, and the many other major movements of the early 20th Century.

While this show will only be in San Francisco until mid-January, this is an exhibition to be treasured. It's pieces are both monumental and mysterious, providing a taste of some familiar images while prompting new explorations in lesser-known areas. As I've mentioned before, seeing art like this is like visiting with old friends - it never gets old. The fact that this show in particular is so clear, concise, and yet expansive makes the visiting even better.

Van Gogh, Gauguin, Cézanne, and Beyond: Post-Impressionist Masterpieces from the Musée D'Orsay is at the de Young Museum through January 18th, 2011. Advance tickets are required.