Artists used many styles in their paintings and drawings. Here are some of the more common styles of art. Learn about each style and how to identify it. Next time you look at a painting, try to figure out what style it is! To see some artwork done in the different styles, check out the Art By Kids page.
Abstract -- Cubism -- Expressionism -- Fauvism
Impressionism -- Pointillism -- Pop Art -- Postimpressionism
Primitivism -- Realism -- Surrealism THE STYLES | ABOUT THE STYLES | THE ARTISTS | Abstract | Abstract artists felt that paintings did not have to show only things that were recognizable. In their paintings they did not try to show people, animals, or places exactly as they appeared in the real world. They mainly used color and shape in their paintings to show emotions. Some Abstract art is also called Non-objective art. In non-objective art, you do not see specific objects. It is not painted to look like something specific. | Sonia DelaunayJackson Pollock |
Cubism | Cubism is modern art made up mostly of paintings. The paintings are not supposed to look real The artist uses geometric shapes to show what he is trying to paint. Early cubists used mainly grays, browns, greens, and yellows. After 1914, Cubists started to use brighter colors. Cubism was the beginning of the Abstract and Non-objective art styles. | Pablo PicassoMarc ChagallGeorges Braque |
Top of Page Expressionism | In Expressionist Art, the artist tries to express certain feelings about some thing. The artists that painted in this style were more concerned with having their paintings express a feeling than in making the painting look exactly like what they were painting. | Marc ChagallWassily KandinskyLudwig Kirchner |
Fauvism | Fauvism was an art style that lasted only four years, beginning in 1905. The leader of this movement was Henri Matisse. The word Fauvism is french for "wild beasts". It got this name because the paintings had bright and unusual colors.