Origins of Style Painting:

Artistic style is the distinctive visual language that reflects cultural, philosophical, and individual influences. The origins of style in art date back to prehistoric times, when early humans created cave paintings using natural pigments. These images, found in places like Lascaux (France) and Altamira (Spain), weren’t merely aesthetic but served ritualistic or communicative purposes. The choice of materials and depiction of animals already hinted at emerging stylistic preferences.

Classical art, which originated with the Greeks around 500 BC, produced beautiful sculptures and elegant architecture crafted from marble. These artists primarily focused on depicting the beauty of the human form, creating figures that appeared highly naturalistic and lifelike. The Romans adapted the Greek artistic style, and today, most of the classical art that survives is Roman, not Greek. The Renaissance reignited interest in classical ideals, introducing linear perspective, naturalism, and human emotion into visual storytelling. Artists like Leonardo da Vinci and Raphael were key figures in shaping this new visual style.

In the centuries that followed, art styles became increasingly diverse: Baroque, with its drama and grandeur; Rococo, characterised by elegance and lightness; and Neoclassicism, which marked a return to classical restraint.

Then, the most influential Art Nouveau, also known as Jugendstil and Sezessionstil in German, is an international style of art, architecture, and applied art, particularly in the decorative arts. It was often inspired by natural forms such as the sinuous curves of plants and flowers. Other characteristics of Art Nouveau included a sense of dynamism and movement, usually achieved through asymmetry or whiplash lines, as well as the use of modern materials, particularly iron, glass, ceramics, and later, concrete, to create unusual forms and larger open spaces. It was popular between 1890 and 1910, during the Belle Époque period, and was a reaction against the academicism, eclecticism, and historicism of 19th-century architecture and decorative art.

The 19th and 20th centuries ushered in modernism, with movements such as Impressionism, Cubism, Surrealism, and Abstract Expressionism, all of which challenged previous conventions and emphasised individuality.