Symbolism is the art of communication symbols

Symbolism - this is a kind of direction in art, which appeared in the middle of last century in France. This type of art quickly won the widest popularity and continued active development until the twentieth century.

Symbolism is one of the most important elements of world art. Although it appeared only in the nineteenth century, its elements can be fully noticed since ancient times. For example, the symbolism of Christianity is impregnated with Gothic medieval paintings and murals. In the mystical, ghostly paintings that artists painted in the era of Romanticism, you can see the numerous elements of symbolism.

However, this trend in art acquired its greatest development already in the nineteenth century as a counterbalance to realism and impressionism. In this direction, a negative attitude towards the developing bourgeoisie was openly expressed. Symbolism is an expression of longing for spiritual freedom, a subtle foreboding of historical and social changes throughout the world and humanity.

The very term "symbolism" was first published in "Le Figaro" - a fairly popular printed periodical - in 1886, on the eighteenth of September. The main ideas of this trend were described in the literature by the famous French poet Charles Baudelaire. He believed that only characters can fully express the subtle spiritual state of the poet or artist.

The philosophical and aesthetic foundations of symbolism began to develop virtually simultaneously simultaneously in many Western European countries. The main representatives of symbolism are S. Mallarme, P. Verdun, A. Rembo, P. Valéry in France; M. Maeterlinck, E. Verharn in Belgium; G. Gaupman in Germany; R. Rilke in Austria; Oscar Wilde in the UK; G. Ibsen and K. Hamsun in Norway. One can even say that the symbolism of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries is completely dependent on literature.

Symbolism is in some measure an echo of romanticism. The aesthetics of both these currents is very similar and connected. A symbol is an object of insight generated by a poet. He expressed the secret meaning of things, revealed the secrets of being, painted the otherworldly, mystical, esoteric meaning of phenomena, hidden from ordinary people. The symbols painted by the artist were considered truly prophetic, and the artist himself was the creator, the seer, who could see in the events and phenomena certain hidden signs of fate.

Symbolism in art was addressed to the spiritual sphere, to the interaction of the inner world of man, his personality and individuality, with the outer world. According to the concept of symbolism, the real world exists outside of our visible world, and it can only partially be reflected in it. It is art that acts as a mediator between these worlds, it is a means of transforming and interpreting the spiritual side of life.

Symbolism has firmly entered the literature, painting and architecture of many countries, influencing significantly the world art. Symbolists laid the foundation for surrealism with their desire for innovation, cosmopolitanism and numerous experiments.