Biographies

Georges Seurat (1859 – 1891) He was born in Paris and studied at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts in 1878 and 1879, studying with Henri Lehmann. There he made friends with , another young painter, with whom he later shared a studio. After a year of military service at Brest, Seurat exhibited his drawing Aman-Jean at the official Salon in 1883. Panels from his painting were refused by the Salon the next year, so Seurat and several other artists, including , founded the Societé des Artistes Independants. His famous canvas was the centerpiece of an exhibition in 1886. In this painting he developed a new style which became the basis of an artistic movement, called variously Neo-Impressionism, Pointillism or Divisionism. Seurat and Signac were the leading figures in this movement. Most art historians like to ignore the fact that the movement had a strong political coloration–and that color was anarchistic. Edmond Aman-Jean Une Baignade, Asnières ( Bathing at Asnieres) Paul Signac Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte