The Influence of Japonisme on French Painting

Abstract Japanese art imported to the West in the late 19th century had a major impact on European popular consciousness (Wichmann, 2003). Inspired by Japanese art, France was quick to incorporate authentic Japanese aesthetics into its paintings. How did Japonisme influence artistic innovation and intercultural dialogue between France and Japan? In order to understand the extent to which Japonisme influenced French painting, it is necessary to examine the work of the leading French painters of the period. There have been numerous studies on the influence of Japonisme: Alcock (1878) categorises the different types of Japanese woodblock prints and explains their iconographic and artistic significance; Molodyakov (1996) identifies the preconditions for the emergence and formation of the Japanese image in (1996), 'The image of Japan'. Oshima (1999) details how French artists incorporated Japanese motifs into their work. However, while there are several studies on French painting, there are few studies on the work of contemporary French artists. The aim of this paper is to explore the influence of Japanese culture on French painting. To achieve the goal of the study the following tasks were set: to investigate the japonisme in France; to identify the relationship between traditional Japanese paintings and works of French artists; to analyse the works of French artists of the early XX century and the present; to identify the main artistic techniques of Japanese art, which influenced French artists. The results of the research show that the influence of the Japanese art movement continues to inspire French artists today. Elements of Japanese aesthetics, symbolism and composition continue to permeate contemporary French art, offering artists endless opportunities for expression. Keywords: modernisation, Japonisme, art, French artists, Japanese colour prints, visual culture