Signac, Paul

(1863-1935)

   painter, watercolorist, art critic

   Paul Signac, a neoimpressionist artist who, with georges seurat, originated the technique of pointillism, was born in Paris, where he also studied art. He was an admirer of claude monet and his associates, whose influence can be seen in his works. Not adhering to the official Salon style, Signac, in 1884, exhibited with the groupe des Artistes indépendents and, befriending Seurat, helped him to develop the basic theories of neoim-pressionism. He later became that style's foremost spokesperson (De Delacroix au néo-impressionisme, 1899). Seeking to find the greatest luminosity in his paintings, he developed a technique of showing glittering sunlight through placement of colored dots to achieve a prismatic effect. He painted seascapes (Port de Collioure) but also interiors (Le petit Dejeuner, 1886-87; Femme se peignant, 1892), portraits (Félix Fénélon, 1890), characterized by hieratism and arabesques and other symbolist traits. After 1895, Signac moved away from pointil-lism and chose to work with larger touches of paint, creating mosaiclike effects. An avid sailor, he also made several trips during which he produced a large number of watercolors depicting views of ports and harbors. At the end of this period, he returned to studio painting and did large compositions in which he remained faithful to the division of tones and the simultaneous contrast of colors. After 1908, Signac served as president of the Société des indépendents.