expressionistic

American  

[ik-spre-shuhn-ist-ik] / ɪk sprɛ ʃənˈɪst ɪk /

adjective

1. relating to or characteristic of Expressionism.

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Other Word Forms

• expressionistically
  adverb

Explanation

Something that's expressionistic uses emotions rather than realism to express an artistic idea. An expressionistic painting gives you the general sense of a tree, rather than a photographic duplication of a tree. Expressionistic art, which flourished at the start of the 20th century, used distortion and exaggeration to get feelings and ideas across. Many painters we admire today, including Matisse, Monet, and Van Gogh, all used expressionistic techniques in their work. Other forms of art, including poetry, prose, and dance, can also be done in an expressionistic style. The root word is expression, used in the art world to mean "way of expressing."

Example Sentences

Our critic called it “gripping from the beginning,” noting that director Milagros Mumenthaler “has constructed her character study with subtly expressionistic imagination.”

From The Wall Street Journal • May 24, 2026

The production works best when the play’s expressionistic flourishes invite theatergoers to consider more deeply the subjective experiences and societal subtexts that are being externalized.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 18, 2026

Ms. Mumenthaler has constructed her character study with subtly expressionistic imagination, deploying an enveloping, finely tuned sound design and finding a transporting musical motif in Holst’s “The Planets.”

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 15, 2025

She admires spontaneous, expressionistic artists, but she has more of “a cool side.”

From Los Angeles Times • Aug. 7, 2025

Mrs. Renshaw maintains her high place as a philosophical and expressionistic bard, though hampered by unusual theories of spontaneous versification.

From Writings in the United Amateur, 1915-1922 by Lovecraft, H. P. (Howard Phillips)