pointillistic

American  

[pwan-tl-is-tik, -tee-is-, poin-tl-is-] / ˌpwæn tlˈɪs tɪk, -tiˈɪs-, ˌpɔɪn tlˈɪs- /

adjective

1. pertaining to or characteristic of pointillism or pointillists.

2. made up of or using minute details; particularized; itemized.

   a pointillistic style of acting.

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Etymology

Origin of pointillistic

1920–25; < French pointilliste ( pointillism, -ist ) + -ic

Example Sentences

Late in her career, Ms. Bartlett painted scenes from her garden, views from the hospital where she was recuperating in Manhattan and a pointillistic image of the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

From Washington Post • Jul. 27, 2022

His meta-narrative is not a pointillistic patchwork but a seamless tapestry.

From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 28, 2021

Dweck and Kershaw, both cinematographers, film the truffle hunters - aging, sweet men practicing an ancient and secretive tradition - in painterly, pointillistic tableaux as they walk through autumnal forests, foraging with their dogs.

From Washington Times • Mar. 3, 2021

Some of Lévy’s work on “Hyperion”—like the album’s bright, pointillistic, eponymous opener—seems like an explicit homage to his German forebears, whose work can often be found in major art museums.

From The New Yorker • Mar. 18, 2019

They dealt in knickknacks, and their trivialities were as far from creating a unified impression as were the pointillistic puzzles of modern painters and the word hashes cooked up by the decadent poets.

From Là-bas by Wallace, Keene