Seurat, Georges Pierre 1859-91
French artist

He was born in Paris and studied at the �cole des Beaux-Arts. He was an early exponent of Neo-Impressionism, and developed the technique known as Pointillism, in which the whole picture is composed of tiny rectangles of pure colour which merge together when viewed from a distance. The technique was founded on the colour theories of Eug�ne Delacroix and the 'chroma' theory of chemist Michel Eug�ne Chevreul, and the compositions were constructed architecturally according to scientific principles. He completed only seven canvases in this immensely demanding discipline, including Une Baignade, Asni�res (1883-84, Tate Gallery, London), Un Dimanche d'�t� � la Grande-Jatte (1884-86, 'Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte', Chicago), Les Poseuses (1887-88) and Le Cirque (1891). His colour theories influenced Paul Signac, Camille Pissarro, Degas and Renoir.