The Avant-garde · The term avant-garde first appeared with reference to art in 1825 when Henri de Saint Simon wrote: we artists will serve you as an avant-garde , the power of the art is most immediate: when we want to spread new ideas we inscribe them on marble or canvas. What a magnificent destiny for the arts that of exercising a positive power over society, a true priestly function, and of marching in the van [i.e. vanguard] of all the intellectual faculties! · Avant-garde is a military word, in English, it is ‘vanguard’ or ‘advance guard’. · In art, it means the group of writers and artists who ‘push the boundaries of conventional and conservative art and look for new dimensions. · In 1863, the annual exhibition of art ‘Paris Salon’ refused two-third of the paintings, including the works of Edouard Man...