pointillistic
adjective
ˌpwaⁿ(n)-tē-ˈyi-stik
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In the late 19th century, Neo-Impressionists discovered that contrasting dots of color applied side by side would blend together and be perceived as a luminous whole when seen from a distance. With this knowledge, they developed the technique of pointillism, also known as divisionism. By the 1920s, the adjective pointillistic was being used as a word describing something having many details or parts, such as an argument or musical composition; it was then applied to the art of pointillism and its artists, the pointillists.
Examples of pointillistic in a Sentence
Max Norman, The New Yorker, 7 Mar. 2023
Its pointillistic portrait of the world of Earn, Glover’s character, could, at times, give us little onto which to grasp.
—Daniel D'addario, Variety, 7 Nov. 2022
With his pointillistic vision of microhistory, of an overwhelming profusion of details, Jancsó radically decontextualized historical events and turned them into abstract symbols.
—Richard Brody, The New Yorker, 13 Jan. 2022
His meta-narrative is not a pointillistic patchwork but a seamless tapestry.
—Bethanne Patrick, Los Angeles Times, 28 Sep. 2021
The piece then breaks into a pointillistic texture, with pluckings all around.
—Tim Diovanni, Dallas News, 27 Apr. 2021
Use a power drill with varying sizes of bits to create an elegantly pointillistic design on your pumpkin….
—Beth Segal, cleveland, 15 Oct. 2020
Printed on the front of certain legitimate N95 masks is a logo of sorts: a figure surrounded by a cloud of air particles, represented by tiny, pointillistic dots.
—Anna Russell, The New Yorker, 7 May 2020
Webber takes pointillistic dabs and flickers, volleys between trombone and piano, say, and conjures a solid rhythmic and melodic substance out of what at first sounds totally slippery and liquid.
—John Adamian, courant.com, 17 Nov. 2019
Cite this Entry
“Pointillistic.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pointillistic. Accessed 24 May. 2025.
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