Final answer:
Cubist paintings typically feature figures, still lifes, and landscapes abstracted into geometric shapes from multiple viewpoints, focusing on the form and space rather than traditional illusionistic representation.
Step-by-step explanation:
The typical subject matter depicted in Cubist paintings includes figures, still life, and landscapes. These subjects are presented from multiple viewpoints, utilizing geometric abstraction to portray different aspects of the visual world. Pablo Picasso and Georges Braque, the pioneers of Cubism, embraced a revolutionary method by analyzing, breaking up, and reassembling subjects into abstracted forms. This deconstruction allowed them to shift the perception of foreground and background, provoking a sense of three-dimensionality on a flat picture plane.
Analytic Cubism, characterized by overlapping surfaces and a focus on muted colors, along with Synthetic Cubism which emphasized flat, synthesized shapes, both sought to reinvent traditional subjects in an abstract manner while maintaining some identifiable aspects of the original objects. Artists like Fernand Léger further evolved Cubism by incorporating elements inspired by the mechanical world, lending a precursor to pop art.
The impact of Cubism was profound and continuous to resonate within the art world, presenting an alternative approach to traditional representation and invoking a new understanding of space, form, and composition within the canvas.