one art critic referred to painters in the fauvism movement as "wild beasts". Where did that title come from? What were some of the characteristics of fauvism?

The answers are explained below.

Explanation:

Fauvism was a movement considered as one of the most confusing in the history of art. Its name comes from the French word fauves, which was used in a derogative way at the beginning. The first person to use the word was Louis Vauxcelles, who wrote an article called Donatello among beasts in reference to Donatello by Albert Marque; this work shared the same space as an art exhibition organized by Henry Matisse, one of the main figures of fauvism. Other famous painters were Marc Chagall, André Derain, Georges Braque, among others.

This movement didn't last long (about one year and three exhibitions); some of its other characteristics were the color in their paintings, which was used as a fundamental part of the message; their paintings also used a type of trace that was not considered academic, so it was untraditional.