The Symbolist painters mined mythology and dream imagery for a visual language of the soul, seeking evocative paintings that brought to mind a static world of silence. More a philosophy than an actual style of art, they influenced the contemporary Art Nouveau movement and Les Nabis. In their exploration of dreamlike subjects they are also precursors of the Surrealists, some of whom might be best explained as Symbolism plus Freud.
The leading Symbolists included:
The Symbolist Gallery at ArtMagick: http://www.artmagick.com/gallery/symbolism.aspx