Cave paintings show ancient people beat the celebrated painter by using his iconic technique more than 38,000 years ago.
Now experts say the art history books will have to be rewritten following the incredible find.
Mammoths painted by our ancestors show that they used small dots to create the illusion of a larger image.
The amazing discovery was made at an excavation in France’s Vézère valley where archeologists found paintings using the technique called Pointillism.
Modern artists such as Van Gogh, Georges Seurat, Camille Pissarro and Roy Lichtenstein were thought to be pioneers of this form of painting in the 1880s.
But experts have now conclusively proved that their paintings were not new.
"We're quite familiar with the techniques of these modern artists,” said Anthropology Professor Randall White, of New York University.
"But now we can confirm this form of image-making was already being practiced by Europe's earliest human culture, the Aurignacian."
Each painting was made on 16 engraved limestone blocks, which are now housed in the French National Prehistory Museum.
The images of horses, cows, and other hunted animals confirm that the earliest human culture beat modern artists with this style.
Professor White and his team have dramatically increased the world’s knowledge of earliest graphic arts in south west France over the past decade.
Last year it was suggested that cavemen regularly enjoyed foursomes and group sex, ancient footprints revealed.
A recently revealed photograph sparked speculation that Van Gogh was actually still alive today.