Art And Culture In The 1920s

Lauren Hunstad

Cindy Froiland

English III

18 April 2016

1920s Art, Pop Culture and Literature

The 1920s were arguably the most galvanizing decade in the history of United States. This decade was known for enormous change and inspired by modernism ("American Art, Pop Culture & Literature of the 1920s.") Because the 1920s were an exciting and historic time with all the different art, culture, literature and much more, one can see why this time period was called the “roaring 20s.”

Creativity advanced as writers and artists moved ahead, experimenting with new ideas, styles and themes. Art was all about creating something dynamic and innovative. Technology and social progress and change were noteworthy in the art and culture of the decade ("American

Art, Pop Culture & Literature of the 1920s.")
A new movement “art deco,” which started out in France just before World War I, ("Art Deco." Wikipedia) flourished throughout the 1920s in America. Art deco’s style is often known for its rich colors, bold geometric shapes and luxurious ornamentation. It was applied to not only art, but also architecture, furniture, fashion, advertising, and many other areas. The Chrysler building and the Empire state building are two examples of art deco ("Art Deco.") Simplicity and boldness really made this style popular especially for the people of the 1920s who were unique.
A cultural movement once known as the “New Negro Movement,” then later the Harlem Renaissance in New York occurred during the 1920s.

African Americans showed off their unique culture by creating bold colorful imagery that showed off African-American pride. Aaron Douglas, a famous artist, once said "...Our problem is to conceive, develop, establish an art era. Not white art painting black...let's bare our arms and plunge them deep through laughter, through pain, through sorrow, through hope, through disappointment, into the very depths of the souls of our people and drag forth material crude, rough, neglected. Then let's sing it, dance it, write it, paint it. Let's do the impossible. Let's create something transcendentally material, mystically objective. Earthy. Spiritually earthy. Dynamic

("Artists.").
Maxfield Parrish was a famous American painter during the 1920s, he attended Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts and then pursued an artistic career over many decades that helped shape the Golden Age of illustration and the future of American visual arts. ("1920s Art.") Realist painters like George Luks of the Ashcan school was a very popular painter even as more innovative modernist art began to become more frequent. In 1929, the Museum of Modern Art in New York was founded ("American Art, Pop Culture & Literature of the 1920s.") Although photography was still new and being developed- it was coming to as a modern art form during this time, with photographers like Alfred Stieglitz and Paul Strand who were very popular.
As mentioned before, the 1920s were a time of social change.

The economic accomplishments and technological advances of the 1920s allowed for leisure opportunities. One of America’s favorite leisure activities was watching baseball. One of the most famous player in the history of baseball was playing during this time- Babe Ruth. Another activity and new form of entertainment included Cinema. Movies were also still being developed at this time. Early silent movies were often accompanied by live piano or organ music and provided enormous entertainment value to audiences charmed by the experience of watching moving pictures on the silver screen. Although the had been previous attempts to introduce sound, it wasn't until 1923 that a synchronized sound track was photographically recorded and printed on to the side of the strip of motion picture film and made it on to a commercially distributed

movie.
Jazz was also another activity people enjoyed. Jazz during the decade of 1920s marked huge advances in the music world. Music also changed the racial tensions in the post war period. The main states that jazz was most popular in included New Orleans, New York, Chicago and Kansas. Prohibition and the advent of the “speakeasy” created many opportunities for musicians in small cabarets, dance halls and ballrooms.
. As the art world, literary creatively grew tremendously. The styles associated with Victorianism were replaced with more direct democratic style. After World War I, writers and artists were inspired and were sought out to be the people to spread what happened during that time