Greenberg indicated that Modernists intentionally drew attention to the physical flatness of the canvas, to express how you should embrace the literal flatness, to embrace two-dimensionality. We will be exploring hoe Greenberg states the flatness of Modernism through-out this essay, this will include many factors that are included in the arts such as the canvas, paint and the way in which it is applied as well as the colour.
We will firstly define Greenberg’s essay of what Modernism is and what it means in regards to how we understand art history, this will be discussed through the means of how Greenberg defines Modernism and how a two-dimensional surface is large part in the methods, these methods will also be spoken about, showing us how
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The idea of this theory now seems blatant, but before the era of Modern art it was not produced to demand attention to itself, but to commemorate figurative forms and precisely portray things that had some source in reality. Modernism shows us how paint is paint, how that medium is the reality of the painting and unlike the Renaissance, where they solely portrayed religious scenes and stories to entertain their viewers. The Modernists are using that as a platform to revert their style which stops us from viewing their paintings as a narrative and instead has us see the physicality of the painting by using our initiative to contemplate what the image is telling us, whereas the Renaissance paintings told us what we were seeing and the medium was nothing more than a single factor in their paintings as well is the medium being something that they would have had to fund. Not as much thought would have gone into the Renaissance paintings in comparison to the Modernists, the reasons for this is that the Renaissance artist would have had stories, literature and previous artist’s artworks. The main influence for them was purely biblical events whereas the Modernists had to have thought deeply about their approach to their work; the way they were to paint, …show more content…
The heightened sensitivity of the picture plane may no longer permit sculptural illusion, but does and must permit optical illusion.” Greenbergian theory is identifying with the past arts, that they do have a connection to the modernists by showing us that although the picture plane is no longer showing sculptural illusion but it is using illusion in ways that the old masters did not, that being in an optical way, the way in which we look at the painting is ultimately a distorted view of what we see. That not only do Modernists offer a speculative mode of painting but relatively that it alters all of the theoretical potentials into experimental ones and in undertaking this tests unconsciously all theories of art for their importance to the actual applied understanding of art, and without the old masters paintings the Modernists would never had been able to test art in the way that they did, to push the theories of art to their limits. "The surrounding shape of the picture was a restraining form, or standard that was shared with the art of the theatre; colour was a norm and a means shared not only with the theatre, but also with sculpture.” Here is shown how the actual form of the painting was a restraint but the Modernists embraced the forms of the shape and included it into their
In the Florence and the early renaissance, we have the greatest master of art like Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, Sandro Botticelli and others. In this period of time the painters almost never show their emotions or feelings, they were more focused on indulging the churches and the wealthy people. In The renaissance period the art provides the work of art with ideal, intangible qualities, giving it a beauty and significance greater and more permanent than that actually found in the modern art. Florence and the early renaissance, the art become very valued where every artist was trying to create art forms consistent with the appearance of the beauty or elegance in a natural perspective. However, Renaissance art seems to focus more on the human as an individual, while Wayne White art takes a broader picture with no humans whatsoever; Wayne, modern three dimensional arts often utilizes a style of painting more abstract than Renaissance art. At this point in the semester these two aspects of abstract painting and the early renaissance artwork have significant roles in the paintings. Wayne White brings unrealistic concepts that provoke a new theme of art, but nevertheless the artistic creations of the piece of art during early renaissance still represent the highest of attainment in the history of
Although both Fragonard’s and David’s work convey different ideals through their style of painting, they are still able to use light in a very similar form. The viewer’s attention is directed on a specific point in the painting through the use of light. Both artists cast a spotlight on the figure or action in the painting that they want the viewer to especially notice. It is what each artist decides to focus on that makes his work is different from the other. A young woman on a swing who enjoys the pleasures of life is clearly where Fragonard wants to direct the viewer’s attention. However, David focuses attention on a male figure, specifically Socrates. How does the use of light help the viewer understand the ideals of each form of art? While Fragonard chooses to focus on a female and David chooses to focus on a male, the viewer now understands how Rococo can be a feminine form of art and Neo-Classicism the opposite. In addition, other stylistic elements like color and form depict how each art form differs from the other. By using all this visual evidence, we will later see how the concept of deciding...
Modernism indicates a branch of movements in art (Impressionism, Post-Impressionism, Fauvism; Cubism; Expressionism; Dada, Surrealism, Pop Art. Etc.) with distinct characteristics, it firmly rejects its classical precedent and classical style, what Walter Benjamin would refer to as “destructive liquidation of the traditional value of the cultural heritage”; and it explores the etiology of a present historical situation and of its attendant forms of self-consciousness in the West. Whereas Modernity is often used as ...
As seen through studying Neo-classicism, Romanticism, Realism and Impressionism, we can learn much more about the art and artists of these periods. In the historical scenes of Neo-classicism, the nature and emotion of Romanticism, the non idealized and ordinary people of Realism and the bright colors of Impressionism the true perfection of the artists of these periods is clearly pointed out through their artwork.
The article Artists Mythologies and Media Genius, Madness and Art History (1980) by Griselda Pollock is a forty page essay where Pollock (1980), argues and explains her views on the crucial question, "how art history works" (Pollock, 1980, p.57). She emphasizes that there should be changes to the practice of art history and uses Van Gogh as a major example in her study. Her thesis is to prove that the meaning behind artworks should not be restricted only to the artist who creates it, but also to realize what kind of economical, financial, social situation the artist may have been in to influence the subject that is used. (Pollock, 1980, pg. 57) She explains her views through this thesis and further develops this idea by engaging in scholarly debates with art historians and researcher, and objecting to how they claim there is a general state of how art is read. She structures her paragraphs in ways that allows her to present different kinds of evidences from a variety sources while using a formal yet persuasive tone of voice to get her point across to the reader.
Mark Rothko is recognized as one of the greatest artists of the twentieth century and during his lifetime was touted as a leading figure in postwar American painting. He is one of the outstanding figures of Abstract Expressionism and one of the creators of Color Field Painting. As a result of his contribution of great talent and the ability to deliver exceptional works on canvas one of his final projects, the Rothko Chapel offered to him by Houston philanthropists John and Dominique de Menil, would ultimately anchor his name in the art world and in history. Without any one of the three, the man, the work on canvas, or the dream, the Rothko Chapel would never have been able to exist for the conceptualization of the artist, the creations on canvas and the architectural dynamics are what make the Rothko Chapel a product of brilliance.
Avant-garde is a term referred to works or concepts that are experimental and 'cutting-edge' concepts (Avant-garde:2014). In the purpose of this study, Cezanné was part of early 20th-century art world’s avant-garde known as Impressionism. Clement Greenberg (1909: 755), identifies Kant as the first philosopher to describe Modernism as a self-critical tendency as he was the first to criticize criticism in itself. A modernist is said to be seen as a kind of critic, who criticizes according to a specific set of values and ideas about the development of art, thus a modernist is not necessarily seen as a kind of artist (Harrison 1996:147).According to Greenberg, Modernism self-criticizes itself differently when compared to the Enlightenment as the Enlightenment criticizes from the outside whereas Modernism does so from the inside (Greenberg 1909:755).
The first theory argues that art is an imitation of reality. The inability to represent reality flawlessly results in a piece of...
In the beginning, Surrealism was primarily a literary movement, but it gave artists an access to new subject matter and a process for conjuring it. As Surrealist paintings began to emerge, it divi...
Abstract Expressionism is making its comeback within the art world. Coined as an artist movement in the 1940’s and 1950’s, at the New York School, American Abstract Expressionist began to express many ideas relevant to humanity and the world around human civilization. However, the subject matters, contributing to artists, were not meant to represent the ever-changing world around them. Rather, how the world around them affected the artist themselves. The works swayed by such worldly influences, become an important article within the artists’ pieces. Subjectively, looking inward to express the artist psyche, artists within the Abstract Expressionism movement became a part of their paintings. Making the paintings more of a representation of one’s self.
Modern art serves to immerse us more thoroughly in a scene by touching on more than just our sight. Artists such as Grosz, and Duchamp try to get us to feel instead of just see. It seems that this concept has come about largely as a way to regain identity after shedding the concepts of the Enlightenment. “Philosophers, writers, and artists expressed disillusionment with the rational-humanist tradition of the Enlightenment. They no longer shared the Enlightenment's confidence in either reason's capabilities or human goodness...” (Perry, pg. 457) It is interesting to follow art through history and see how the general mood of society changed with various aspects of history, and how events have a strong connection to the art of the corresponding time.
...de its appearance and preserved... [t]he painter's way of seeing [and] reconstituted … the marks he [made] on the canvas or paper." (Berger 9-10) The fact that this concept is still relatable to a modern audience illustrates the magnitude of this work’s meaning.
If modernism and postmodernism are arguably two most distinguishing movements that dominated the 20th century Western art, they are certainly most exceptional styles that dominated the global architecture during this period. While modernism sought to capture the images and sensibilities of the age, going beyond simple representation of the present and involving the artist’s critical examination of the principles of art itself, postmodernism developed as a reaction against modernist formalism, seen as elitist. “Far more encompassing and accepting than the more rigid boundaries of modernist practice, postmodernism has offered something for everyone by accommodating wide range of styles, subjects, and formats” (Kleiner 810).
Clive Bell theorizes art in terms of a theory known as Formalism. Formalism is based upon a relatively simple line of logic. All art produces in the viewer an emotion. This emotion is not different but the same for all people in that it is known as the Aesthetic Emotion. There must be a factor common to all works of art that produces in the viewer a state of Aesthetic Emotion thus defining the works as art. This common factor is form. Formalism defines artworks as that which has significant form. Significant form is a term used by Bell to describe forms that are arranged by some unknown and mysterious laws. Thus, all art must contain not merely form, but significant form. Under Formalism, art is appreciated not for its expression but instead for the forms of its components. Examples of these forms include lines, curves, shapes, and colors. Abstract art, twentieth century, or modern art such as color field painting or the works of Mondrian, are examples of art that are not representative and thus are most lik...
Many believed that Modernist works were not “art” because they did not always look like real life. But what is “real life”? A new outlook on reality was taken by Modernists. What is true for one person at one time is not true for another person at a different time. Experimentation with perspective and truth was not confined to the canvas; it influenced literary circles as well.