13. ART IN WESTERN WORLD 10 Cave paintings of pre-historic period –Art forms and shapes in Egyptian, Mesopotamian, Greek, Roman and Italian Renaissance periods –Birth of Modern arts, definitions of- impressionism and post impressionism, art nouveau, cubism Dadaism, surrealism, abstract art, expressionism, futurism & constructivism. BIRTH OF MODERN ARTS Modern art is a general term used for most of the artistic production from the late 19th century until approximately the 1970s. (Recent art production is more often called Contemporary art or postmodern art). Modern art refers to the then new approach to art where it was no longer important to represent a subject realistically. By the late 19th century, several movements which were to be influential in modern art had begun to emerge: Impressionism, centered in Paris, and Expressionism, which first emerged in Germany. These movements did not necessarily identify themselves as being associated with progress, or personal artistic freedom, but instead argued, in the style of the times, that they represented universal values and reality. Among the movements which flowered in the first decade of the 20th century were Fauvism, Cubism, Expressionism and Futurism. World War I brought an end to this phase, but indicated the beginning of a number of anti-art movements, such as Dada and the work of Marcel Duchamp, and of Surrealism. Modern art was introduced to the United States with the Armory Show in 1913, and through European artists who moved to the U.S. during World War I. It was only after World War II, that the U.S. became the focal point of new artistic movements. The 1950s and 1960s saw the emergence of Abstract Expressionism, Pop art, Op art and Minimal art; in the late 1960s and the 1970s, Land art, Performance art, Conceptual art and Photorealism emerged. IMPRESSIONISM Introduction Impressionism was a 19th century art movement that began as a loose association of Paris-based artists, who began exhibiting their art publicly in the 1860s. The name of the movement is derived from the
title of a Claude Monet work, Impression, Sunrise , which provoked the critic Louis Leroy to coin the term. It was an art of immediacy and movement, of candid poses and compositions, play of light expressed in a bright and varied use of color. Characteristics of Impressionist painting include • • • • •
Visible brushstrokes, Open composition, Emphasis on light Ordinary subject matter, Inclusion of movement as a crucial element of human perception and unusual visual angles.
Impressionist techniques •
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Short, thick strokes of paint are used to quickly capture the essence of the subject, rather than its details. The paint is often applied using impasto technique. Colors are applied side-by-side with as little mixing as possible, creating a vibrant surface. The optical mixing of colors occurs in the eye of the viewer. Grays and dark tones are produced by mixing complimentary colors. In pure Impressionism the use of black paint is avoided. Wet paint is placed into wet paint without waiting for successive applications to dry, producing softer edges and an intermingling of color. The surface of an Impressionist painting is typically opaque. The play of natural light is emphasized. Close attention is paid to the reflection of colors from object to object. In paintings made outdoors, shadows are boldly painted with the blue of the sky as it is reflected onto surfaces, giving a sense of freshness and openness that was not captured in painting previously. (Blue shadows on snow inspired the technique.)
Subjects include: • still life, • portraits, • landscapes, • Realistic scenes of modern life. Some important Impressionists were Claude Monet, Mary Cassatt, Pierre Auguste Renoir, Camille Pissarro, Edgar Degas, Edouard Manet and Berthe Morisot.
CLAUDE MONET
Monet’s Impression, Sunrise (1872/73) This is the painting after which Impressionist Movement was named. Monet depicts the harbor of Le Havre with very loose bush stroke. It was indeed a landmark painting of the 19th century.
Monet’s Impression, Sunrise (1872/73) Path among the Irises
Claude Monet, The
At the beginning of his career, Monet used dark colors, as he did in the 'Studio Corner' marked by black shades. His painting evokes Courbet and the Realist School. From 1860 on, Monet abandoned dark colors and worked from a palette limited to pure light colors.
Claude Monet, Studio Corner, 1861
Claude Monet, Red Boats in Argenteuil, 1875
Pure black is rarely used by the impressionist painters. Monet obtained an appearence of black by combining several color : blues, greens and reds. He eliminated almost completely black from his painting, even in the shadows. In the Red Boats, Argenteuil, shadows are purple. Edgar Degas (19 July 1834 – 27 September 1917) Edgar Degas was a French artist famous for his work in painting, sculpture, printmaking and drawing. He is regarded as one of the founders of Impressionism although he rejected the term, and preferred to be called a realist. The art of Degas reflects a concern for the psychology of movement and expression and the harmony of line and continuity of contour. In the late 1860s he turned to contemporary themes, painting both theatrical scenes and portraits with a strong emphasis on the social and intellectual implications of props and setting. In the early 1870s the female ballet dancer became his favorite theme. After 1880, Pastel became Degas's preferred medium. He used sharper colors and gave greater attention to surface patterning.
The Dance Class (1873–1876) - oil on canvas - Musicians in the Orchestra, 1872, POST IMPRESSIONISM Introduction Post-Impressionism is the term coined by the British artist and art critic Roger Fry in 1914, to describe the development of European art since Monet (Impressionism). Post-Impressionism follows Impressionism. The artists involved were influenced by Impressionism although their work shares few similarities. Post-Impressionism was both an extension of Impressionism and a rejection of their limitations. Characteristics of Post Impressionist painting include: • • •
Use of vivid colors, Thick application of paint, Distinctive brushstrokes
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Real-life subject matter, More inclined to emphasize geometric forms, To distort form for expressive effect, Sense of order and structure to painting restored. Added emotion and symbolic meaning to the art.
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Use of bold, unrealistic colors and expressive brushstrokes Post-Impressionism is characterized by sharp, often outlined edges.
Some major Post-Impressionists were Paul Cezanne, Vincent van Gogh, Auguste Rodin and Paul Gauguin. PAUL CEZANNE (1839-1906) Cezanne began painting outdoors in 1872 .Cezanne focused on arrangements of constructed forms. Cezanne developed a theory of what art should be and then attempted to explain it through his paintings. He believed that there was hidden order in nature. His paintings are abstract, yet objects within them are recognizable. Cezanne's revolutionary theories and work lead to Cubism.
Still Life with Plate of Cherries, 1885
The Card Players, 1892
Cézanne's work demonstrates a mastery of design, color, composition and draftsmanship. His often repetitive, sensitive and exploratory brushstrokes are highly characteristic and clearly recognizable. Cézanne's paintings convey intense study of his subjects, a searching gaze and a dogged struggle to deal with the complexity of human visual perception. Vincent van Gogh (GOE) 1853-1890 Vincent Willem van Gogh (30 March 1853 – 29 July 1890) was a Dutch PostImpressionist artist. Van Gogh turned to painting after disappointing attempts at other careers. Supported by his brother Theo, he went to Paris where he associated with and was influenced by the Impressionists. His paintings and drawings include some of the world's best known, most popular and most expensive pieces. Initially, van Gogh worked only with somber colors, until he encountered Impressionism and Neo-Impressionism in Paris. He incorporated brighter colors and style of painting
into a uniquely recognizable style, which was fully developed during the time he spent at Arles, France.
The Potato Eaters, 1885
The Night Cafe, 1888
ART NOUVEAU Introduction Art Nouveau (new art) is an international style of art that peaked in popularity at the beginning of the 20th century (1880-1914)This movement broke all connections to classical times and brought down the barriers between the fine arts and applied arts. It was a way of thinking about modern society and new production methods. It was an attempt to redefine the meaning and nature of the work of art. This approach was considered completely new and revolutionary. An artist should work on everything from architecture to furniture design so that art would become a part of everyday life. By making beauty and harmony a part of everyday life, artists make people's lives better. This approach has been represented in painting, architecture, furniture, glassware, graphic design, jewelry, pottery, metalwork, and textiles and sculpture. Advertising posters were welcomed into art. This was a sharp contrast to the traditional separation of art into the distinct categories of fine art (painting and sculpture) and applied arts (ceramics, furniture, and other practical objects). Art Nouveau flourished in a number of European countries, many of which developed their own names for the style. Art Nouveau was known in France as style Guimard, after French designer Hector Guimard; in Italy as the stile Floreale (floral style); stile Liberty, after British Art Nouveau designer Arthur Lasenby Liberty; in Spain as Modernisme; in Austria as Sezessionstil (Vienna Secession); and in Germany as Jugendstil. Characteristics of Art Nouveau • •
Characterized by highly-stylized, flowing, curvilinear designs often incorporating floral and other plant-inspired motifs, Dynamic, undulating, and flowing, lines creating rhythm,
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Use of hyperbolas and parabolas, Conventional mouldings seem to spring to life and 'grow' into plant-derived forms, Use of new materials, machined surfaces, and abstraction, Two-dimensional Art Nouveau pieces were painted, drawn, and printed in popular forms such as advertisements, posters, labels, magazines, Glass making was an area in which the style found tremendous expression — for example, the works of Louis Comfort Tiffany in New York, Jewelery of the Art Nouveau period revitalized the jeweler's art, with nature as the principal source of inspiration, complemented by new levels of virtuosity in enameling and the introduction of new materials, such as opals and semi-precious stones. Visual standards of the Art Nouveau style are flat, decorative patterns, intertwined organic forms of stems or flowers. Principal subjects are lavish birds and flowers, insects. Abstract lines and shapes are used widely as a filling for recognizable subject matter. Purposeful elimination of three-dimensions is often applied through reduced shading. Art Nouveau artifacts are beautiful objects of art, but not necessarily very functional.
Noted Art Nouveau practitioners Art Nouveau in Britain • Walter Crane (Art, drawing, and graphics) • Aubrey Beardsley (Art, drawing, and graphics) Art Nouveau Belgium, Swiss and France • Alphonse Mucha (Murals and mosaics) • Émile Gallé (Glassware and stained glass) Art Nouveau in Spain • Antoni Gaudí ( Murals and mosaics) Art Nouveau in Austria • Gustav Klimt (Murals and mosaics) • Koloman Moser GUSTAV KLIMT Gustav Klimt had a formal art training at the Vienna School of Decorative Arts. In 1882, Klimt opened a studio of his own with his brother Ernst and Franz Matsch, a fellow student. They specialized on executing mural paintings. Gustav Klimt's style is highly ornamental. The Art Nouveau movement favored organic lines and contours. Klimt used
a lot of gold and silver colors in his art work - certainly a heritage from his father's profession as a gold and silver engraver. Klimt's works of art were a scandal at his time because of the display of nudity and the subtle sexuality and eroticism. His best know painting The Kiss, was first exhibited in 1908. The artist created few paintings on traditional canvas. He saw himself more as a mural painter and decorative artist. For his mural works Klimt used a wide variety of media - metal, glass and ceramics.
The kiss , 1907-1908
Avenue in Schlob Kammer Park, (1902)
ALPHONSE MUCHA Alfons Maria Mucha (or Alphonse Maria Mucha) was a Czech Art Nouveau, or Secession painter and decorative artist. Alfons Maria Mucha was born in the town of Ivancice, Moravia. He worked at decorative painting jobs in Moravia, mostly painting theatrical scenery, then in 1879 moved to Vienna to work for a leading Viennese theatrical design company, while informally furthering his artistic education. In 1894, he produced the artwork for a lithographed poster advertising Sarah Bernhardt at the Theatre de la Renaissance. Mucha's lush stylized poster art won him fame and numerous commissions. By this time Mucha had developed his own personal style - characterized by art nouveau elements, tender colors and Byzantine decorative elements. Mucha produced a flurry of paintings, posters, advertisements, and book illustrations, as well as designs for jewelery, carpets, wallpaper, and theatre sets in what came to be known as the Art Nouveau style. His works frequently featured beautiful healthy young women in flowing vaguely Neoclassical looking robes, often surrounded by lush flowers. Mucha used lithography as the printing technique for his posters.
Meditation c.1886
The Abolition of Serfdom in Russia (1861) 1914
CUBISM INTRODUCTION Cubism was a 20th century art movement that revolutionized European painting and sculpture. It developed as a short but highly significant art movement between about 1907 and 1914 in France. There are two main types of cubism, analytical cubism and synthetic cubism. Analytic cubism was mainly practiced by Braque, and is very simple, with dark, almost monochromatic colours. Synthetic cubism was much more energetic, and often made use of collage including the use of several two-dimensional materials. This type of cubism was developed by Picasso. During the two artists' time of collaboration from 1907 and ending with the First World War, their styles intermingled and they painted the same subjects, making their works at times closely resemble each other. Characteristics of CUBISM • • • •
In cubist artworks, objects are broken up, analyzed, and re-assembled in an abstracted form. Instead of depicting objects from one viewpoint, the artist depicts the subject from a multitude of viewpoints to represent the subject in a greater context. Often the surfaces intersect at seemingly random angles presenting no coherent sense of depth. The background and object planes interpenetrate one another to create the ambiguous shallow space
Notable Cubist artists • Georges Braque • Pablo Picasso • Fernand Leger • Piet Mondrian
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Sir Jacob Epstein Juan Gris
Pablo Picasso Pablo Picasso was born in Malaga, Spain, on October 2, 1881. He had always been an art genius and had been painting since he was ten. Picasso studied in Barcelona where he lived from 1895 to 1904. He showed prodigious artistic ability as a youth with very early works reflecting Art Nouveau influences.
Blue Period Picasso made three trips to Paris between 1900 and 1902. He finally moved there in 1904. This is where he went through what is known now as his blue period. During this time he used mainly different shades of blue and portrayed the seedy parts of town including beggars, alcoholics, and prostitutes. The Rose Period After he moved to Paris he met Fernande Oliver who influenced the mood of his work from dark and gloomy blues to light and happy reds and pinks which led this period in time to be called the Rose Period. At this time he painted many pictures of a circus that he visited often during his stay in Paris. Protocubism In 1906, Picasso moved to Gosol, Spain where he changed his style. His new works where influenced by Greek, Iberian, and African art. He began to use more geometrical figures in his artwork. During this time he also made a picture that resembled fractured glass. Analytic Cubism Between 1908 and 1911 Picasso and George Braque painted landscape paintings in a new style. This style was termed cubism by a critic who described the work as being made of "little cubes". They created this style by breaking down and analyzing an object. The main color scheme was browns and other muddy colors (monochromatic color). Synthetic Cubism
In 1912, Picasso began to paste paper and pieces of oilcloth to his paintings and then paint either on them or around them. This technique is called synthetic cubism. This is a more decorative, colorful style of art. He has done some synthetic cubism, but not particularly a lot. Realist and Surrealist Pablo Picasso has said that he was not a surrealist, but many of his pictures have a surrealist feel to them. During this time (World War I) he went to Rome and met and married Olga Koklova. He painted many realistic pictures of her. Later in the 1920's he painted neoclassical pictures of women and pictures inspired by Greek mythology.
Bread, Fruit and Table 1908
The Mandolin,1910
Guitar,Sheet music and
(Early Cubist Period )
(Analytical Cubism )
Glass,1912 (S.CU)
DADAISM Introduction Dadaism was an art movement that followed Cubism, Expressionism, and Fauvism Dadaism or Dada is a post-World War I cultural movement that began in neutral Zürich, Switzerland. The movement primarily involved in visual art as well as literature (mainly poetry), theatre and graphic design. The Dadaists were mainly a group of ill-organized artists experimenting with bizarre art and literature. The most notable Dada artists include Hugo Ball, Jean Arp, and Marcel Duchamp. The artists wanted to take modern art into a direction that would broaden the meaning of "what art was and could be". Dadaists felt that art and literature had been exploited purely for money; and that artists had somehow lost the true identity of art. Characteristics of DADAISM
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Works were characterized by a deliberate irrationality Rejection of the prevailing standards of art According to its proponents, Dada was not art — it was "anti-art". It was anti-art in the sense that Dadaists protested against the contemporary academic and cultured values of art. Where art was concerned with aesthetics, Dada ignored aesthetics. If art were to have at least an implicit or latent message, Dada strove to have no meaning — Interpretation of Dada is dependent entirely on the viewer. If art is to appeal to sensibilities, Dada is to offend. The work was also absurd and playful but at times intuitive and even cryptic. Methods of production were unconventional, employing the chance technique, and found objects.
Early practitioners • Marcel Duchamp - France and United States • Hugo Ball - Switzerland • Max Ernst - Germany • Hans Arp- Switzerland, France and Germany ERNST MAX Ernst, Max 1891–1976, was a German painter. After World War I, Ernst joined the Dada movement in Paris and then became a founder of surrealism. Apart from the medium of collage, for which he is well known, Ernst developed other devices to express his fantastic vision. Ernst developed a fascination with birds that was prevalent in his work. Constantly experimenting, in 1925 he invented a graphic art technique called frottage, which uses pencil rubbings of objects as a source of images. In frottage he rubbed black chalk on paper held against various materials such as leaves, wood, and fabrics to achieve bizarre effects.
Dadaville, Max Ernst,1923-24
Aquis Submersus, Max Ernst,1919
JEAN ARP / HANS ARP Jean Arp / Hans Arp (September 16, 1886 – June 7, 1966) was a German-French sculptor, painter, poet and abstract artist in other media such as torn and pasted paper. Arp was a founding member of the Dada movement in Zürich in 1916. In 1920, as Hans Arp, along with Max Ernst, and the social activist Alfred Grünwald, he set up the Cologne Dada group. However, in 1925 his work also appeared in the first exhibition of the surrealist group at the Galerie Pierre in Paris.
'Forest' Hans Arp, 1916
'Configuration' Hans Arp, 1927-28
"Cloud Shepherd" Hans Arp (1953), MARCEL DUCHAMP Marcel Duchamp (July 28, 1887 – October 2, 1968) was a French artist ,whose work and ideas had considerable influence on the development of post-World War II Western art, and whose advice to modern art collectors helped shape the tastes of the Western art world. Duchamp and Dada are most often connected by his submission of Fountain, a urinal, to the Society of Independent Artists exhibit in 1917. s
Fountain by Marcel Duchamp, 1917,
SURREALISM, Introduction Surrealism, a style of art and literature developed principally in the 20th century. Surrealism was developed by the 20th-century literary and artistic movement. The surrealist movement of visual art and literature flourished in Europe between World Wars I and II. Surrealism grew principally out of the earlier Dada movement, which before World War I produced works of anti-art that deliberately defied reason. Characteristics of Surrealism • • •
The works feature the element of surprise, unexpected juxtapositions Stressing the subconscious or no rational significance of imagery arrived at by automatism or the exploitation of chance effects, unexpected juxtapositions, etc. Surrealism was a means of reuniting conscious and unconscious realms of experience so completely, that the world of dream and fantasy would be joined to the everyday rational world in "an absolute reality, a surreality."
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Continued thought processes and investigations into the mind produce today some of the best art ever seen.
The Surrealist circle was made up of many of the great artists of the 20th century, including Jean Arp, Max Ernst, Giorgio de Chirico, Man Ray, Joan Miro, and Rene Magritte.Salvador Dali is the best-known Surrealist artist. SALVADOR DALI Salvador Dali, (May 11, 1904 – January 23, 1989), was a Spanish (Catalan) surrealist painter.Dalí was a skilled draftsman, best known for the striking, bizarre, and beautiful images in his surrealist work. His painterly skills are often attributed to the influence of Renaissance masters. His best known work, The Persistence of Memory, was completed in 1931.
Salvador Dalí, The Persistence of Memory, 1931, Dali often mixed images of the real world with dream-like images. They talked about things in one's unconscious mind that, for many, seem often more real than the world around them. It concentrated on the idea of the powerful nature of a dream. In 1931, Dalí painted one of his most famous works, The Persistence of Memory. Sometimes called Soft Watches or Melting Clocks, the work introduced the surrealistic image of the soft, melting pocket watch. The general interpretation of the work is that the soft watches debunk the assumption that time is rigid or deterministic, and this sense is supported by other images in the work, such as the wide expanding landscape and the ants and fly devouring the other watches. ABSTRACT ART Introduction Abstract Art is art that is not an accurate representation of a form or object. This representation can be differed in many ways including the shape, color, and form.
The artist takes the object and then either simplifies it or exaggerates it using these things. Abstract art began in the avant-garde movements of the late 19th century – Impressionism, neo-Impressionism, and post-Impressionism. These styles of painting reduced the importance of the original subject matter and began to emphasize the creative process of painting itself. In the first decade of the 20th century, some painters in Europe began to abandon the established Western conventions of imitating nature and of storytelling and developed a new artistic form and expression. There are many different abstract styles. There are three forms of abstraction that really stands out: Cubism, Neoplasticism, and Abstract Expressionism. There are many abstract artists who painted in these styles. Some of the most famous cubist were Pablo Picasso and Georges Braque. Abstract art has dominated western art from 1920 and has continued to produce many variations. In the 1940s it gained renewed vigour in the works of the abstract expressionists, and in the 1950s minimal art developed as a more impersonal, simplified style of abstraction. Characteristics of an Abstract art • • • • • • • •
The artist takes the object and then either simplifies it or exaggerates it using these things. This representation can be differed in many ways including the shape, color, and form. ‘Abstraction’ - no longer reflect a conventional reality, and nonobjective, or ‘pure’, art forms, without any reference to reality. Abstract art is now generally understood to mean art that does not depict objects in the natural world. Used to describe art—keeping only an allusion of the original natural subject. Such paintings were often claimed to capture something of the depicted objects' immutable intrinsic qualities rather than its external appearance. Abstract art could be termed as, "non-figurative art," "non-objective art," and "non-representational art". Ornamental art without figurative representation.
Abstract artists Vasily Kandinsky is generally regarded as the first abstract artist. From 1910 to 1914 he worked on two series, Improvisations and Compositions, in which he moved gradually towards total abstraction. His highly coloured canvases influenced many younger European artists. In France around 1907, the cubists Pablo Picasso and Georges Braque also developed a semi-abstract style; their pictures, some partly collage, were composed mainly of fragmented natural images. By 1912 Robert Delaunay had pushed cubism to complete abstraction.
Wassily Kandinsky, On White 2, 1923 Kazimir Malevich, Black square 1915 EXPRESSIONISM (1905 - 1945) Introduction Expressionism as a general term refers to art in which the image of reality is more or less heavily distorted in form and color in order to make it expressive of the artist’s inner feelings or ideas about it. Originating in Germany, expressionism developed during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Expressionist sought to reveal inner, spiritual and emotional foundations of human existence, rather than the external, surface appearances depicted by the Impressionists. More generally the term refers to art that expresses intense emotion. Expressionism gained significance between years 1905 and 1918. The Expressionist movement took inspiration from Symbolism, Fauvism, and Cubism in its departure from accurate subject matter. Expressionism found its roots in two groups of German painters, Die Bruecke and Der Blaue Reiter. Later in the 20th century, the movement influenced a large number of other artists, including the abstract expressionists, the latter consisting primarily of American artists such as Jackson Pollock. The neo-expressionists were a revival movement in Germany beginning in the 1970s,involving artists Anselm Kiefer and Georg Baselitz. At the tail end of the 20th century, a group of artists in the American South developed a style known as Southern expressionism. Characteristics of Expressionism • Expressionism is the tendency of an artist to distort reality for an emotional effect; it is a subjective art form. • The subjects of expressionist works were frequently distorted, or otherwise altered. • Landmarks of this movement were violent colors and exaggerated lines. • Use of bold colors, distorted forms, painted in a careless manner. • Application of formal elements is vivid, jarring, violent, or dynamic.
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Two-dimensional, without perspective, and based on feelings rather than rational thought Expressionists were trying to pinpoint the expression of inner experience rather than solely realistic portrayal. Expressionists focused on capturing vivid emotional reactions through powerful colors and dynamic compositions instead.
Major Expressionists include:
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Vincent van Gogh James Ensor Edvard Munch Oskar Kokoschka Pablo Picasso
Pablo Picasso (1881-1973) The Family of Saltimbanques
James Ensor,1896 Death chasing the flock of mortals
FUTURISM Introduction Futurism was an international art movement founded in Italy in 1909. Futurism was a largely Italian and Russian movement although it also had adherents in other countries, England for example. The Futurists explored every medium of art, including painting, sculpture, poetry, theatre, music, architecture and even gastronomy. Characteristics of Futurism • • • •
Emphasized the dynamism, speed, energy, and power of the machine and the vitality, change, and restlessness of modern life in general. Futurist painting and sculpture were especially concerned with expressing movement and the dynamics of natural and man-made forms. Brilliant colors and flowing brush strokes also additionally were creating the illusion of movement. Futurists mixed activism and artistic research.
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Futurism influenced many other 20th century art movements, including Art Deco, Vorticism, Constructivism and Surrealism.
Some major futurists were: • • • • •
Filippo Tommaso Marinetti Giacomo Balla Carlo Carra Umberto Boccioni Gino Severini
Five points of Futurists artists: • • • • •
Abstract light and color Movement and Speed Dynamism of form Interpenetration of subjects where different elements of work merge into each other The Prismatic or shattering effect
Giacomo Balla (Italian, 1871-1958)
Abstract Speed- The Car has passed
Luigi Russolo, 1912-1913 Dynamism of an Automobile Virgin to Bride
Street Light 1909,
Abstract light and colour
Marcel Duchamp ,1912 The passage from
CONSTRUCTIVISM Introduction Constructivism means to construct art. Constructivism was first created in Russia in 1913 when the Russian sculptor Vladimir Tatlin, during his journey to Paris, discovered the works of Braque and Picasso. When Tatlin was back in Russia, he began producing sculptures out of assemblages, but he abandoned any reference to precise subjects or themes. Characteristics of Constructivism • • • • • • • •
Constructivism art refers to the optimistic, non-representational relief construction, sculpture, and painting. Constructivism was one the first movements to adopt a strictly non-objective subject matter. The movement’s work was mainly geometric and precisely composed, sometimes through mathematics and measuring tools. They favored the basic shapes of squares, rectangles, circles and triangles. Two of the main facets upon which the basis of constructivism was originally conceived were functionalism and non-representation in art. Russian Artist depicted art that was mostly three dimensional Constructivists used an array of materials including wood, celluloid, nylon, plexiglass, tin, cardboard, and wire welded or glued together. They constructed art from materials such as steel, glass, rope etc.
The most notable constructivist artists were Vladimir Tatlin, El Lissitzky, Kazimir Malevich, and Aleksandr Rodchenko. Most art historians would consider the token piece of soviet constructivist art to be Tatlin's "Monument to the Third International" which was made out of iron and glass and meant to be a monument to soviet artists. The intricately abstract structure was eventually supposed to be a building which would enclose lecture halls and rooms for meetings and conferences, but the Soviet government deemed the model too abstract to be made into a real building.
Tatlin "Monument to the Third International" c. 1920
El Lissitzky "Proun" c. 1922-1923
Malevich "Untitled" c. 1916