postmodernism

AVI 4M1

First, some background:

Eurocentric view of the world.

Kant: Art is concerned with Truth and Beauty, and is universally understood.

Art is an ennobling thing; Truth and Beauty enter the soul of the receptive viewer and make him/her nobler.

Background:

Background: The traditional notion of Western Art:

Hegel: Liberal progressivism: history (Art included) is linear; things inevitably get better.

By this way of thinking, Art improves through history.

European civilization was considered to be the best.

Background:

Background: Traditional View of Western Art:

- Art makes the viewer nobler through Truth and Beauty;

Art makes the viewer nobler through Truth and Beauty; The Death of Socrates, David

Background:

Background: Traditional View of Western Art:

- Art makes the viewer nobler through Truth and Beauty;

- There was one, agreed-upon notion of art; one story; a male story;

- There was one, agreed-upon notion of art;-one story; -a male story;

Augustus, Roman sculpture

Background:

Background: Traditional View of Western Art:

- Art makes the viewer nobler through Truth and Beauty;

- There was one, agreed-upon notion of art; one story; a male story;

- Art is earnest, formal and serious;

- Art is earnest, formal and serious;

Michelangelo Buonarroti, David

Background:

Background: Traditional View of Western Art:

- Art makes the viewer nobler through Truth and Beauty;

- There was one, agreed-upon notion of art; one story; a male story;

- Art is earnest, formal and serious;

- High Art (fine art) is distinct from low art (craft and folk art).

“High Art”

“Low Art”

Background:

Background: Traditional View of Western Art:

- Art makes the viewer nobler through Truth and Beauty;- There was one, agreed-upon notion of art; one story; a male story;

- Art is earnest, formal and serious;

- High Art (fine art) is distinct from low art (craft and folk art).

- Art can be analyzed by using the Elements and Principles of Design.

- Art can be analyzed by using the Elements and Principles of DesignGericault, Raft of the Medusa.

Background:

Background: Traditional View of Western Art:

- Art makes the viewer nobler through Truth and Beauty;- There was one, agreed-upon notion of art; one story; a male story;

- Art is earnest, formal and serious;

- High Art (fine art) is distinct from low art (craft and folk art).

- Art can be analyzed by using the Elements and Principles of Design.

Art was made by primarily men, trained in a male-dominated tradition.

Art was usually made for and paid for by men in the “Establishment” (the nobility, the wealthy, the Church, the government, etc).

Michelangelo Buonarroti,Pieta,

1499, marble

Who made this?

When /where was it made?

What is its message?

For whom was it made?

Background:

Modernism: While Modernist art

was no longer always made for the Establishment, Avant Garde / Modernist Art hadn’t really changed that much…. -Art still makes the viewer nobler:

through the Truth of the Artist’s vision;

- Still one, agreed-upon notion of art; one story; the male artist’s story;

- Art is still earnest, formal and serious;

-High Art (fine art) is still distinct from low art (craft and folk art).

-Art can still be analyzed by using the Elements and Principles of Design.

Who made this?

When /where was it made?

What is its message?

For whom was it made?

Piet Mondrian,Composition in Red,

Yellow, Blue and Black,1922, oil on canvas

Modernism had two threads:

Cold Modernism

Hot Modernism

•Expressionism•Cubism•Abstract Expressionism

•Dadaism•Surrealism•Pop Art

•detached; earnest; serious; formal; high/low art

•Playful, ironic, subversive of serious earnestness; no high/low art•Visual/ optical: the

Elements and Principles of Design fit

•Idea-based / Conceptual: the Elements and Principles of Design don’t fit!

Hot Modernism

•Dadaism•Surrealism•Pop Art

•Playful, ironic, subversive of serious earnestness; no high/low art•Idea-based / Conceptual: the Elements and Principles of Design don’t fit!

Hot Modernism’s use of:

• readymades / found objects;

• chance;

• humour / Irony;

• the centrality of the concept,

redefined what art could be…

And lead to and lead to a new tradition in art now known as…

postmodernism

New forms of Art-making became the norm:- Time-based art: performance, video art, installation art; - Conceptual art (art that may not have any physical form, but rather is purely an idea);

Gary Kosuth, One and Three Chairs, 1965

The biggest change is that the white, male notion of art is no longer the only one; there are now many stories - as many stories as there are artists and viewers.

Feminist

Developing World

Gay / Lesbian

African-American

Judy Chicago,

The Dinner Party

Barbara Kruger,

You Construct Intricate Rituals

Joyce Wieland,

Reason Over Passion

Luis Cruz Azaceta,

Car

Barbara Kruger,

You Construct Intricate Rituals

Betty Saar,

The Liberation of Aunt Jemima

Who made this?

When /where was it made?

What is its message?

For whom was it made?

Background:

Postmodernism:

-Art does not make viewers nobler: it rather engages their intellect and imagination;

- there is no agreed-upon notion of art; there are many stories;

- Art is often playful, ironic, satirical;

-There is no clear distinction between high art and low art;

-The Elements and Principles of Designno longer apply as they don’t addressconceptual content or context..

Deconstruction is necessary in Post Modern art:

Context is the key to deconstruction: context refers to the conditions surrounding

a person or thing.

Deconstruction means ‘taking apart’ art in order to interpret it.

Artworks are meant to be decoded and read.

Since there is no agreed-upon story anymore, many meanings can be derived.

Context In Post Modernism we consider the context of the artwork, the artist and the viewer / critic and how all these contexts interact to create meanings.

Context of the Artwork:>Title>Medium>Date (historical context)>Style>Size>Location>Content of artwork

Context of the Artist:>Gender / Race / Sexual orientation> Philosophy / goals / movement> Historical context> Geographical context

Context of the Viewer / Critic:>Gender / Race / Sexual orientation> Philosophy / agenda> Historical context> Geographical context

Deconstruction: