CHAPTER 2: ART HISTORY

Objectives:
a.) Identify the underlying history, philosophy of the era or movements.
b.) Classify the various art movements by citing their important
characteristics such as historical background factors, influential person,
socio-political issues, and prevalent artists, art forms, and media.
c.) Present the history and movements of the arts through timeline.

A chronological summary of major movements, styles, periods and artists that have
contributed to the evolution and development of visual art will be presented in this topic.

History of Stone Age Art (2.5 million-3,000 BCE)

Prehistoric art comes from three epochs of
prehistory: Paleolithic, Mesolithic and
Neolithic. The earliest recorded art is
the Bhimbetka petroglyphs (a set of 10
cupules and an engraving or groove) found
in a quartzite rock shelter known as
Auditorium cave at Bhimbetka in central
India, dating from at least 290,000 BCE.
This primitive rock art was followed, no later
than 250,000 BCE, by simple figurines (eg.
Venus of Berekhat Ram [Golan Heights] and Venus of Tan-Tan [Morocco]), and from
80,000 BCE by the Blombos cave stone engravings, and the cupules at the Dordogne rock
shelter at La Ferrassie. Prehistoric culture and creativity is closely associated with brain-
size and efficiency which impacts directly on "higher" functions such as language, creative
expression and ultimately aesthetics.

Egyptian Art (from 3100 BCE)

Egypt, arguably the greatest civilization in the history
of ancient art, was the first culture to adopt a recognizable style of
art. Egyptian painters depicted the head, legs and feet of their human
subjects in profile, while portraying the eye, shoulders, arms and
torso from the front. Other artistic conventions laid down how Gods,
Pharaohs and ordinary people should be depicted, regulating such
elements as size, colour and figurative position. A series of
wonderful Egyptian encaustic wax paintings, known as the Fayum
portraits, offer a fascinating glimpse of Hellenistic culture in Ancient
Egypt. In addition, the unique style of Egyptian architecture featured a
range of massive stone burial chambers, called Pyramids.
For more details about Egyptian Art and its History please click the link below:
https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/ap-art-history/ancient-mediterranean-ap/ancient-egypt-
ap/a/egyptian-art
Ancient Greek Art (c.1100-100 BCE)

Ancient Greek art is traditionally divided into the

following periods: (1) the Dark Ages (c.1100-900
BCE). (2) The Geometric Period (c.900-700 BCE).
(3) The Oriental-Style Period (c.700-625 BCE). (4)
The Archaic Period (c.625-500 BCE). (5) The
Classical Period (c.500-323 BCE). (6) The
Hellenistic Period (c.323-100 BCE).
Unfortunately, nearly all Greek painting and a
huge proportion of Greek sculpture has been lost,
leaving us with a collection of ruins or Roman
copies. Greek architecture, too, is largely known to us through its ruins. Despite this tiny legacy,
Greek artists remain highly revered, which demonstrates how truly advanced they were.

 Dark Ages
After the fall of the Mycenean civilization (12th century BCE) Greece entered a period of
decline, known as the Dark Ages - because we know so little about it. Sculpture, painting
and monumental architecture almost ceased.
 Geometric Period
Then, from around 900 BCE, these arts (created mainly for aristocratic families who had
achieved power during the Dark Ages) reappeared during the Geometric period, named
after the decorative designs of its pottery.
 Oriental Period
The succeeding Orientalizing period was characterized by the influence of Near Eastern
designwork, notably curvilinear, zoomorphic and floral patterns.
 Archaic Period
The Archaic period was a time of gradual experimentation; the most prized sculptural
form was the kouros (pl.kouroi), or standing male nude. This was followed by the
Classical period, which represents the apogee of Greek art.
 Classical Period
Greek architecture blossomed, based on a system of 'Classical Orders' (Doric, Ionic and
Corinthian) or rules for building design, based on proportions of and between the
individual parts.

For more details about Ancient Greek Art please click the link below:
https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/ancient-art-civilizations/greek-art/beginners-guide-
greece/a/introduction-ancient-greek-art

Roman Art (c.200 BCE-400 CE)

Architecture
Unlike their intellectual Greek neighbours, the Romans were
primarily practical people with a natural affinity for engineering,
military matters, and Empire building. Roman architecture was
designed to awe, entertain and cater for a growing population both
in Italy and throughout their Empire. Thus Roman architectural
achievements are exemplified by new drainage systems, aqueducts,
bridges, public baths, sports facilities and amphitheatres (eg. the
Colosseum 72-80 CE), characterized by major advances in
materials (eg. the invention of concrete) and in the construction of arches and roof
domes.

Painting, Sculpture
If Roman architecture was uniquely grandiose, its paintings and
sculptures continued to imitate the Greek style, except that its
main purpose was the glorification of Rome's power and majesty.
Early Roman art (c.200-27 BCE) was detailed, unidealized and
realistic, while later Imperial styles (c.27 BCE - 200 CE) were
more heroic. Mediocre painting flourished in the form of interior-
design standard fresco murals,
while higher quality panel
painting was executed in tempera
or in encaustic pigments. Roman
sculpture too, varied in quality: as well as tens of
thousands of average quality portrait busts of Emperors
and other dignitaries, Roman sculptors also produced
some marvelous historical relief sculptures, such as the
spiral bas relief sculpture on Trajan's Column, celebrating
the Emperor's victory in the Dacian war.

For more details about Ancient Roman Art please click the link below:
https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/ancient-art-civilizations/greek-art/beginners-guide-
greece/a/introduction-ancient-greek-art

Chinese Painting
Chinese painting is one of the oldest continuous artistic traditions in
the world. Painting in the traditional style is known today in Chinese
as guóhuà (simplified Chinese: 国画; traditional Chinese: 國畫),
meaning "national" or "native painting", as opposed to Western styles
of art which became popular in China in the 20th century. Traditional
painting involves essentially the same techniques as calligraphy and
is done with a brush dipped in black ink or coloured pigments; oils
are not used. As with calligraphy, the most popular materials on
which paintings are made are paper and silk. The finished work can
be mounted on scrolls, such as hanging scrolls or handscrolls.
Traditional painting can also be done on album sheets,
walls, lacquerware, folding screens, and other media.

Consider these three important ideas that help make Chinese painting what it is:
 The past is the foundation of the present and future, and demands respect.
Painters learn their craft by copying earlier masters.
 As humans, we are but a small speck in the breadth of space and time.
  That said, a good painting reveals the artist’s character, which in turn contributes
to the meaning of the painting. To really understand a piece, it helps to learn about
the artist and the times in which he or she lived.
As a result, pieces of art that range from 200 BC all the way through to contemporary
works can be considered traditional Chinese painting! Chinese painting is done on paper
or silk, using a variety of brushes, ink and dye. Subjects vary, including: portrait,
landscape, flowers, birds, animals, and insects.
Like calligraphy, traditional Chinese painting, or guohua (国画 /gwor-hwaa/), is done
using a brush dipped in black ink or colored pigments, usually on paper or silk. The
finished work can be mounted on scrolls and hung. Traditional painting has also been
done on walls, porcelain and lacquer ware.

There are two main techniques in Chinese painting:

 Gongbi (工笔 /gong-bee/), literally 'working pen', is a meticulous style, rich in color
and detailed brush strokes. It is often used for portraits or narrative subjects.
 Xieyi (写意 /sshyeah-ee/ 'writing' ), meaning “freehand", is a looser style of
painting, and usually used in landscapes. Xieyi often features exaggerated forms,
and expresses the artist’s feelings. It is also called shuimo (水墨 /shway-mor/
'water-ink'), meaning 'watercolor and ink'.

For more details about Chinese Paintings and its History please click the link below:
https://www.chinahighlights.com/travelguide/culture/painting.htm

Ukiyo-e (Japanese Print)

Ukiyo-e (浮世絵) are Japanese woodblock
prints which flourished during the Edo
Period (1603-1867). They originated as
popular culture in Edo (present day Tokyo)
and depicted popular geisha, sumo
wrestlers and kabuki actors from the world
of entertainment. Ukiyo-e, literally
"paintings of the floating world", was so
named because their subjects were
associated with impermanence and
detachment from ordinary life.

At first ukiyo-e were monochrome, but by the mid-18th century polychrome prints
were made. The woodblock printing technique enabled mass production which meant
affordability, and therefore led to the popularity of these prints. New genres of ukiyo-e
such as short story compilations and paintings of landscapes or historical events later
became well received. The beginning of the 19th century saw the emergence of several
outstanding ukiyo-e artists like Hokusai, Hiroshige and Utamaro, who created famous
prints that are celebrated to this day.
 For more details about Ukiyo-e and its History please click the link below:
https://www.chinahighlights.com/travelguide/culture/painting.htm

History of Renaissance Art (c.1300-1620)

Strongly influenced by International Gothic,

the European revival of fine art between
roughly 1300 and 1600, popularly known as
"the Renaissance", was a unique and (in
many respects) inexplicable phenomenon,
not least because of (1) the Black Death
plague (1346), which wiped out one third of
the European population

Renaissance art was founded on classicism - an appreciation of the arts of

Classical Antiquity, a belief in the nobility of Man, as well as artistic advances in both
linear perspective and realism. It evolved in three main Italian cities: first Florence,
then Rome, and lastly Venice. Renaissance chronology is usually listed as follows:

• Proto-Renaissance (c.1300-1400)
This introductory period was largely instigated by the revolutionary painting
style of Giotto (1270-1337), whose fresco cycle in the Capella Scrovegni
(Arena Chapel) in Padua introduced a new realism into painting which
challenged many of the iconographic conventions then in use.

• Early Renaissance (c.1400-1490)

Triggered in part by the unearthing of a copy of De Architectura
("Ten Books Conerning Architecture") by the 1st century Roman
architect Vitruvius (c.78-10 BCE), and Filippo Brunelleschi's
magnificent 1418 design for the dome of Florence's Gothic
cathedral (1420-36), this period of activity was centred on Florence.

• High Renaissance (c.1490-1530)

 Regarded as the apogee of the Italian Renaissance and its
aesthetic ideals of beauty and harmony, the High Renaissance
was centred on Rome and dominated by the painting
of Leonardo Da Vinci

Renaissance architecture employed precepts derived from

ancient Greece and Rome, but kept many modern features of
Byzantine and Gothic invention, such as domes and towers.

• Northern Renaissance (c.1400-1530)

In Northern Europe (Flanders, Holland, England and Germany), the
Renaissance developed in a different manner. A damper climate unsuited to
fresco painting encouraged the early use of oils, while differing skills and
temperament led to the early espousal of printmaking, and the invention of the
printing press by Johannes Gutenberg in the 1450s.

For us to have a total overview of the Art History please click the link below:
https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/art-history

Mannerism (1530-1600)
Mannerism is a style that emerged in 1530 and lasted until the end of the
century. It is named after maniera, an Italian term for “style” or “manner,”
and refers to a stylized, exaggerated approach to painting and sculpture.

This style grew up partly as a reaction against the idealistic forms of the
High Renaissance and partly as a reflection of troubled times - Martin Luther
had begun the Reformation, while Rome itself had just been sacked by
mercenaries. Mannerist artists introduced a new expressiveness into their
works, as exemplified by the marvellous sculpture Rape of the Sabine
Women by Giambologna, and Michelangelo's Last Judgement fresco in the
Sistine Chapel. Also known as the Late Renaissance, Mannerism is regarded as a bridge
between the High Renaissance and the Baroque period, which adopted the subset’s ornate
aesthetic and adapted it as extravagance.

Characteristics of Mannerist Art

• E X AG G E R AT ED F IG U RE S
A primary way that Mannerist artists took High Renaissance techniques “a step further” is
through exaggeration. Pioneered by Parmigianino, an Italian artist, Mannerists rejected realistic
proportions and instead rendered figures with impossibly elongated limbs and oddly positioned
bodies.
• E L AB O R AT E D EC OR AT IO N
Lavish adornment is another way Mannerists pushed Renaissance sensibilities to their
limits. While High Renaissance figures did not typically incorporate patterns into their work, Early
Renaissance artists like Sandro Botticelli did.
• AR T IF IC I AL C O L OR
Finally, Mannerists abandoned the naturalistic colors used by High Renaissance painters and
instead employed artificial—and often garish—tones.
 For us to have an overview of the Mannerism Art please click the link below:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t6TvfyL9vHc

History of Post-Renaissance Art

Baroque Art (c.1600-1700)

It was during this period that the Catholic Counter-Reformation got

going in an attempt to attract the masses away from Protestantism.
Renewed patronage of the
visual arts and architecture
was a key feature of this
propaganda campaign, and led
to a grander, more theatrical
style in both areas. This new
style, known as Baroque art was effectively the
highpoint of dramatic Mannerism.

Baroque architecture took full advantage of the

theatrical potential of the urban landscape, exemplified by Saint Peter's Square (1656-67) in
Rome, in front of the domed St Peter's Basilica. Its architect, Gianlorenzo Bernini (1598-1680)
employed a widening series of colonnades in the approach to the cathedral, conveying the
impression to visitors that they are being embraced by the arms of the Catholic Church. The entire
approach is constructed on a gigantic scale, to induce feelings of awe.

For us to have an overview of the Baroque Art please click the link below:
https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/renaissance-reformation/baroque-art1/beginners-guide-
baroque1/a/baroque-art-in-europe-an-introduction

Rococo Art (c.1700-1789)

This new style of decorative art, known as Rococo, impacted
most on interior-design, although architecture, painting and
sculpture were also affected. Essentially a reaction against the
seriousness of the Baroque, Rococo was a light-hearted,
almost whimsical style which grew up in the French court at
the Palace of Versailles before spreading across Europe.
Rococo designers employed the full gamut of plasterwork,
murals, tapestries, furniture, mirrors, porcelain, silks and other
embellishments to give the householder a complete aesthetic
experience.

For us to have an overview of the Rococo Art please click the link below:
Neoclassical Art (Flourished c.1790-1830)
In architecture, Neoclassicism derived from the more restrained "classical" forms
of Baroque practiced in England by Sir Christopher Wren (1632-1723), who designed St
Paul's Cathedral. Yet another return to the Classical Orders of Greco-Roman Antiquity,
the style was characterized by monumental structures, supported by columns of pillars,
and topped with classical Renaissance domes. Employing innovations like layered
cupolas, it lent added grandeur to palaces, churches, and other public structures.
Neoclassicist painters also looked to
Classical Antiquity for inspiration, and
emphasized the virtues of heroicism, duty and
gravitas. Leading exponents included the French
political artist Jacques-Louis David (1748-1825),
the German portrait and history painter Anton
Raphael Mengs (1728-79), and the French master
of the Academic art style, Jean Auguste
Dominique Ingres (1780-1867).

For more about the history of painting, sculpture and architecture during this period,
see: Neoclassical art.

Romanticism Movement (Flourished c.1790-1830)

In contrast to the universal values espoused by Neo-
Classicism, Romantic artists expressed a more personal
response to life, relying more on their senses and emotions
rather than reason and intellect. This idealism, like
Neoclassism, was encouraged by the French Revolution,
thus some artists were affected by both styles. Nature was
an important subject for Romantics, and the style is
exemplified, by the English School of Landscape Painting,
the plein air painting of John Constable (1776-
1837), Corot (1796-1875) along with members of the
French Barbizon School and the American Hudson River
School of landscape painting, as well as the more
expressionistic JMW Turner (1775-1851). Arguably,
however, the greatest Romantic landscape painter is arguably Caspar David
Friedrich (1774-1840). Narrative or history painting was another important genre in
Romanticism: leading exponents include: Francisco Goya (1746-1828) Henry
Fuseli (1741-1825), James Barry (1741-1806), Theodore Gericault (1791-1824)
and Eugene Delacroix (1798-63), as well as later exponents of Orientalist painting, and
moody Pre-Raphaelites and Symbolists.

For more information about the history of Romantic painting and sculpture,
see: Romanticism in art.
Realism (c.1845 onwards)
As the 19th century progessed, growing awareness
of the rights of man plus the social impact of the
Industrial Revolution caused some artists to move
away from idealistic or romantic subjects in favour of
more mundane subjects, depicted in a more true-life,
style of naturalism. This new focus (to some extent
anticipated by William Hogarth in the 18th century,
see English Figurative Painting) was exemplified by
the Realism style which emerged in France during
the 1840s, before spreading across Europe. This
new style attracted painters from all the genres - notably Gustave Courbet (1819-77)
(genre-painting), Jean Francois Millet (1814-75) (landscape, rural life), Honore Daumier
(1808-79) (urban life) and Ilya Repin (1844-1930) (landscape and portraits).

Impressionism (c.1870-80)
French Impressionism, championed above all by Claude Monet (1840-1926), was
a spontaneous colour-sensitive style of pleinairism whose origins derived from Jean-
Baptiste Camille Corot and the techniques of the Barbizon school - whose quest was to
depict the momentary effects of natural light.
Impressionists sought to faithfully reproduce
fleeting moments outdoors. Thus if an object
appeared dark purple - due perhaps to failing or
reflected light - then the artist painted it purple.
Naturalist "Academic-Style" colour schemes, being
devised in theory or at least in the studio, did not
allow for this. As a result Impressionism offered a
whole new pictorial language - one that paved the
way for more revolutionary art movements like Cubism - and is often regarded by
historians and critics as the first modern school of painting.

Post Impressionism (c.1885 onwards)

Essentially an umbrella term encompassing a number of developments and

reactions to Impressionism, Post-Impressionism involved artists who employed
Impressionist-type colour schemes, but were dissatisfied with the limitations imposed by
merely reproducing nature. Neo-Impressionism with its technique of Pointillism was
pioneered by Georges Seurat and Paul Signac (1863-1935), while major Post-
Impressionists include Paul Gauguin, Vincent Van Gogh and Paul Cezanne. Inspired by
Gauguin's synthetism and Bernard's cloisonnism, the Post-Impressionist group Les
Nabis promoted a wider form of decorative art; another style, known as Intimisme,
concerned itself with genre scenes of domestic, intimate interiors. Another very important
movement - anti-impressionist rather than post-impressionist -
was Symbolism (flourished 1885-1900), which went on to influence Fauvism,
Expressionism and Surrealism.
Art Nouveau (Late 19th Century - Early 20th Century)
Art Nouveau (promoted as Jugendstil by the Munich
Secession (1892) and Berlin Secession (1898),
as Sezessionstil in the Vienna Secession (1897), and as Stile
Liberty in Italy, and Modernista in Spain) derived from William
Morris and the Arts and Crafts Movement in Britain, and was also
influenced by both the Celtic Revival arts movement and
Japanonisme. Its popularity stemmed from the 1900 Exposition
Universelle in Paris, from where it spread across Europe and the
United States. It was noted for its intricate flowing patterns of
sinuous asymetrical lines, based on plant-forms (dating back to the
Celtic Hallstatt and La Tene cultures), as well as female silhouettes
and forms. Art Nouveau had a major influence on poster art, design
and illustration, interior design, metalwork, glassware, jewellery, as
well as painting and sculpture.

Jewellery Art (c.1880-1917)

For unbelievable examples of authentic artistic jewellery, created by Russia's greatest goldsmiths,
see: Fabergé Easter Eggs.

Colourism: Fauvism (1900 onwards)

The term "Fauves" (wild beasts) was first used by

the art critic Louis Vauxcelles at the 1905 Salon
d'Automne exhibition in Paris when describing the
vividly coloured paintings of Henri Matisse (1869-
1954), Andre Derain (1880-1954), and Maurice de
Vlaminck (1876-1958). Other Fauvists included
the later Cubist Georges Braque (1882-1963),
Raoul Dufy (1877-1953), Albert Marquet (1875-
1947) and Georges Rouault (1871-1958). Most
followers of Fauvism moved on to Expressionism
or other movements associated with the Ecole de
Paris.

Expressionist Art (c.1900 onwards)

Expressionism is a general style of painting that aims to

express a personal interpretation of a scene or object, rather than
depict its true-life features, it is often characterized by energetic
brushwork, impastoed paint, intense colours and bold lines. Early
Expressionists included, Vincent Van Gogh (1853-90), Edvard
Munch (1863-1944) and Wassily Kandinsky (1866-1944). A
number of German Expressionist schools sprang up during the
first three decades of the 20th century. These included: Die
Brucke (1905-11), a group based in Dresden in 1905, which
mixed elements of traditional German art with Post-Impressionist
and Fauvist styles, exemplified in works by Ernst Ludwig Kirchner,
Karl Schmidt-Rottluff, Erik Heckel, and Emil Nolde; Der Blaue
Reiter (1911-14), a loose association of artists based in Munich, including Wassily Kandinsky,
Franz Marc, August Macke, and Paul Klee; Die Neue Sachlichkeit (1920s) a post-war satirical-
realist group whose members included Otto Dix, George Grosz, Christian Schad and to a lesser
extent Max Beckmann.

Expressionism duly spread worldwide, spawning numerous derivations in both figurative painting (eg.
Francis Bacon) and abstract art (eg. Mark Rothko). See also: History of Expressionist Painting (c.1880-
1930).

Cubism- Invented by Pablo Picasso (1881-1973)

and Georges Braque (1882-1963) and considered to be
"the" revolutionary movement of modern art, Cubism was a
more intellectual style of painting that explored the full
potential of the two-dimensional picture plane by offering
different views of the same object, typically arranged in a
series of overlapping fragments: rather like a photographer
might take several photos of an object from different angles,
before cutting them up with scissors and rearranging them
in haphazard fashion on a flat surface. This "analytical
Cubism" (which originated with Picasso's "Les Demoiselles
d'Avignon") quickly gave way to "synthetic Cubism", when
artists began to include "found objects" in their canvases, such as collages made from newspaper
cuttings.

Abstract or Non- Objective

The first international modern art movement to come out of America, it was a
predominantly abstract style of painting which followed an expressionist color-driven
direction, rather than a Cubist idiom, although it also includes a number of other styles,
making it more of a general movement. Four variants stand out in Abstract Expressionism

Dadaism

Dada or Dadaism was an art movement of the

European avant-garde in the early 20th century,
with early centers in Zürich, Switzerland, at
the Cabaret Voltaire; New York Dada began circa
1915, and after 1920 Dada flourished in Paris.
Developed in reaction to World War I, the Dada
movement consisted of artists who rejected
the logic, reason, and aestheticism of
modern capitalist society, instead expressing nonsense, irrationality, and anti-
bourgeois protest in their works. The art of the movement spanned visual, literary, and
sound media, including collage, sound poetry, cut-up writing, and sculpture. Dadaist artists
expressed their discontent toward violence, war, and nationalism, and maintained political
affinities with the radical far-left
Surrealism (1924 onwards)

Largely rooted in the anti-art traditions of the Dada movement (1916-24), as well as
the psychoanalytical ideas of Sigmund Freud and Carl Jung, Surrealism was the most
influential art style of the inter-war years. According to its chief theorist, Andre Breton, it
sought to combine the unconscious with the conscious, in order to create a new "super-
reality" - a "surrealisme". The movement spanned a huge range of styles, from abstraction
to true-life realism, typically punctuated with "unreal" imagery. Important Surrealists
included Salvador Dali (1904-89), Max Ernst
(1891-1976), Rene Magritte (1898-1967),
Andre Masson (1896-1987), Yves Tanguy
(1900-55), Joan Miro (1893-1983), Giorgio de
Chirico (1888-1978), Jean Arp (1886-1966),
and Man Ray (1890-1976). The movement
had a major impact across Europe during the
1930s, was the major precursor
to Conceptualism, and continues to find
adherents in fine art, literature and
cinematography.

For a more vivid understanding of Surrealism Art please click the link below:
https://www.parkwestgallery.com/what-is-surrealism-art/
Constructivism
The movement emphasized building and science, rather than
artistic expression, and its goals went far beyond the realm of
art. The Constructivists sought to influence architecture,
design, fashion, and all mass-produced objects. In place of
painterly concerns with composition, Constructivists were
interested in construction. Rather than emerging from an
expressive impulse or an academic tradition, art was to be built.
A new, Constructivist art would look toward industrial
production; approach the artist as an engineer, rather than an
easel painter; and serve the proletariat. Constructivists used
sparse, geometric forms and modest materials. From paintings
to posters to textiles, they created a visual language out of
forms that can be drawn with utilitarian instruments like compasses and rulers. They
placed visual culture under the microscope, analyzing materials like wood, glass, and
metal, to judge them for their value and fitness for use in mass-produced images and
objects.

For a more vivid understanding of Constructivism in Art please click the link below:
https://www.artsy.net/article/artsy-editorial-constructivism-brought-russian-revolution-art
De Still Abstract Expressionism Art
“Abstract Expressionism" was never an ideal label for the movement, which developed in
New York in the 1940s and 1950s. It was somehow meant to encompass not only the
work of painters who filled their canvases with fields of color and abstract forms, but also
those who attacked their canvases with a vigorous gestural expressionism. Still Abstract
Expressionism has become the most accepted term
for a group of artists who held much in common. All
were committed to art as expressions of the self,
born out of profound emotion and universal themes,
and most were shaped by the legacy of Surrealism,
a movement that they translated into a new style
fitted to the post-war mood of anxiety and trauma.
In their success, these New York painters robbed
Paris of its mantle as leader of modern art, and set
the stage for America's dominance of the
international art world.

If you want to discover more about Abstract Expressionism in Art please click the link below:
http://www.visual-arts-cork.com/history-of-art/abstract-expressionism.htm

Optical Art
Artists have been intrigued by the nature
of perception and by optical effects and
illusions for many centuries. They have
often been a central concern of art, just
as much as themes drawn from history or
literature. But in the 1950s these
preoccupations, allied to new interests in
technology and psychology, blossomed
into a movement. Op, or Optical, art
typically employs abstract patterns
composed with a stark contrast of foreground and background - often in black and white
for maximum contrast - to produce effects that confuse and excite the eye. Initially, Op
shared the field with Kinetic Art - Op artists being drawn to virtual movement, Kinetic
artists attracted by the possibility of real motion. Both styles were launched with Le
Mouvement, a group exhibition at Galerie Denise Rene in 1955. It attracted a wide
international following, and after it was celebrated with a survey exhibition in 1965, The
Responsive Eye, at the Museum of Modern Art in New York, it caught the public's
imagination and led to a craze for Op designs in fashion and the media.
Pop Art
Emerging in the mid-1950s in Britain and late 1950s in
America, pop art reached its peak in the 1960s. It began as a
revolt against the dominant approaches to art and culture and
traditional views on what art should be. Young artists felt that
what they were taught at art school and what they saw in
museums did not have anything to do with their lives or the things
they saw around them every day. Instead they turned to sources
such as Hollywood movies, advertising, product packaging, pop
music and comic books for their imagery.

Minimalism
Minimalism or minimalist art can be seen as
extending the abstract idea that art should have its
own reality and not be an imitation of some other
thing. We usually think of art as representing an
aspect of the real world (a landscape, a person, or
even a tin of soup!); or reflecting an experience such
as an emotion or feeling. With minimalism, no
attempt is made to represent an outside reality, the
artist wants the viewer to respond only to what is in
front of them. The medium, (or material) from which
it is made, and the form of the work is the reality. Minimalist painter Frank Stella famously
said about his paintings ‘What you see is what you see’.

Conceptual Art
Conceptual art is a movement that prizes ideas over the formal or visual
components of art works. An amalgam of various tendencies rather than a tightly cohesive
movement, Conceptualism took myriad forms, such
as performances, happenings, and ephemera.
From the mid-1960s through the mid-1970s
Conceptual artists produced works and writings that
completely rejected standard ideas of art. Their
chief claim - that the articulation of an artistic idea
suffices as a work of art - implied that concerns such
as aesthetics, expression, skill and marketability
were all irrelevant standards by which art was
usually judged.

To have a virtual overview of Abstract Art please click the link below :
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3kdzGAjG26s
Photo Realism
The name Photorealism (also known as Hyperrealism or
Superrealism) was coined in reference to those artists
whose work depended heavily on photographs, which they
often projected onto canvas allowing images to be
replicated with precision and accuracy. The exactness was
often aided further by the use of an airbrush, which was
originally designed to retouch photographs. The movement
came about within the same period and context
as Conceptual art, Pop art, and Minimalism and expressed a strong interest in realism in
art, over that of idealism and abstraction.

Installation Art
Installation artworks (also sometimes described as ‘environments’)
often occupy an entire room or gallery space that the spectator has
to walk through in order to engage fully with the work of art. Some
installations, however, are designed simply to be walked around
and contemplated, or are so fragile that they can only be viewed
from a doorway, or one end of a room. What makes installation art
different from sculpture or other traditional art forms is that it is a
complete unified experience, rather than a display of separate,
individual artworks.