art, graffiti art, postmodern art, body art,
and digital art. Art like Jackson Pollock,
Firm up
Art has gone along way. Art today is so
different from the traditional art where
artists perfected their art by practicing
“mimesis” or copying the model exactly as
it is. The new style of art that emerged
after World War II is called Contemporary
Art. Contemporary artist did not feel
obliged to apply perspective, color
combination, naturalism, and other
guidelines that were carefully observed in
traditional art. They deliberately broke the
rules of traditional art.
Since the 1950’s, artists have experimented
on a variety of techniques and different
ways of expressing their emotions,
convictions, ideas, ideology, and other
things that could be expressed through
art. If you check the art timeline, you will
realize that from the 1950’s to 2000’s,
there are more than 100 art styles and
movements. Some of the more famous
ones are abstract expressionism, kinetic
art, op art, performance art, environmental
art, feminist art, post minimalism, video
Marcel Duchamp, Wassily Kandinsky, Andy
Warhol, Henry Moore, and Henri Matisse
were identified with contemporary art
because their styles and ways of art-
making are very different from the
traditional ways.
Contemporary Art or “the art of today”
is made from a variety of media and
materials to convey an artist’s interests
or expression of self. It usually reflects
Filipino
his or Pioneers of Contemporary
her culture, political views Art
as well
Victorio
as the Edades
current popular trends.
Victorio Edades
Style: Usage of bold strokes and bright
colors
Carlos “Botong” Francisco and Galo
Ocampo
Style: Abstraction, expressionism,
surrealism
 Look for their artworks on the internet.
Observe how their paintings are different
from the artworks of the traditional
Filipino artists like Fernando Amorsolo and
Juan Luna, among others.

Fernando Amorsolo

Hernando Ocampo
Style: Usage of geometric forms in strong
color

Juan Luna

Vicente Manansala
Style: Human forms in abstract cubism

Today hundreds of contemporary artists

are found in the 18 regions of the
Philippines. Their art can be group as

Cesar Legaspi visual and performing arts.

Style: Transparent cubism with flowing

lines
Characteristics of Contemporary
Art
1. Contemporary art is not confined to
museum but can also be found in galleries,
art school, side streets, and public places
2. Selling of contemporary artworks
becomes more accessible since artists post
their works online, but some only intend to
display their works on a particular setting
and for a given span of time.
3. Many contemporary artists are self-
taught and did not have formal education.
They are more flexible in using different
kinds of materials.
4. Some contemporary artist employ the
help of fabricators, carpenters, electricians,
or welders in “constructing” their works.
5. Originality is not an issue in
contemporary art. An artist can get
another artist’s work and add to it,
redesign, or interpret it using other
materials.
6. What is essential to contemporary
artists is the process of art-making. It is
the experience.
Given these characteristics, it can be said
that contemporary art is a statement that
an artist makes about conditions,
thoughts, ideas, beliefs, and many other
things that define human life through the
use of various mediums and materials.