Uncertainty & Modernity

I chose to watch this video because modern art is the art that appeals to me the most. I feel like growing up, all of the art teachers I encountered in Elementary school focused more on modern artists like Picasso. For that reason I gravitated toward it. Historically, art was very realistic until modern art emerged. Artists frequently attempted to create the idealized version of man. The Industrial Revolution changed art in many ways. After the Industrial Revolution we saw art separate from nature. Modern art was a result of the rapid consumption of everything and society was defined by that change. The art was art that describes us (the people of that time). Modern art was peculiar because the common theme was uncertainty. The art was no longer about perfection because there was a different way to represent want is real. The video also shows how modern art changes itself. There was abstract expressionism and pop art which are very different but both are. Abstract art is an experiment. It asks questions and leaves you to answer it. That is what I love about it. Pop art was a response to consumerism in the 1960's. It was to show us what we had become in America. One the most popular artists of American art, Andy Warhol flourished during this time, whom we all know and love.


Abstract Expressionism and Pop Art- art of the 50's and 60's

I chose this video because I have a great interest in American art and most of our great American artists became famous during this time period. Franz Klein is one of them . He abandons figurative painting and began to move toward abstraction and painted that way until her died. In abstract expressionism there is no definitive space: no foreground or background. He begins to speak the language of abstraction with color or the lack of color. This is how he shows mood and expression. He also represents emotions through shape. Pop art does something different. Andy Warhol, for example, uses common everyday objects in his artwork. He inspired many other pop artists. He also created powerful images by uses photographs of electric chairs and race riots. His art was affected by the rapid consumerism of the 60's. His viewpoint was all reality is sucked up, reproduced and being spit back out to us by the media. I believe he saw the future because we are living in a world exactly as he depicted. One of my favorite artists is Roy Lichtenstein. He looked to the comic book for his inspiration. Far away you see an image but if you take one piece of it and look at the lines and colors you can see that it is abstract. He looks at style as something that can be chosen whether to use or not. He asks a lot of questions through art.

The Impact of Cubism
I chose the video on cubism because in cubism you see artist use shapes and colors like in abstract art but the end result is a real picture if you look at it differently. Juan Gris' "The Breakfast Table" is a perfect example where he starts with an abstract form but ends with something real. Start with the imagination then ends with the real object. Gris was impacted by Picasso and painted a portrait for him. Gris also incorporated collage in his art which he was influenced by the Spanish tradition. In fact many cubist borrowed inspiration from other heritages. Picasso and other artists borrowed from the faces of African masks. Artists like Delauney played with making art fit into life. She designed clothes and paints for cars. Art and life were on and she influenced many others. This is an early peak into how fashion ties itself to art. Boccioni is inspired by art also. He is inspired by the cinema screen which for him, represents the city life. Once a gain we can see how life is displayed in art. I found it interesting how all of the cubists borrowed from and were influenced from one another.

Matisse and Picasso

I chose this video because it tied in well with the other videos and text about cubism and abstract art and gives a closer look into the two famous artists of that time. It explores the ingenious relationship between Matisse and Picasso. Matisse becomes the leader of the Fauves. The Stein family is a popular family at the time who is convinced that Matisse and Picasso's art will be a clash of the titans. Matisse was a rational man and Picasso was not as serious he considered himself a worker. Picasso was much more impulsive with his paintings. He gives his paintings a primal feeling. Picasso's "Les Mademoiselles d'Avignon" (1907) depicts prostitutes in the street. Matisse mademoiselles painted the same year and they were idols. Mattisse respects Picasso as the head of the avangar. They shared a mutual respect for each other and they exchanged works of art to show that respect. In 1912 Picasso invented the first collage as he dives into cubism. Shortly after in 1920 Picasso's life is changed. He changes his style to please his wife. During that time Mattise creates a peaceful place to create art. Picasso paradied Mattisse's work in order to release the tension of his terrible marriage. Nevertheless Mattisse visits America and Picasso is the first person on his mind. They maintained a powerful relationship that is not seen by any other two artists in history. I found it interesting that at times they were borrowing from each other but at other times they were borrowing from one another. It was almost like they were family members.