Fouzia Hussain
Modernism vs. Postmodernism
Professor Cacoilo
6 April 2019
Modernism Art vs. Postmodernism Art
There is a difference between Modernism Art and Postmodernism Art. They both happened in two different times that explains how people portrayed and started art. To begin with, modernism happened during the 1860s and 1970s were people made art based on the events that were happening during that time. Artists would use the experiences they have dealt with, examples are like when women artists painted their feelings on their art, such as the equal rights they want alongside with men, how women are treated as “objects”, and etc. In contrast, postmodernism is why that artwork was made. This is when it turns political or racial and trying to send the audience a message or trying to have people understand why this was made.
In modernism, there were different movements that were going on. In chapter 10, it stated, “Carol Duncan traces the sexualizing of creativity in the work of the Fauves, the Cubists, and the German Expressionists, and she argues that the vanguard myth of individual artistic freedom is built on sexual and social inequalities” (Chadwick 280). This ties into how females felt on the inequalities they got as well as sexuality. As a German expressionist, there was a female artist named Paula Modersohn Becker who made a self-portrait.
Modersohn made this nude painting to show “female identity” and how this women feels showing expression by emotions. This is to show or tell the audience how she feels is viewed as a feminine.
This painting was by Kathe Kollwitz, named “Attack”, The Weavers Revolt. This painting was shown to describe the tragedy she faced after losing her son in the war and her grandson in the second (Chadwick). This was German expressionism that was refused to be shown because people did not want to show “social reality”. She explains that there's a difference between who makes the painting as well as who was in the painting that dealt with the tragedy itself. Basically stating how there's two different viewpoints for people.
Similarly to this art was Suzanne Valadon, who made nude paintings and had critics that have gone against it, but she still expressed this to show the power behind females. It stated, “Instead of presenting the female body as a lush surface isolated and controlled by the male gaze, she emphasizes the awkward gestures of figures appear in control of their own movements” (Chadwick 285). This is when she uses her art to explain the movements that were happening and how male or men viewed women for their pleasure. Fauvism soon started as a movement where artists used “unnatural colors” to show more emotion in their paintings. Moreover, cubism is another movement that happened expressing reality by putting different objects in figures of their painting. An artist named Alexandra Exter was part of this movement. In the Guerilla Girls, it stated, “Back in Russia she became a cheerleader for modernism, getting to know artists all over and organizing shows of new art” (Guerilla 64). Exter encouraged other artists including females for her movement. When it mentions here how she advocated other artists, she advocated the cubist movement that was happening as well.
The link provided down below explains at least 7 things about this movement.
She would An example of a female artist is Frida Kahlo that was part of the Cubist movement.
Frida Kahlo- The Broken Column; part of the Cubist movement. This painting is showing pain (as shown under her eyes; the tears that are falling), the image that is showing inside her body is when she got into a bus accident and an iron handrail went through her body, this painting is describing and showing imagery of what happened. This accident had injured her so much, the painting defines it all.
Furthermore, postmodernism talks about why the artwork was made. In the text, it stated, “Despite such achievements, women of color often faced formidable political and social barriers” (Chadwick 317). Postmodernism uses how modernism was but more towards their artwork, using like media as a challenge towards their art. An example of a female artist that used postmodernism as an example is Faith Ringgold Die.
-This link explains in further detail towards race and the meaning behind this painting of how protest was part of a movement during the postmodernist time. This was fighting for equal rights.
This painting is made by Faith Ringgold Die. This painting is explaining the protest riot that is happening during that time. This is describing the backlash and differences between white and black people. This is expressing hate in society, with the blood representing and the people laying dead or flying. Ringgold talked about her experience in Harlem and how the march in Washington happened.
The movements that happened in postmodernism was activists fighting for justice, especially women. They have made males understood what they deal with as a female. In the text, it stated how the women movement made a huge impact on women and being an eye opener to at least some males. “The women’s movement profoundly affected me; it led me, and all the people around me, to see things more clearly. I don't think before that I was aware of the roles women played… There is always a woman in my work, and her role is questioned” (Chadwick 345). This movement had male and audiences realize what women deal with, their perspective upon it. Moreover, abstract art was very popular during this time as well to express paintings.
Joan Snyder, the artist of this painting is describing abstractionism. In this painting, it's showing the different materials used/shown. The differences in brushstrokes based on the picture and the resemblance on the tears that are shown and the blood gushing down. This is showing a theme such as in a political way (Chadwick).
Women used different ways to explain what happens in the world in a historical way even. Such as how women like Stuart used rocks in her painting to describe her upbringing in Southern California. As Chadwick mentioned, artists use sculpture to describe the problems that are occurring in Earth as a way to tell the audience what is happening in the world. Postmodernism is again explaining why the work is made, so in this case, she made this sculptor to reflect and explain her experience in South Carolina and the layers that were there.
In all, modernism started off first showing the experiences people have dealt with and postmodernism occurred after that. Modernism was about how women have dealt with experiences and postmodernism is explaining why and targets more of an audience or to people to understand why or what is going on in the world.
Link:
This link provided explains and lays out the differences between modernism and postmodernism art. The characteristics as well as how science is involved along with them.
No comments:
Post a Comment