Willem de Kooning was known as one of the major artists of the Abstract Expressionism period. In the post World War II era, de Kooning painted in the style that is referred to as Abstract expressionism, Action painting, and the New York School. Like all Modern art, the intent of these forms of art was not to produce beauty, but critical reflection. The intent was to awaken in the viewer a recognition of the specific, usually social or political, concern of the artist (New World, 2008). De Kooning reflected this period by working in such as a way as to both eschew all traces of visible reality in the painting as well as to create uncontrolled and sometimes violent gestures, which is reminiscent of this time (Gale Encyclopedia, 2006). His works show great emotion, mostly of a tortured, aggressive nature, which was thought of by many to be the ultimate expression of this abstract period. De Kooning had painted women regularly in the early 1940s and again from 1947 to 1949. The biomorphic shapes of his early abstractions can be interpreted as female symbols. It was not until 1950 that he began to explore the subject of women exclusively. De Kooning famously said, "Flesh is the reason oil paint was invented" (MoMA, 2010), and although he often worked in an abstract style he continually returned to the human figure. In the summer of that year, he began Woman I, which went through innumerable metamorphoses before it was finished in 1952. Woman, I is the first in a series of de Kooning works on the theme of Woman, of which there are six in the series. The group is influenced by images ranging from Paleolithic fertility fetishes to American billboards, and the attributes of this particular figure seem to range from the venge... ... middle of paper ... ...er vision they choose to without worrying about perfection. The person viewing these paintings is free to see whatever they choose to as well. For example, many critics have viewed Women I as a demented, evil creature that must be feared. However, when I look at that painting, I see a strong, dominant woman who is able to stand up to others and face anything, without fear of ridicule or judgment. I see that this woman prevailed against all odds and continues to be confident in her own skin. Other people might look at this painting and just see an ugly or crazy person on the canvas or not have any strong opinion about it at all, while I, on the other hand, view a beautiful, independent woman. Each person viewing abstract art can have his or her own creative opinion regarding the work, which is why art such as Women I during this period is so appealing to me.
The male artists portrayed women as a projection of their ideal woman. The artist’s often overlooked the women’s identity’s and personalities in favour of creating aesthetically pleasing art for themselves and other superior males to view and enjoy. This was especially harmful because the more popular the art grew to be, the more often women were categorised as objects rather than people. The art contributed to gender construction by creating these gender roles and reinforcing that in all situations, men were superior to
Spending time looking at art is a way of trying to get into an artists’ mind and understand what he is trying to tell you through his work. The feeling is rewarding in two distinctive ways; one notices the differences in the style of painting and the common features that dominate the art world. When comparing the two paintings, The Kneeling Woman by Fernand Leger and Two Women on a Wharf by Willem de Kooning, one can see the similarities and differences in the subjects of the paintings, the use of colors, and the layout
Prior to the 20th century, female artists were the minority members of the art world (Montfort). They lacked formal training and therefore were not taken seriously. If they did paint, it was generally assumed they had a relative who was a relatively well known male painter. Women usually worked with still lifes and miniatures which were the “lowest” in the hierarchy of genres, bible scenes, history, and mythological paintings being at the top (Montfort). To be able to paint the more respected genres, one had to have experience studying anatomy and drawing the male nude, both activities considered t...
People can have many different opinions depending on a topic, but what is truly difficult is getting a complete level of understanding from every opinion, or understanding the point of view of each opinion. Even accepting the points of view can be difficult for some people, who believe that their opinions are right. Luckily, people can learn about the other person’s frame of reference, and at the very least understand the topic or the person a little better. This particular topic is art, which is known for its multiple possible perceptions or its many different messages that it can send a person or group of people. In this way, people can learn more about the thought processes and feelings of others. Unfortunately, with differing opinions,
Edgar Degas’ mind was unique and creative, producing some of the most famous works of the Impressionist period. Although his works were incredibly beautiful and had what could have been positive subject matter, his works often appear eerie and mysterious. This is due to Degas’ inner thoughts and feelings. Beginning with his mother’s death at age 13, Degas never became attached to a woman during his lifetime. This caused him to not only feel aggressive toward women, but also that he could look down upon them and his inferiors. Conflicting thoughts of aggression and admiration filled the mind of Degas, and is seen throughout his body of works. His work appears the way it does to the viewer due to Degas’ inner thoughts, which were not always positive. This allows his works to differ from other artists of the period.
Over the years many artist have viewed sensitive subjects within their work. Sex is one of the sensitive subjects that has been viewed in a positive and negative way. Before and during the 19th century, most paintings, sculptures, and art pieces focused on the features of a human's body. During this time, most artist believed that showing these features of a human could show the role a woman and man had in life. Sculptures in early times focused on the body of a man and showed distinctive features from head to toe. Most sculptures were representations of Greek Gods, which showed their strength and power throughout their body. Showing the sexual side of men in art, lead to showing the sexual features of a woman. The sexual features of a woman was shown throughout paintings and sculptures that mostly represented fertility. suppose to symbolize the sexual union between him and the woman. The idea of showing sex in art has been shaped and formed into various perspectives.
Art is a language of its own and with out he proper understanding, people are like expression goes “left on the outside looking in”. In other words, people without the proper understanding of art, technique and form as well as other elements can’t appreciate a work of art as much as when you understand why an artist painted in the way they did and what they are trying to get across to his audience. Despite artists attempts to try and make their works as viewer friendly as possible, without the understanding and knowledge gained from an art class as this one people will never fully understand the a work of art as it is meant to be.
Feminist issues have played an important role in creating ideas for female artists to use in their work. Putting out controversial themes such as this promotes individual thought on the topic of feminism. Kruger and Höch both took it upon themselves to put out these ideas through many of their key artworks. In 1920, Höch came out with her photomontage, Das Schöne Mädchen (The Beautiful Girl) (Fig. 1), which at the time was one of very few photomontages that Dada artists had included female figures in. (Hemus, 104). In this particular work she puts together many different images that create a certain meaning that the viewer is left to interpret. She uses a fema...
Experienced in European Modernism and becoming dull to the American Realism popular at the time, Abstract Expressionists became a new type of expression that gave permission to artist to have flow of their own emotion onto the canvas. They accomplished this goal by turning down the traditions of illusionistic painting in favor of their own individual spot. Abstract Expressionists were different from others they expressed their feelings/or emotions straight on a canvas, or by explorations with color, leaving no recognizable images or figuration. Many Abstract Expressionists threw fine art methods out the window by using non-traditional painting techniques. In the painting Number 31 by Jackson Pollock, for example, put his large canvases on the
Abstract art in comparison to realism, can be described as two art forms on opposite ends of the art style spectrum. Picasso and Pollock both had a massive impact on the outcome of modern art through their ability to challenge viewers as they interpret art, not for what the painting shows, but instead what the idea of it came from. Picasso’s painting is now an iconic symbol for an anti-war message, and Pollock’s painting now represent a form of freedom of speech and expression throughout America. Ultimately the reason artists moved from realism to abstract came from the invention of the camera, giving artist a reason to branch to new and edgy art forms, which will later create the modern art
Images that eroticism is implied tend to represent the availability of the women’s bodies, in the implication that they are objects of eroticism (Sturken and Cartwright 2009: 116), consequently affecting the way society views women such as illustrated in Figure
People use art to display the beauty found in the world and, because of this, women have been subject to objection through paintings and photography all throughout history. Whether it is a commissioned oil painting from the 17th century or an advertisement from the 20th century, there will always be some type of image that objectifies women. In the book Ways of Seeing John Berger states that a woman “comes to consider the surveyor and surveyed within her as the two constituent yet always distinct elements of her identity as a woman,” (Ways of Seeing 46). Berger is saying that women know they are seen as an object purely because they are women. Women in paintings and photography are objectified for the pleasure of the viewer, they are illustrated for the surveyor’s specifications, so in essence the picture is a better representation of the owner than the subject.
The German Expressionism movement started in the early twentieth century art world, pre-WWI, presumably from Vincent Van Gogh’s “pioneering expressionist paintings like… Starry, Starry Night”(Encyclopaedia of Art History). It was a purely aesthetic movement at this time that sought to oppose the Impressionist movement, which imitated nature, by imposing unnatural, distorted images. Aspects of those distortions served to convey the emotions an artist held towards their subject. War brought terror. War brought mental meltdowns. War changed the Expressionistic style into a “bitter protest movement”(Encyclopaedia of Art History) as artists “suffered from war-induced disillusionment and were dissatisfied with post-war German
Exhibited in The Moon and Sixpence by Somerset Maugham, Expressionism differed greatly from its predecessor, Impressionism. Unlike Impressionism, Expressionism’s “goals were not to reproduce the impression suggested by the surrounding world, but to strongly impose the artist's own sensibility to the world's representation” (Web museum 1). In Expressionism, “the artist seeks to depict not objective reality but rather the subjective emotions and responses that objects and events arouse in him” (Web museum 1). Using variety of violent colors and exaggerated lines to express their intense emotions, the expressionists painted the world in a new way.