Art currents Ρεύματα Ζωγραφικής

Art currents Ρεύματα τέχνης
Renaissance: Italy 1400 - 1600 AD Αναγέννηση Ιταλία
Baroque 1600 - 1700 AD Μπαρόκ
Rococo 1700 - 1750 AD Ροκοκό

PRE-MODERN 1800 - 1880 AD ΠΡΟ- ΜΟΝΤΕΡΝΙΣΜΟΣ

Neo-Classicism 1750 - 1880 AD Νεοκλασικισμός
Romanticism 1800 - 1880 AD Ρομαντισμός
Realism 1830's - 1850's AD Ρεαλισμός
Impressionism 1870's - 1890's AD Ιμπρεσιονισμός

MODERNISM 1880 - 1945 AD ΜΟΝΤΕΡΝΙΣΜΟΣ

Post Impressionism 1880 - 1900 AD Μετα-ιμπρεσιονισμός
Expressionism 1900 - 1920 AD Εξπρεσιονισμός
Fauvism 1900 - 1920 AD Φωβισμός
Cubism 1907 - 1914 AD Κυβισμός
Dada 1916 - 1922 AD Ντανταισμός
Surrealism 1924 1920s - 1940's AD Σουρεαλισμός
International Style 1920s - 1940's AD Διεθνές στυλ

MODERN & POST-MODERN 1945 AD - Present ΜΟΝΤΕΡΝΟ-ΜΕΤΑΜΟΝΤΕΡΝΟ ΣΤΥΛ (ΜΕΧΡΙ ΠΑΡΟΝ)

Abstract Expressionism 1945 - 1960 AD Αφηρημένος εξπρεσιονισμός
Op Art 1960s AD Τέχνη οπ
Pop Art 1960s AD Τέχνη ποπ
Minimal Art 1960s AD Μινιμαλισμός
New Realism 1970s - 1980s AD Νέο-ρεαλισμός
Conceptual Art 1970s - 1980s AD Εννοιολογική τέχνη
Performance Art 1970s - 1980s AD Περφόρμανς τέχνη (Παράσταση)
Neo-Expressionism 1980s - 1990s AD Νέο-εξπρεσιονισμός
Computer Art 1980s - 1990s AD Τέχνη κομπιούτερ
Post-Modern Classicism 1980s - 1990s AD Μετα-μοντέρνος κλασικισμός
Victorian Revival 1980s - 1990s AD Βικτοριανή αναγέννηση

Art

Art

According to an art critic “there is not any clear definition of art nowadays”. Another one declared that it is unthinkable now to give an art definition. There are so many viewpoints, that art critics and historians cannot agree on a definition of art, since anything can be called art. Certainly this was the case ever since Andy Warhol created his cans of tomato juice. If they were art, then anything created by man could be art, and the line between art and no art became invisible.

One thing is sure however, that artists kept up a steady production of art, but unfortunately the art lovers lost their bearings, trying to explain if what they saw was art or not and suited with what they had in mind about it.

The problem is that people haven’t given up art entirely, since they were told from an early age that it is a great thing. What do they come across with this attachment however? Nothing, because they find out there is no “essence” in it. They even overlook the fact that everything can be art, or that no art is better than any other kind of art.

It is true that the modernists, starting with the Dadaists, targeted art trying to wipe it out, in order to save it, as they thought, from the declining academic art of the previous centuries. In the mid fifties, this procedure was in full action eradicating the system established in museums and galleries all the time before.

Modernism has aimed at destroying the values of art, but didn’t make it clear where it was heading. The evolution of modern art in the sixties and seventies is known by the name of Conceptualism, which broke down the barriers to the established values of art as we know them. This art current attempted to free art from its limitations and keep it apart from the embracement of art history and criticism. It encouraged artists to use any kind of materials that could be found anywhere. What they created was not as important as the process itself. In this way it embraced all sorts of unclassified art according to the old system.

The twentieth century took art out of control. Even modern art critics and historians lost their ability to play a decisive role in managing contemporary art. The little monster they have created in their labs has broken its chains and refuses to obey rules of any system. All art history and tradition have gone down with modern art.

Cubism

Cubism The key role in the creation of cubism is Picasso’s interest in non-Western sculpture specifically Afro sculpture. Picasso’s proto-cubist works, such as Les Demoiselles D’Avinion (1907) displayed his interest in both African art and ancient Iberian art and architecture. Picasso and Braque developed cubism between 1907 and 1914, creating the most influential style of the modern period. In cubism, the flat, two-dimensional surface of the picture plane is emphasized, and traditional perspective, modeling and chiaroscuro (contrast of light and dark) are rejected. In its first phase, called Analytical Cubism, artists were concerned with breaking down and analyzing form. The aim of Cubism is to distil the depiction of form by showing several sides of the object simultaneously. This resulted in the radical fragmentation of objects into cube-like elements. To emphasize further the abstract nature of the composition, the use of monochrome was favoured.

Its second phase, generally called Synthetic Cubism, grew out of experiments with collage. Materials such as wood, newspaper, photographs or feathers were pasted on to the picture in combination with painted surfaces. Although shapes remained fragmented and flat, colour played a strong role in synthetic cubism, and the works are more decorative. Other leading artists of Cubism, who created personal modifications of it, were Leger, and Duchamp. Several Italian artists notably Severini, and Balla worked in the cubist style but called their movement Futurism; among other things, they were concerned with expressing motion in art through the repetition of lines and images.

Cubism was also crucial to the development of non- figurative representation, or abstract art. In Germany, Kandinsky painted semi-abstract and abstract pictures containing references to nature and music. Russian artists were aware of Cubism through a few outstanding private collections in Moscow and evolved a different, geometrically constructed abstract art. Malevich , a devout Christian mystic painted a black square on a white ground, naming his personal abstractions Suprematism. Other Cubist-inspired Russian painters, known as Constructivists, were Popova ,Tatlin and others.

Κυβισμός

Κυβισμός

Ο κύριος λόγος για τη δημιουργία του κυβισμού ήταν το ενδιαφέρον του Πικάσο για τη μη Ευρωπαϊκή γλυπτική και συγκεκριμένα την Αφρικανική. Τα πρώτα κυβιστικά έργα που Πικάσο, όπως οι Δεσποινίδες της Αβινιόν (1907), έδειξαν το ενδιαφέρον του για την Αφρικανική όπως και την αρχαία ιβηρική γλυπτική. Ο Πικάσο και ο Μπρακ ανέπτυξαν τον Κυβισμό μεταξύ του 1907 και του 1914 δημιουργώντας το πιο κυρίαρχο στυλ της μοντέρνας περιόδου. Στον Κυβισμό, το επίπεδο, και η δυσδιάστατη επιφάνεια του πίνακα παίζουν βασικό ρόλο ,ενώ η παραδοσιακή προοπτική, το ποζάρισμα και το Κιαροσκούρο( η αντίθεση φωτός και σκιάς) απορρίπτονται. Στην πρώτη του περίοδο, που ονομάζεται Αναλυτικός Κυβισμός, οι καλλιτέχνες έσπαζαν την εικόνα και ανέλυαν τη φόρμα. Ο σκοπός του κυβισμού ήταν να διυλίζει την απεικόνιση της φόρμας και να δείχνει αρκετές πλευρές του αντικειμένου ταυτόχρονα. Αυτό είχε σαν συνέπεια μία δραστική διάσπαση των αντικειμένων σε στοιχεία που μοιάζουν με κύβους. Για να δώσουν έμφαση στην αφηρημένη φύση της σύνθεσης , έδειχναν προτίμηση στις μονοχρωμίες.

Η δεύτερη φάση του, γενικά ονομάζεται Συνθετικός Κυβισμός, και προέκυψε από πειράματα κολλάζ. Υλικά όπως ξύλο, εφημερίδες, φωτογραφίες και πούπουλα κολλιόταν επάνω στην εικόνα σε συνδυασμό με ζωγραφισμένες επιφάνειες. Αν και τα σχήματα παρέμεναν διασπασμένα και επίπεδα, το χρώμα έπαιζε ένα σημαντικό ρόλο στο Συνθετικό Κυβισμό, και τα έργα είναι περισσότερο διακοσμητικά. Άλλοι σημαντικοί ζωγράφοι του κυβισμού, που δημιούργησαν προσωπικές προσαρμογές σ’αυτόν, ήταν ο Λεζέ και ο Ντουσάμπ. Αρκετοί Ιταλοί καλλιτέχνες και συγκεκριμένα ο Σεβερίνι και ο Μπάλα ζωγράφιζαν με το στυλ του κυβισμού, αλλά ονόμαζαν το κίνημα τους Φουτουρισμό. Ανάμεσα σε άλλα πράγματα, ενδιαφερόντουσαν να εκφράσουν την κίνηση στην τέχνη μέσα από την επανάληψη των γραμμών και των εικόνων.

Ο Κυβισμό ήταν επίσης κρίσιμος για την ανάπτυξη της μη παραστατικής, ή αφηρημένης ζωγραφικής. Στη Γερμανία, ο Καντίνσκυ ζωγράφιζε αφηρημένους πίνακες με αναφορές στη φύση και τη μουσική. Οι Ρώσοι καλλιτέχνες ήταν ενήμεροι για το κίνημα του Κυβισμού μέσα από κάποιες συλλογές που εκτέθηκαν στη Μόσχα, και ανέπτυξαν μία διαφορετική αφηρημένη τέχνη σε γεωμετρικό στυλ. Ο Μάλεβιτς, καλλιτέχνης ευσεβής και μυστικιστής, ζωγράφισε ένα μαύρο τετράγωνο σε άσπρο φόντο, ονομάζοντας τις προσωπικές του αφαιρέσεις Σουπρεματισμό. Άλλοι Ρώσοι καλλιτέχνες που εμπνεύστηκαν από τον Κυβισμό, γνωστοί ως Κονστρουκτιβιστές ,ήταν ο Πόποβα, ο Τατλίν και άλλοι.

Bouguereau's Art in the 20ieth century

Bouguerau’s Art in the 20^th century

The graduates of the schools of Fine Art all over the world never heard in these last few decades the name of Bouguereau, the most important painter of the late 19^th century according to the viewpoint of Monet and Degas. This great artist, as president of the Paris school of Fine Art and the Paris Salon, opened the faculty for the women artists and swept all the awards wherever there was an art contest. However, in the 20ieth century, the propaganda against Academic painting became so violent that the young artists had either to condemn it, or attend the school from the window. They learned to reject beauty, the influence of composition, drawing, value and atmospheric mood. Academic painting is bad by definition, because it uses human figures, theme, a story to tell and objects from the real world. If an artwork is created by a famous modern artist, it is automatically considered a masterpiece. If an art lover doesn’t seem to estimate its grandeur, he is certainly lacking intelligence.

Under such pressure the students of the schools of Fine Art find greatness in every modern piece of art. They are taught that the paintings of Bouguereau, Leighton and Gerome are bad by definition. It is ironic that the people, who speak of freedom of expression, are trying to prohibit the figurative artists from painting realistically. This affluent visual language doesn’t have eyes to watch it. It doesn’t mean of course that all realistic art is inspiring. Nevertheless figurative art has more sense than modern art, which asserts that the canvas is flat and one doesn’t need skill or technique to be a modern artist. It is therefore defined that non art is art, and consequently figurative art is not real art. Nothing of what is created must have shape or design. According to critics Bouguereau copied earlier painters. Painting, like everything else, was not created by parthenogenesis. Only if you conquer the knowledge of past and add your own knowledge, can you make steps forward. The great Academic masters knew perfectly the techniques of the masters of past. With the accumulated knowledge, they created an avalanche of new themes and masterpieces.

Soon after his death early 20ieth century, the works of Bouguereau fell very low in the stock market of art. When however, the American museums bought most of his masterpieces at very low prices, their value rose again sharply, and now they are estimated at millions of dollars.

Good or bad art

Good or bad Art

After prevailing in the early 20^th century, modernist painters have started oppressing the traditional artists for the way they expressed their art. Realism was actually banned from fine art institutes all over the world. Although art museums exhibited the realistic art of past centuries, they stubbornly refused to exhibit the works of world class contemporary realist artists, and ignored them without any excuse. At the same time they amply allowed Perceptual artists to exhibit their constructions, irrespective of poor quality, or lack of grace and meaning.

It is true that most of the modern works of art can not reach the height of the term “art”. It doesn’t mean of course that they can not create modern art, or even exhibit it. For four generations modernist artists and fine art college professors have been controlling all the major art museums, and galleries. They have also controlled all the fine art schools and the newspaper art reviews. They have been taking state subsidies and their art brochures have become school art books. Little children at the kindergarten are discouraged from painting realistically .When they grow, they are derided because they waste their time, and claim that anybody can paint a realistic work of art. Their teachers replace pencils with paper, buttons, glue and magazines and ask them to make collage instead.

Art professors with a realistic inclination have been dismissed from their posts in art schools and this nasty climate got worse in the midst of the 20ieth century. Very few art organizations managed to rescue these “heretic” realistic viewpoints. Ever since this cyclone of modern art has made its cycle without achieving its goals, that is its acceptance by the public, it gave place to a more tolerant behaviour. Very few heroic artists preserved the secrets of the great art of the past and started coming back dynamically with the love and encouragement of the art public and claimed the place in art that belongs to them. As oppression recedes, that doesn’t mean they will become oppressors themselves, since it is the public who will decide by themselves. The road ahead of them is still a long way off , but the truth and beauty of realistic art, thanks to the web that brings art into every house so easily, will bring about an inevitable comparison between them and it is true beyond any doubt that they will prevail.

Καλή ή κακή Τέχνη

Καλή ή κακή Τέχνη Μετά την επικράτηση της μοντέρνας τέχνης στις αρχές του 20^ου αιώνα ,οι μοντερνιστές ζωγράφοι άρχισαν να καταπιέζουν τους παραδοσιακούς για τον τρόπο με τον οποίο εκφράζονταν καλλιτεχνικά. Ο ρεαλισμός απαγορεύτηκε ουσιαστικά στις σχολές καλών τεχνών σε όλο τον κόσμο. Ενώ τα μουσεία εκθέτουν έργα ρεαλιστικής τέχνης περασμένων αιώνων, απαγορεύουν πεισματικά σε ζωντανούς ρεαλιστές ζωγράφους να εκθέσουν και τους αγνοούν χαρακτηριστικά, ενώ δίνεται άπλετος χώρος για έργα ζωγράφων με εννοιολογικές κατασκευές ,ανεξάρτητα αν τους λείπουν η ικανότητα ,το νόημα και η χάρη.

Δεν είναι αλήθεια ότι τα περισσότερα έργα μοντέρνας και μεταμοντέρνας τέχνης φτάνουν στο ύψος του όρου «τέχνη». Δεν σημαίνει βέβαια ότι απαγορεύεται να δημιουργούν μοντέρνα τέχνη, ή και να εκθέτουν.

Για τέσσερεις γενεές οι μοντερνιστές ιδεολόγοι ελέγχουν τα μεγαλύτερα μουσεία ,καθώς και τους εκθεσιακούς χώρους. Ακόμη ελέγχουν όλα τα κολέγια, τα τμήματα τέχνης, και τις δημοσιογραφικές κριτικές. Παίρνουν όλες τις κυβερνητικές επιχορηγήσεις και τα φυλλάδια τους γίνονται διδακτικά βιβλία για τα γυμνάσια. Τα μικρά παιδιά στα νηπιαγωγεία αποθαρρύνονται από το να ζωγραφίζουν ρεαλιστικά. Όταν μεγαλώσουν χλευάζονται γιατί λένε ότι σπαταλούν το χρόνο τους, και ισχυρίζονται ότι ο καθένας μπορεί να κάνει ένα ρεαλιστικό έργο. Οι δάσκαλοι αντικαθιστούν τα μολύβια με χαρτί, κουμπιά, κόλλα και περιοδικά για να κάνουν κολλάζ. Καθηγητές με ρεαλιστικές ανησυχίες εκδιώχτηκαν από τις σχολές τους και αυτό το κλίμα αναπτύχτηκε μετά το μέσο του 20^ου αιώνα.

Ελάχιστοι οργανισμοί κατάφεραν να διασώσουν τις «αιρετικές» ρεαλιστικές απόψεις. Αφού η λαίλαπα της αντιτέχνης έκανε το κύκλο της χωρίς να πετύχει τα αναμενόμενα, δηλαδή την αποδοχή της τέχνης τους από το ευρύ κοινό, έδωσε τη θέση της σε πιο ανεκτική συμπεριφορά καθώς οι λίγοι ηρωικοί καλλιτέχνες που διέσωσαν τα μυστικά της μεγάλης τέχνης του παρελθόντος άρχιζαν να επανέρχονται δυναμικά και με τη στήριξη και αγάπη του κοινού, να διεκδικούν τη θέση που τους ανήκει. Καθώς η καταπίεση περιορίζεται δεν θα χρειαστεί να γίνουν οι ίδιοι καταπιεστές ,αφού το κοινό θα συγκρίνει και θα αποφασίζει από μόνο του. Ο δρόμος μπροστά ακόμη φαντάζει μακρύς, αλλά η αλήθεια και η ομορφιά, δίδυμες αδελφές, χάριν του διαδικτύου που φέρνει την τέχνη σε κάθε σπίτι και τη σύγκριση αναπόφευκτη, είναι βέβαιο ότι θα επικρατήσουν.

MODERN ART

Modern Art

Art exists ever since people populated earth. It is created by a man, it influences us, and moves us as we feel and see the beauty depicted by the artist who expresses his feelings using his imagination. Through the huge development in technologies and social changes that took part in the 19^th century, modern art flourished during this period, and sparkled the creation of modern art movements such as cubism, abstract expressionism and Surrealism, to mention but a few of the most important art movements. The artist of modern art learns from himself and doesn’t need a special training, but creates through his experience and imagination. Modern art plays an important role in man’s life, in history, since it doesn’t only give us inspiration, but the freedom to express ourselves through the use of different means.

Parallel to the scientific, technological and social innovations, art has developed numerous new techniques. It is worth mentioning some of the –isms, expressionism, cubism, constructivism and surrealism. Modern art hasn’t a specific root, but it is generally accepted that it initiated between the 18^th and 19^th century inspired by the French Revolution. In its broader sense it also contains ability and creative imagination in a musical, literary and visual environment. It offers the people who create it and the community of people who watch it, experience that could be aesthetic, sentimental and mental, or a combination of any of these properties. Modern Art doesn’t follow any traditional rule. In fact Modern Art breaks this barrier. Van Gogh for example painted a field blue and the trees yellow. However modernist artists work with harmony ( an impression of unity, and arrangement of related objects and ideas).People find it difficult to correlate a Picasso or Kandisnky with Michael Angelo. With Modern Art you may ask yourself “what is it?”. By reading the title of the artwork you may get your answer. The medium the artist uses has an impact on his style. Eastern artists did not pay much attention to perspective, whereas western artists did. The aim of modern artists is to depict their themes in a more abstract way, using feelings and imagination to create their masterpieces. Sometimes we might interpret a modern artwork in a different way, something that is the beauty of this art and depends on how an art lover sees it