Robert Rauschenberg And John Cage

This essay will demonstrate how two revolutionary artists, Marcel Duchamp and John Cage still play a significant role in contemporary art practice and theory today.

The transition between the 19th and 20th century has brought further development of modernistic ideas, concepts and techniques in art. Inspired by Cezanne’s idea, saying that all nature objects can be illustrated with just three geometrical figures: cube, sphere and cone, Pablo Picasso created his first paintings, which became the icons of modern art and cubism movement in

Milton Babbitt and John Cage were both composers who played pivotal roles in the post-World War II Avant Garde music scene and in the pioneering of electronic music. Both composers found their roots and were greatly influenced by German-Jewish composer Arnold Schoenberg, however they both adopted different viewpoints on the relationship between a composer and their audience . Babbitt believed that a composer or creator did not have an obligation to please his or her audience, and that his pieces were intended mostly for professionals capable of understanding the context and intention of his music. Cage on the other hand granted his audience more power and influence, believing that music was a platform on which audiences could utilize their creativity to adopt new ways of perceiving and being aware of the world around them. These stances, as well as the different techniques and methodologies of the composers pitted them on somewhat of a spectrum, with Babbitt and his systematic, modernist ideas that were largely based in the music schools of academic institutions on one side and Cage, with his uncontrollable, radical combinations of Avant Garde sounds on the other side. These ideas on audience construction and relations were also visible in rock music of the 1960’s, particularly in compositions of artists such as Jimi Hendrix and Bob Dylan.

Overall, the ideologies discussed within the articles Written In Blood: 20th Century Art by Stephanie Dudek and Estrangement As A Motif In Modern Painting by John Adkins Richardson address similarities and differences from various standpoints. Modernistic ideologies towards social, cultural and technological changes of the 20th century are demonstrated in both articles. The article by Stephanie Dudek emphasizes on the employment of radical and transgressive values by modern artists within their work to target cultural, and artistic principles that have persisted over many generations leading to a transformation within the subject of art (Dudek 105). Furthermore, modern art set out to obtain new visions of reality as witnessed within the Cubist

Creativity, the creative expressions in various forms of art and in new ideas, as well as the creative production of scientific and technological change, is what has shaped and influenced the world’s history

Before the 19th century, artists mainly made artwork for the wealthy people and the religious groups. They were controlled by the academy and painted in a way that mainstream society recognized. Many of their paintings depicted scenes of mythology and church. However in the 19th century, industrialization brought many new technologies to ordinary people, making the impossible possible. Many artists began to create artworks to explore the concept of symbolism. Many of their subjects were daily things such as ordinary people, normal places and the things they had direct experience on. They challenged the traditional concept that artists must depict realistic worlds. Instead, they used a wide range of colors, materials and techniques to

Much of the passion for a modernist change in art can be seen to arise from a need to compensate for new conditions in modern experience.

An act of additive subtraction, this erasure can never be viewed entirely as destruction or negation, but rather as a kind of “reverse” palimpsest. Art critic Calvin Tomkins describes Rauschenberg’s process by not being just interested in the effect of deleting certain lines, but by erasing the whole thing. Rauschenberg created a destructive act, a kind of one-upmansup, a playful action of admiration. Erased de Kooning Drawing stayed in Rauschenberg’s studios for many years on display until it was eventually sold to SFMOMA in 1998. Remaining very personal to Rauschenberg, this drawing tells the story of the artist’s career as it was extensively exhibited and captured the artist’s attitude and

The mistrust of the world which is at the center of modernism can be attributed to the world wars and the psychological effect that it had on the individual. The horrors and violence altered public perceptions of life, a change that is evident within writers of the time period. The focus of writing shifted from the outward world to inner thoughts and feelings and overall representation of an individual’s stream of consciousness which are themes associated with modern text. In “Impact of Modernism”, focuses on the idea that world needed new outlets for expression and in finding them rejected the tradition that was already there with the quote, “Many modernists believed that by rejecting tradition they could discover radically new ways of making art.” (Impact) .The world no longer had the beauty it once did so a a discovery of new arts were needed. The mind of an individual became that new found inspiration and beauty that modern writers needed and for that reason it was one of the main focuses of modern

As science was evolving, art and architecture were too forming new ideas and styles. Starting with Einstein, Newton, and Heisenberg- in regard to quantum physics and leaping into architectural advances, it is agreed that this was a revolutionary time for all who lived in this era. That being said, Cubism, Futurism, and Fauvism are important styles in modernistic art. Whether it is literature, poetry, song, or dance, these principles helped to shape the future and individual approach to create our own perspective. The abstract styles discussed, paved the way for Nonobjective art to make its mark on humanity and to make us feel and see uniquely. Not to mention, architecture and the International style that later developed, teaching us modern design. The international style gave us unique structures, distinctly showcasing new synthetic materials, floor plans, and roofs. As one can see, modernistic art provides just as an important part of our everyday life as

At the same time, Baroque has influenced not every medium of art in the works of contemporary artists of the 21st century. Such elements as sculpture, architecture, and music have been hardly influenced by the inspirations of the previous centuries. Indeed, the style that has emerged during the period of discoveries in new sciences, exploration of new lands, increased trade and the reformation of church, could barely provide any solutions for artists born three centuries later, especially in those mediums of art, where the reference for the past signifies of the regression of an art element development.

In 1953, Robert Rauschenberg had the idea of adding drawing to his All White Series. However, drawing on these paintings, or anywhere, would defeat the purpose of this series, and so he came to the conclusion that the only way he could achieve this would be through erasure. He began experimenting with his own drawings, but still being a young artist it he didn’t think it would be considered art. For his idea to work, he thought, it had to be art that he erased. Having admiration and respect for artist Willem de Kooning, Rauschenberg decided to buy a bottle of Jack Daniels, and go to his house. Rauschenberg explained to de Kooning his idea, and asked if he could use a drawing of his. Reluctant, de Kooning agreed, only because he understood the idea. After looking through his portfolios, de Kooning handed Rauschenberg a drawing that he would miss, and that was almost impossible to erase. A month later, Rauschenberg successfully erased de Kooning’s drawing, and with the help of Jasper Johns, titled the piece in ink, and framed it. Robert Rauschenberg’s Erased de Kooning Drawing can be seen as either a minimalist piece or conceptual piece. Through a clearer understanding of both movements, the aim of this essay is to show how this piece could be seen as a minimal piece or a conceptual piece, and to see which movement it leans more towards.

Art overall is created and adored by numerous amount of people for many reasons, such as amplifying shared common visual language. The word art often branches into many different movements and components. Modern art or Contemporary art is one those components; this specific genre began mainly in the 1860’s to the 1970’s. During, this time period artists began throwing aside their own beliefs in a spirit of experimentation and the bringing of new ideas. The purpose of Modern art is to beautify one’s surroundings with intrigue, its often very diverse and cannot be easily defined through a list of visual characteristics, artistic themes or cultural concern. Moreover, Modern art is often hard to understand by people because, unlike Egyptian tomb paintings or Greek sculptures, it speaks to the dramatic social, political and technological changes of the last 50-60 years, and questions many of society’s values and assumptions. Also, Modern artists known for incorporating a great deal of abstraction into their works and representational forms to convey their ideas more elaborately; Rene Magritte is one of those artists.

The beginning of 20th century was a time of drastic change. New developments were made in the arenas of the classical sciences, social science, psychology and philosophy - each challenging traditional thought. Industrialization and the introduction of many new, challenging concepts in the fields of politics as well as the development of new technologies gave artist more freedom to innovate and break the rules of traditional art. By using new materials, techniques and the new approach artists were pushing boundaries of what has previously been accepted art practice in order to invent radically new styles.

“Modern painting, breaking through old conversation, has released countless suggestions which are still waiting to be used by the practical world.”(Gropius) The birth of modernism and modern art goes back to the Industrial Revolution, a period that lasted from the 18th to the 19th century, in which rapid changes in manufacturing, transportation, and technology profoundly affected the social, economic, and cultural conditions of life in Western Europe, North America, and eventually the world. Before the 19th century, artists created art pieces for wealthy people and institution places like the church where they can create art works about storytelling of religious or mythological scenes . These arts were there to instruct the viewers.However, this changed when during the 19th century many artists began to create works that were about people, places, or ideas that interested them, and of which they had direct experience. With the popularization of the idea of a subconscious mind, many artists began exploring dreams, symbolism, and personal iconography as avenues for the depiction of their subjective experiences.Challenging the notion that art must realistically depict the world, some artists experimented with the expressive use of color, non-traditional materials, and new techniques and mediums.