Why Is Modern Art Important?

Two sculptures, among others, lie in the outskirts of the Franklin D. Murphy Sculpture Garden at UCLA. One of them, The Walking Man, is a bronze sculpture created by French sculptor Auguste Rodin in 1905. The other, made more than 100 years later, is T.E.U.C.L.A., a large scale steel sculpture made by minimalist sculptor Richard Serra. Although it may seem like these works have more differences than similarities, both emphasize the processes of their creation and are major movements away from the classical tradition of sculpture. However, The Walking Man and T.E.U.C.L.A. also differ in several aspects that reflect their respective artists’ personal portrayals of modern sculpture. These aspects include: mode of production, composition and the arrangement of volumes, the play of light and shadow, and visual experience. Together these elements of formal organization work together to convey meaning in both of these works. Rodin’s deliberate rejection of refinement and disregard for the direct translation of the unformed to formed in The Walking Man represent the process and spontaneity of reality, while Serra’s use of curvature and aperture in T.E.U.C.L.A. models the spaces people move through and the perceptive skills they use in life and nature.

Art, according to Webster's Dictionary, is a human skill of expression of other objects by painting, drawing, and sculpture. People have used art as a form of expression for a long time. From the Mesopotamian era to the Classical Greeks and the present. Art is expressed in many different ways and styles, and is rapidly changing, one style replacing another. Impressionism and Cubism broke away from the traditional style of painting. They were both looking for a new way to express everyday life. Time is an important tool that is used in Cubism as well as Impressionism. This element is expressed in Claude Monet's Sunrise and Pablo Picasso's Man with a Violin in different ways.

Art has been a factor of our life as long as humanity has existed. For thousands of years, art has been created, observed, critiqued, and enjoyed by human beings in many regions across the world. Art aren’t just murals, sculptures, music, books or anything that someone may define as art but more of a bigger picture like if has a deeper meaning such a message or a theme that is looked upon. Art can be viewed at as many different ways in terms of people having different reactions or observing it in a different meaning. Someone could feel that the art work is very extraordinary and unique but someone else can have a different reaction and feel like it is no different than other artworks and have a literalist view upon the art. One art that made

To understand most period and movements in modern art, one must first understand the context in which they occurred. When one looks at the various artistic styles, one will realize how artists react to historical and cultural changes and how artists perceive their relation to society.

I was fortuned to have had parents who had a respect for all kinds of art and approached life with an open mind. Thus being furthered blessed to grow up near a metropolis which possesses a major art museum and galleries showcasing new talent, filling young eyes with wonderment. An art appreciation study early own in life would have been beneficial but alas, I burn with shame as one who falls in the class of “I know what I like” when asked about art. I am all agog for semester’s end to be better equipped to articulate on why I am moved by a particular piece. After listening to the first week lecture and reading the first two chapters of the course text, it was difficult to narrow the subject of my essay to one subject. But, Chapter Ones quotes

There are several historical, economic, and cultural events that caused the people of this time to look at life in a new way, and thus, art to be

So much more can be conveyed in artwork when a finite canvas doesn’t imprison an artist. Pushing the boundaries of artwork from previous time periods allows new artists and graphic designers to experiment with, challenge, and/or destroy the rules of graphic design. This allowed for designs that truly challenge the audience, as well as other designers. Take for example the grunge artwork of David Carson who broke most compositional and legibility rules of graphic design – his style can be summarized by the phrase “expressive deconstruction.” Anything from grunge, to street art, to carving writing into your own body with a knife is considered Contemporary Design. In this world of art no authority can tell you what you’re allowed to do. With the definition of art so stretched, it really gives a lot of freedom to those of the contemporary time period to express a wide range of ideas.

Art has evolved and regenerated itself many times during our human existence. These differences are defined through changes in styles under various theories. During the nineteenth and early twentieth century, a style known as Expressionism became popular. During this movement the artists were trying to use their artwork as a tool of expression toward life. It was mainly dominant in the nonrepresentational arts, such as abstract visual arts and music. It also was probably one of the most difficult movements to understand because the whole point of the piece lay within the artist. Not only was it a movement, it defined the act of art as a whole. From the beginning of time, each work of art, excluding replicas, show a way of expressing

Modern is a term that can hold many different meanings. In order for something to be modern it must be created or inspired by the experiences of living in modernity. A period of social, political, and economic change that began in the eighteenth century. Since the definition of modern is so broad it allows for lots of controversy about whether or not something is necessarily modern. When it comes to modern art this especially is an issue. In most of the worlds eyes modern art is a european practice that came from artists like Van Gogh and his contemporaries. But in reality many other artists and cultures developed their own forms of modern art. Many Native North American artists participated in this movement of modernism, using the same conceptual

Art has been a recurring part of history from the very beginning. As society changes so does the style of art. Each new style is known as a movement and one of the most prominent, long-lasting movements in recent centuries is known as Modernism. Modernism is characterized by its deviation from tradition. People who are a part of this movement found enjoyment in finding new mediums to use, creating art that revolves around feelings and emotions rather than reality. Abstract idealisms of modernism cause its viewers to need to think more critically about the art before them. In past movements, the meaning of the work was obvious as it was created to mimic reality.

Through this course, I have discovered that when an art piece is complete, it’s style, form and content while expressed by the artist, is interpreted by the viewer. The meaning of art to me has changed as I have come to realize that while there are a variety of styles and forms of art that each artist uses, each individual viewer is free to have one’s own opinion and thought about the piece. Not only have I come to learn to appreciate art from a variety of time periods, the meaning of art for me has changed how I view the art I enjoy, as well as how I view the art that I do not adore, but can now appreciate it for it’s cultural or religious significance, for it’s value through the ages, as well as through its use of elements and design. Through this course pieces of work have become more meaningful to me, the concept of art has become more relevant, and my ability to evaluate art has become more

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.

Today, Art has gone through many changes. Abstract art dominates art today shows ambiguous life a man lives, in contrast to the unambiguous art of the past. Modern does not have spirituality and cultural values and beliefs in the past and is now a reflection of a materialistic life of today. Bill Henson, a portrait artist used his 12 year old Olympia as a nude model for his portrait drawing. This brought much controversy that he was exploiting the body of an under - age girl as his own gains. This shows that art is used for popularity and financial gain. The message behind art is to show ideas and ideas that are relevant to society. Art is meant to enliven life and things, though modern art shows more if life’s negativeness. Galleries, parks and museums view to the public with meaningfulness and with the appreciation for art. Art is still effective as hand written material was seen in the walls of Ancient Egypt. Modern art stimulates the thought and fosters greater

“Painting today is pure intuition and luck and taking advantage of what happens when you splash the stuff down. “- Francis Bacon. However when I learnt more about history of art and the way each movement and happenings in the world inspired artist to make new works, I was able to see much more than just a canvas with random paints and sketches. The interesting part about this concept is that each piece of art could be interpreted in many different ways. In contemporary art there isn’t right and wrong, each of us view and find different meanings and connections with artworks.

“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.