Influence of Modern Art

Chapter 13
Influence of Modern Art
The influence of Modern Art
Time of great societal change that forever altered the human
condition.
The first decades of the 20th century
Amidst turbulence of society, graphic design experienced a series
of creative revolutions.
Cubism - 1908-1912 - Europe
Cubism became a catalyst for experiments that pushed art and
design toward geometric abstraction and new approaches to
pictorial space.
Pablo Picasso and Georges Braque
The key concept underlying Cubism is that the essence of an
object can only be captured by showing it from multiple points of
view simultaneously.
Cubism - 1908 - 1912
After Cubism, the world never looked the same again: it was one of the most
influential and revolutionary movements in art.
The Cubist movement in painting was developed by Spaniard, Pablo Picasso and
Frenchman, Georges Braque around 1907 and became a major influence on
Western art. The artists chose to break down the subjects they were painting into
a number of facets, showing several different aspects of one object
simultaneously. The work up to 1912 is known as Analytical Cubism,
concentrating on geometrical forms using subdued colors.
The second phase, known as Synthetic Cubism, used more decorative shapes,
stencilling, collage, and brighter colors. It was then that artists such as Picasso
and Braque started to use pieces of cut-up newspaper in their paintings.
Picasso and Braque
Worked side by side in the same studio
Influenced by earlier works of Cezanne
Were both prolific artists - trying numerous styles and
experiments with structure and color
Much of their work is indistinguishable from the other.
Picasso - early cubist period
Les Demoiselles de Avignon,
1907
Stark representation of women
of the prostitution district of
Paris
Originally not well accepted, but
this is the painting that changed
people’s view of Picasso’s work.
Picasso -1907
Title: “Houses with Trees”
Less emphasis on expression
of emotion
More emphasis on
intellectual experimentation
on structure.
Futurism - Early 20th century
Italian poet, Filippo Marinetti
Published “Manifesto of Futurism in
Paris newspaper
Established futurism as a
revolutionary movement for arts to
test their ideas and forms
http://www.the-artists.org/
MovementView.cfm?id=8A01EE95BBCF-11D4-A93500D0B7069B40
Dada movement - Early 20th century
Dadaism followed Cubism
Was not a typical art movement, but a literary movement that sprang up
in the face of a “world gone mad” during the first world war.
http://www.peak.org/~dadaist/English/Graphics/artists.html
Surrealism - 1924
Roots in Dada of Paris - 1924
Max Ernst (1891 -1976) greatly
influenced visual communications
with major impact on photography
and illustration.
Perfected collage technique still in
use today
From book: Une Semaine De Bonté
Expressionism
Expressionism can be used to describe various art forms.
In its broadest sense, it is used to describe any art that
raises subjective feelings above objective observations.
The style aims to reflect the artist's state of mind rather
than the reality of the external world.
Photography & Modern Movement
Photography invented as a means to better document reality
with greater accuracy than in a painting or illustration.
Bruguiere (1880 - 1945)
Coburn (1882 - 1966)
Concluding thoughts...
Cubism, Futurism, Expressionism, Dada, Surrealism provided
valuable insight into “schools of thought” which allowed artists
the freedom to explore previously unexplored territories in
relation to visual communication.
The impact of these early innovators of graphic design are still
felt today in the 21st century.