“Your Story of Art” - timeline

Josh Manning

History Painting - Late 18th Century

It is no surprise that artists of the late 18th century felt the need to document the great historical figures and events that led to the birth of the nation. Many of the paintings that came from this time were portraits of great leaders of the young nation and decisive battles of the Revolution.

John Trumbull

• Served as an aide to George Washington during the War

(http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/607212/John-Trumbull)

• His rendition of the signing of the Declaration of Independence is seen on the back of the two dollar bill.

John Trumbull

Gilbert Stuart

• Trained by the same teacher as Trumbull

• Painted portraits of 6 US presidents (Washington, Jefferson, Madison, Monroe, John Adams, and John Quincy Adams), including the Washington portrait on the dollar bill

(http://www.gilbertstuartmuseum.com/gilbertstuart.htm)

Hudson River School - Early/Mid 19th Century

The Hudson River School was one of the very first American art movements. According to American Art Gallery, the Hudson River School artists strove to reflect “discovery, exploration, and settlement” in their paintings. These themes were very much prominent during this time, as the Louisiana Purchase opened up vast areas of new territory in 1803. Their scenes were idyllic, American landscapes “where human beings and nature coexist peacefully.” Hudson River School artists believed their art could help lead toward a distinct American culture as well as a revitalization of spirit and faith.

Sources: http://americanartgallery.org/exhibit/readmore/id/8; http://www.thomascole.org/learn-menu/>.

Thomas Cole

• The forefather of this movement

• Although the actual “school,” or group of artists came after Cole’s death in 1848, his work was very influential for his followers. (http://americanartgallery.org/exhibit/readmore/id/8)

Thomas Cole

Frederic Edwin Church

• Thomas Cole’s pupil

• Thousands of people would line up just to see his paintings (http://americanartgallery.org/exhibit/readmore/id/8)

Frederic Edwin Church

Tonalism - 1880s

Following the Hudson River School’s idyllic, bright landscapes came the more moody and atmospheric landscapes of Tonalism. Tonalists used muted neutral or cool colors, with one overriding tone. They painted in layers to give the impression of looking through a mist, smoke, or fog. Most tonalist paintings are of very simple scenes at dusk or dawn, as well as ones with bright moonlight.

Source: http://www.askart.com/AskART/interest/Tonalism_1.aspx?id=104

George Inness

• One of the best and most famous Tonalists

• Believed that “The true use of art is, first, to cultivate the artist's own spiritual nature.” (http://www.georgeinness.org/biography.html )

James McNeill Whistler

• Another very famous Tonalist

• “Whistler’s Mother” is considered an American Icon and has been parodied and mentioned in many TV shows, songs, and movies. (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whistler's_Mother )

James McNeill Whistler

American Impressionism- 1890s

Shortly after the Civil War, many wealthy Americans traveled to Europe, where they witnessed the early movement of the French Impressionists. Young American artists had also traveled to Europe to study painting in hopes of gaining more work. Eventually, Impressionism was brought to America in a similar fashion to what was seen in France. They used “natural light, rapid brushwork, and a high-keyed palette” to paint scenes of everyday life.

Source: http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/aimp/hd_aimp.htm

Mary Cassatt

• In 1877, she was asked by Degas to join the Impressionists, the only American to be part of that group

• Many of her paintings feature a scene of a mother and child (http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/cast/hd_cast.htm)

William Merritt Chase • Painted many scenes of New York parks (http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/chas/hd_chas.htm)

• Established the Chase School in 1896, which is now the Parsons School of Design in New York

(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Merritt_Chase)

Realism/Social Realism- Turn of 20th Century

A reaction against American Impressionism, Realists sought to show the actuality of modern city life. Often focusing on working-class or poverty stricken subjects, the Realists showed a grittiness in their work through dark colors and a rough style. The main group of Realist artists were known as the Ashcan School and their goal was to expose social, unpleasant truths that had been ignored by previous artists.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ashcan_School

Robert Henri • A former impressionist, he was one of the creators of the Ashcan School

movement• He thought art should be more like journalism and “wanted paint to be as

real as mud, as the clods of horse**** and snow, that froze on Broadway in the winter.”

(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ashcan_School) and (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Henri)

George Bellows • Called “one of the country’s most celebrated 20th-century artists” by the

Columbus Museum of Art.

• Known for his violent boxing scenes

American Modernism- Early 20th Century

American Modernism was brought to the forefront of the American art scene at the Armory show of 1913. There, over a thousand works by hundreds of artists were seen by 75,000+ visitors. Consisting of many types of art, such as Cubism, Fauvism, Dadaism, etc., the Modernist movement wanted to go against the conventions of what art was at the time. “Modernists reacted by abandoning intellect for intuition and depicting the world as they perceived it behind the veils of physical appearance.”

Source: http://www.askart.com/AskART/interest/Modernism_1.aspx?id=22

Georgia O’Keeffe • Known for her almost abstract paintings of flower petals

• Has been called the Mother of American Modernism

Aaron Douglas • African-American artist who was a big presence during the Harlem Renaissance

• Considered to be the "Father of Black American Art"

Abstract Expressionism- 1940s

The art movement that shifted the center of the art world from Paris to New York was Abstract Expressionism. A continuation of the breaking of conventions brought about during the Modernist movement, Abstract Expressionism focused on the emotions and mental state within the artist, not what they saw around them. Two specific forms of Abstract Expressionistic art are Action Painting and Color Fields.

Source: http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/abex/hd_abex.htm

Franz Kline • Action painter who primarily worked without color, painting both the black and

white portions.

• Once described one of his pieces as “A four by five inch black drawing of a rocking chair … loomed in gigantic black strokes which eradicated any image, the strokes expanding as entities in themselves, unrelated to any entity but that of their own existence.”

(http://www.moma.org/learn/moma_learning/franz-kline-chief-1950)

Mark Tobey • Abstract Expressionist who had influence on and from Jackson Pollack.

• In 1958, he won the international painting prize at the Venice Biennale, a major art exhibition in Venice. He was the first American to win the award since James McNeill Whistler in 1895.

(http://bahai-library.com/bafa/t/tobey.htm)

Pop Art- 1950s

A reaction against Abstract Expressionism, Pop Artists tried to bring art back to the real world. They did this by taking images and objects that were pervasive in pop culture and making them the focus of their work. These objects were often portrayed in humorous or satirical ways that made a statement about society. Pop artists often worked in multi-media and collages.

Source: http://www.artyfactory.com/art_appreciation/art_movements/pop_art.htm

Roy Lichtenstein • Took panels from comic-strips and comic-books, reworked them and presented

them on a large scale.

• His work often showed, and brought attention to, the way that mass-media portrayed his subjects.

(http://www.artyfactory.com/art_appreciation/art_movements/pop_art.htm)

Claes Oldenburg• Pop Art sculptor that would build huge versions of everyday objects.

• One of his major pieces was The Store, a fake store that was full of painted sculptures of commercial products, such as food and clothing.

(http://www.artyfactory.com/art_appreciation/art_movements/pop_art.htm)

30 ft tall and 50 ft long(http://oldenburgvanbruggen.com/largescaleprojects/spoonbridge-05.htm)

39 ft tall and 19 ft in diameter(http://oldenburgvanbruggen.com/largescaleprojects/droppedcone-01.htm)

Claes Oldenburg

Minimalism- 1960s

Minimalism was another reaction against Abstract Expressionism. Minimalists felt “Action painting was too personal and insubstantial” and wanted their art to refer only to itself. To do this, they reduced their art to the smallest amount of colors and lines. Minimalists downplayed the idea of the creator of a piece, feeling that anonymity allowed for a response from the viewer that was purely visual and self-referential. Minimalist pieces are often installations.

Source: http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/384056/minimalism

John McCracken• Known for his slab “planks” that would lean against the wall. At the time, some

people believed he had created the Monolith in 2001: A Space Odyssey, which looks similar to his pieces.

• "My tendency is to reduce or develop everything to 'single things' — things which refer to nothing outside [themselves] but which at the same time possibly refer, or relate, to everything."

(http://www.latimes.com/news/obituaries/la-me-john-mccracken-20110410,0,179396.story)

Agnes Martin• Considered a Minimalist but she referred to herself as an Abstract Expressionist

• In 1998, she won the National Endowment for the Arts’ National Medal of Arts• Her painting, Loving Love, sold for nearly $3 million in 2007.

(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agnes_Martin)

Conceptualism- 1960s

Although Conceptual art originated in the early 20th Century, with Duchamp, it did not become a movement until the 60s and 70s. Conceptualism is controversial since it goes against even what many freethinking people would term as art. The medium for a Conceptualist is not a canvas, but an idea. To the Conceptualist, it is the development of the idea that is the art, not necessarily the finished product.

Source: http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/131001/conceptual-art

Robert Rauschenberg

• Normally associated with the early Pop Art movement, Rauschenberg dabbled in Conceptual Art before it became a widespread movement.

• In 1953, Rauschenberg obtained a drawing from de Kooning, which he then took two months to nearly completely erase with different types of erasers. He then added a frame and presented his work as Erased de Kooning Drawing.

• In 1961, Rauschenberg was asked to create a portrait of gallery owner Iris Clert for an exhibition at her gallery. Rauschenberg submitted a telegram reading “This is a portrait of Iris Clert if I say so.”

(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Rauschenberg) and (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erased_de_Kooning_Drawing)

Douglas Huebler• Taught art at Harvard and was the dean of the California Institute of the Arts

Some of Huebler’s work:• Duration Piece #5 - A series of ten photos that he took everytime he heard a bird call.• A series of photos that he took every two minutes on a 24 minute drive down a road.• Variable Piece #34 – Took photographs of forty people the instant after he told them that

they had a beautiful face.• Asked museum guests to write down a secret which he then complied into a book• Duration Piece #7 – 15 photos taken one per minute of “11 geese and an occasional

pigeon.” • Variable Piece #70 – where he planned "to photographically document the existence of

everyone alive." • Randomly drew a hexagon on a map of a city in Massachusetts then took a photo at each

of the six points.

(en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conceptual_art), (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Douglas_Huebler), (http://artintelligence.net/review/?p=706) and (http://www.nytimes.com/1997/07/17/arts/douglas-huebler-72-conceptual-artist.html)