Monday Morning Museum: Photorealism

Photorealism – From the 1960s to the 1970s

“Photorealism is the genre of painting based on using cameras and photographs to gather visual information and then from this creating a painting that appears to be photographic. The term is primarily applied to paintings from the United States art movement that began in the late 1960s and early 1970s.” – Wikipedia.org

In addition to Richard Estes (see art example below), others practitioners of Photorealism are Chuck Close and Audrey Flack.

Paris Street Scene, 1972 by Richard Estes (1932-Present)

Last Monday’s Art – Op Art
Next Monday’s Art – Pointillism

Top of post: “Photorealism” graphic created by Adrean Darce Brent
Below: “Monday Morning Museum” logo created by Adrean Darce Brent

Monday Morning Museum: Op Art

Op Art – From the 1950s to the 1960s

Op art, also known as optical art, is a style of visual art that makes use of optical illusions.

"Optical art is a method of painting concerning the interaction between illusion and picture plane, between understanding and seeing." Op art works are abstract, with many of the better known pieces made in black and white. When the viewer looks at them, the impression is given of movement, hidden images, flashing and vibration, patterns, or alternatively, of swelling or warping. – Wikipedia.org

In addition in Victor Vasarely (see art example below), other Op Art artists are Josef Albers, Maurits Cornelis Escher, Bridget Riley, Richard Anuszkiewicz, François Morellet and Jesús-Rafael Soto.

Zebegen by Victor Vasarely (1908-1997)

Last Monday’s Art – Neo-Plasticism
Next Monday’s Art – Photorealism

Top of post: “Op Art” graphic created by Adrean Darce Brent
Below: “Monday Morning Museum” logo created by Adrean Darce Brent

Monday Morning Museum: Neo-Plasticism

Neo-Plasticism – Holland from 1920 to 1940

De Stijl (/də ˈstaɪl/; Dutch pronunciation: [də ˈstɛil]), Dutch for "The Style", also known as neoplasticism, was a Dutch artistic movement founded in 1917. In a narrower sense, the term De Stijl is used to refer to a body of work from 1917 to 1931 founded in the Netherlands. De Stijl is also the name of a journal that was published by the Dutch painter, designer, writer, and critic Theo van Doesburg (1883–1931), propagating the group's theories. – Wikipedia.org

In addition to Theo Van Doesburg (see art example below), other practitioners of Neo-Plasticism are Piet Mondrian, Vilmos Huszar, Jean Gorin, Charmion von Wiegand and Ilya Bolotowsky.

Peinture Pure, 1920 by Theo Van Doesburg (1883-1931)

Réalisée en 1920, quand Mondrian publie Le Néoplasticisme chez Léonce Rosenberg à Paris – et que Van Doesburg choisit le pseudonyme de I.K. Bonset pour éditer la revue dada Mécano (1920-1927) –, Peinture pure (cat. rais. no 652) est exemplaire de l’évolution du système plastique globalisant de Van Doesburg, appliqué à toutes les pratiques artistiques : peinture, architecture, arts décoratifs et typographie. . . . Le titre Décomposition sous lequel Peinture pure a été exposée dans les années 1920 (La Haye, « La Section d’Or », 11 juillet-1er août 1920) avant de prendre son nom actuel à l’exposition du Salon des Indépendants à Paris, en 1929, est significatif des deux formules d’« élémentarisation » et d’« intégration », élaborées par De Stijl. Le terme d’élémentarisation signifie décomposition de la forme en une série de composantes réduites à quelques éléments, et celui d’intégration désigne l’articulation de ces éléments entre eux en un tout indivisible et non hiérarchique. Avec Peinture pure, Van Doesburg considérait qu’il avait atteint son but d’« une composition entièrement plate dans laquelle le point central est en dehors de la peinture ». Proche d’une autre peinture modulaire de 1920, Composition XX (Madrid, Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza), elle s’en distingue par la présence, dans le coin gauche de la toile, d’un grand carré d’un blanc vibrant, qui contredit ironiquement le caractère mécaniquement répétitif de la trame picturale. – Centre Georges Pompidou

Approximate translation:

Made in 1920, when Mondrian published Le Néoplasticisme (The Neoplasticism) at Léonce Rosenberg in Paris - and that Van Doesburg chose the pseudonym I.K. Bonset to edit the dada magazine Mécano (Mechanic) (1920-1927) - Peinture pure (Pure Painting) (cat. rais. No. 652) is an example of the evolution of the plastic holistic system of Van Doesburg, applied to all artistic practices: painting, architecture, decorative arts and typography. . . . The title Décomposition (Decomposition) under which Peinture pure (Pure Painting) was exhibited in the 1920s (The Hague, "The Golden Section", 11 July-1 August 1920) before taking its current name to the exhibition of the Salon des Indépendants (Show of the Independents) in Paris, in 1929, is significant of the two forms of "elementarisation" and of "integration", developed by De Stijl. The term elementarisation refers to decomposition in the form of a series of components reduced to a few elements, and the integration refers to the articulation of these elements together indivisible and non-hierarchical. With Peinture pure (Painting Pure), Van Doesburg believed he had achieved his goal of "a fully flat composition in which the focus is outside the painting". Close to another modular painting of 1920, Composition XX (Madrid, Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza), it is distinguished by the presence, in the left corner of the canvas, of a large square of vibrant white, which ironically contradicts the mechanically repetitive nature of the pictorial frame.

Last Monday’s Art – Neoclassicism
Next Monday’s Art – Op Art

Top of post: “Neo-Plasticism” graphic created by Adrean Darce Brent
Below: “Monday Morning Museum” logo created by Adrean Darce Brent

Monday Morning Museum: Neoclassicism

Neoclassicism – Mid-Eighteenth Century to Early-Nineteenth Century

Neoclassicism (from Greek νέος neos, Latin classicus and Greek -ισμός ismos) is the name given to Western movements in the decorative and visual arts, literature, theatre, music, and architecture that draw inspiration from the "classical" art and culture of Ancient Greece or Ancient Rome. The main Neoclassical movement coincided with the 18th century Age of Enlightenment, and continued into the early 19th century, latterly competing with Romanticism. – Wikipedia.org

In addition to Anton Raphael Mengs (see art example below), other Neoclassicists are Robert Smirke, Robert Adam, Antonio Canova, Jean-Antoine Houdon, Bertel Thorvaldsen, J. A. D. Ingres and Jacques-Louis David.

Giocomo Casanova, 1760 by Anton Raphael Mengs (1728-1779)

Last Monday’s Art – Les Nabis
Next Monday’s Art – Neo-Plasticism

Top of post: “Neoclassicism” graphic created by Adrean Darce Brent
Below: “Monday Morning Museum” logo created by Adrean Darce Brent

Monday Morning Museum: Les Nabis

Les Nabis – 1891 to 1899

Les Nabis (pronounced nah-BEE) were a group of Post-Impressionist avant-garde artists who set the pace for fine arts and graphic arts in France in the 1890s. Initially a group of friends interested in contemporary art and literature, most of them studied at the private art school of Rodolphe Julian (Académie Julian) in Paris in the late 1880s. – Wikipedia.org

In addition to Félix Vallotton (see art example below), other members of Les Nabis are Pierre Bonnard, Ker Xavier Roussel, Maurice Denis and Édouard Vuillard.

The Old Olive Tree, 1922 by Félix Vallotton (1865-1925)

Last Monday’s Art – Minimalism
Next Monday’s Art – Neoclassicism

Top of post: “Les Nabis” graphic created by Adrean Darce Brent
Below: “Monday Morning Museum” logo created by Adrean Darce Brent