A Pioneering Spirit In American Art

The term American art describes the varied expressions of artistic endeavor from the earliest inhabitants of North America to the contemporary works of artists across the continent. This vast geographic region encompasses Native North American art, Central and South American art, and the complex web of contemporary visual expressions. The roots of American art can be traced to the first people to settle in the Americas, probably around 15,000 BC, who developed distinct cultural traditions and artistic vocabularies.

Early

Artists from the Ashcan school and New York’s Harlem Renaissance helped to redefine the style of American art. Their innovative use of mixed media included newsprint, photographs, and discarded objects. Known as the Harlem Renaissance, artists such as Aaron Douglas, James VanDerZee, and Augusta Savage represented African-American culture in their work. Similarly, the modernist movement in the 1960s was centered around artists such as Andy Warhol, Larry Rivers, and Roy Lichtenstein, who recreated images and objects from American pop culture.

In the late 19th century, American settlers began traveling westward. Moreover, they continued to import European art, and the richer classes continued to do so. Meanwhile, the younger artists were educated in Europe and brought with them seeds of rebellion and innovation. Moreover, these painters reflected the cosmopolitan attitude of the period. While many artists in this period still reflect the influence of European art, they also produced new styles and approaches to art.

Influence

The influence of modern European art on American painting has long been debated. Modernists are usually associated with French art. However, there are also influences from the past. Abstract expressionists like Jackson Pollock were influenced by Surrealism, and the influence of the French movement on American art goes back to the beginning of the 20th century. However, American artists like Andrew Wyeth and Robert Motherwell were more closely associated with the Realist movement.

Mexican artists were the first to use their artistic skills to protest racial injustice. Many of these works reflected racial injustice, such as a woman shot in the head, bound, and stripped. This paved the way for American artists to use their art to push for social change. Artists like Charles White and Hale Woodruff, who apprenticed with Diego Rivera, used their art to agitate for change.

Influence after World War II

Artists’ contributions to the war effort were widespread, and many were commissioned by newspapers and magazines to encourage war bond purchases. Throughout the decade, civilian artists like Norman Rockwell and Ben Shahn produced hundreds of millions of prints and posters depicting the devastation that would result if the Axis won the war. The political impact of such images helped reinforce the national identity as patriotic, democratic, and virtuous.

After World War II, the United States began to develop a diverse artistic scene. Many European artists moved to New York, where the burgeoning avant-garde was fostering an innovative attitude. This group pushed the definition of art in the United States, and also touched off a broader movement known as Abstract Expressionism. While the war affected many aspects of American art, the influx of European artists in New York City reshaped the landscape of American art.

Pioneering spirit

Spaceworks Tacoma is proud to announce a new exhibition entitled “A Pioneering Spirit in American Art.” Featuring written biographies and larger-than-life portraits, the exhibit highlights the experiences and challenges of African American pioneers. Despite the odds against them, these men and women persevered and sought freedom – and encouraged one of today’s most innovative plein air painters – Dionne Bonner.

Georgiana Wilkinson, a founder of the London Spiritualist Alliance, died at age 50. She had plans to create a society of spirit artists to help reduce prejudices against Spiritualism. She was a contemporary of Anna Howitt Watts and Elizabeth Wilkinson and a relative of Barbara Honywood and Alice Pery. Her drawings depicted a broad spectrum of emotions – from pain to joy.

Symbolism

The term Symbolism began as a literary idea and soon spread across Europe and North America. Symbolism was popularized by artists like Edvard Munch, who embraced the style while living in Paris. The Symbolists rejected the traditional rules of Naturalism and embraced an aesthetic of personal expressivity. Many of their works focused on themes such as illness, loneliness, and the psychological suffering that accompanied love and relationships. Today, Symbolism is a term that describes a type of modern psychic life that embodies an artistic approach to reality and inner subjectivity.

Native Americans used symbolic images to express different perspectives of life. These images often have multiple meanings, ranging from explaining how the sun rises in the East to how the sun sets in the West. Some of the most prominent symbols are derived from American Indian storytelling and foundational legends. Symbols can have multiple meanings, like the arrowhead, which represents alertness. Other symbols are derived from a celestial body, hallowed animal, or natural event.

Styles

Modern trends in American art were spurred by the Armory Show and the School of Paris, and many artists rejected these influences to produce their own unique styles. Artists such as Jasper Johns and Robert Rauschenberg were renowned for using discarded objects and newsprint to create their work. Many other artists of the period embraced academic realism. Artists such as Andy Warhol, Larry Rivers, and Roy Lichtenstein drew on images and everyday objects from American popular culture.

Early paintings focusing on the landscape of the Great West emphasized the vastness of the land and the cultures of the native people who lived in it. Artists such as George Catlin and William Michael Harnett painted these landscapes as truthfully as possible to depict the culture and history of the native people. This style was soon eclipsed by American Impressionism, but it is still considered the first truly American art style. This period also saw the development of American art museums, as well as the birth of the modern era.