Abstract Expressionism


History >> Abstract Expressionism, sometimes called The New York School, originated in New York’s Greenwich Village in the mid forties. The term was first coined by art critic Robert Coates in 1946. Up until this period most American artists were influenced by art movements in Europe. Abstract Expressionism changed that pattern, becoming the first American art movement to have an influence on Europe. It's important to note that major influeces to the movement, most notably Surrealist Max Ernst and De Stijl artist Piet Mondrian, migrated from Europe to New York after World War II. Their desertion from traditional painting inspired the revolutionary philosophy of the Abstract Expressionists. This philosophy is based on the idea of searching for answers to the questions of human existence. It addresses personal psychological battles, the struggle between man and nature, and the pursuit of spiritual comfort. The psychoanalytic theories of Sigmund Freud and Carl Jung, who also greatly influenced the Surrealists, provided the intellectual context in this quest for new subject matter. New York replaced Paris as the center of the art world thanks to Abstract Expressionism, and it held prominence until the 1960's with the emergence of Pop Art, specifically Andy Warhol, Robert Rauschenberg, and Jasper Johns.
 
The Abstract Expressionists Expressionism New York School
 
Style >> Abstract Expressionism emphasized the portrayal of emotions rather than objects. Most painters of the movement preferred large works on canvas, vivid colors, and loose brushwork. It is seen as combining the emotional earnestness and self-expression of the German Expressionists with the anti-figurative aesthetic of the European abstract schools such as the Bauhaus and Futurism. Cubism, specifically Pablo Picasso, was also a major influence with the idea of breaking representational objects down to basic geometrical forms. Abstract Expressionists emphasized the accidents and spontaneity in their work, but usually highly planned their implementation. Mistakes that did happen during the painting process were used to the artist’s advantage. Hans Hoffman and Arshile Gorky were essential in calling attention to the potential for expression in abstraction and the basic physicality of paint. Abstract Expressionism can be broadly divided into two groups: Action Painting and Color Field.
 
Action Painting >> The term "Action Painting" was used for the first time in 1952 by art critic Harold Rosenberg to describe the works of painters Jackson Pollock, Franz Kline and Willem de Kooning. Artists would drip, throw, spatter, and pour paint on to the surface using various tools such as meat basters, pieces of wood, or sticks, along with the more traditional brushes and palette knives. The canvas was seen as an arena, and the process was an epic struggle beween man and material. Painting became an irrational, instinctive and impulsive fragment of existence representing the energy and psyche of the artist. The Action Painting work thus became the form and trace of the living body, conveying intense action and motion. Jackson Pollock would sometimes dress up in different outfits and invite spectators to witness the event.
 

Color Field Painting >> Color-field artists, such as Mark Rothko, Barnett Newman, Helen Frankenthaler, Kenneth Noland, and Clyfford Still, moved toward a more impersonal and intellectual aesthetic. They concentrated on what they considered to be the fundamental formal elements of abstract painting: pure, unmodulated areas of color; flat, two-dimensional space; monumental scale; and the varying shape of the canvas itself. These artists focused on the lyrical effects of large areas of color, often poured or stained onto the canvas. The shades of color were often diluted so as to sink into the canvas. The goal was to eliminate all obstacles between the artist and the idea, and between the idea and the viewer. There is no attempt at representation in the narrative sense; the subject is color.

 
Abstract PAINTING Contemporary MODern Art Expressionism
Abstract PAINTING Contemporary MODern Art Expressionism
Buy It Now: $600.00
Sale Ends: 11h 24m
CHRIS ACTION ART ABSTRACT EXPRESSIONISM RAINBOW SIGNED
CHRIS ACTION ART ABSTRACT EXPRESSIONISM RAINBOW SIGNED
Buy It Now: $21,000,000.00
Sale Ends: 1d 10h
CHRIS ACTION ART ABSTRACT EXPRESSIONISM SIGNED ORANGE
CHRIS ACTION ART ABSTRACT EXPRESSIONISM SIGNED ORANGE
Buy It Now: $21,000,000.00
Sale Ends: 1d 10h 2m
ACTION ART ABSTRACT EXPRESSIONISM SIGNED VALENTINES DAY
ACTION ART ABSTRACT EXPRESSIONISM SIGNED VALENTINES DAY
Buy It Now: $21,000,000.00
Sale Ends: 1d 10h 4m
CHRIS ACTION ART ABSTRACT EXPRESSIONISM SIGNED BLUE NYC
CHRIS ACTION ART ABSTRACT EXPRESSIONISM SIGNED BLUE NYC
Buy It Now: $21,000,000.00
Sale Ends: 1d 10h 7m
CHRIS NYC ACTION ART ABSTRACT EXPRESSIONISM SIGNED FOLK
CHRIS NYC ACTION ART ABSTRACT EXPRESSIONISM SIGNED FOLK
Buy It Now: $21,000,000.00
Sale Ends: 1d 10h 9m
ACTION ART ABSTRACT EXPRESSIONISM GREEN SAINT PATRICKS
ACTION ART ABSTRACT EXPRESSIONISM GREEN SAINT PATRICKS
Buy It Now: $21,000,000.00
Sale Ends: 1d 10h 10m
RIGGS ABSTRACT EXPRESSIONISM SIGNED ACTION ART OUTSIDER
RIGGS ABSTRACT EXPRESSIONISM SIGNED ACTION ART OUTSIDER
Buy It Now: $21,000,000.00
Sale Ends: 1d 11h 48m
Abstract Expressionism Small Painting - C.Poirier
Abstract Expressionism Small Painting - C.Poirier
Price: $29.99 (0 Bids)
Sale Ends: 1d 20h 35m
RIGGS ABSTRACT EXPRESSIONISM SIGNED ACTION ART FRAMED
RIGGS ABSTRACT EXPRESSIONISM SIGNED ACTION ART FRAMED
Buy It Now: $21,000,000.00
Sale Ends: 2d 8h 6m
STORY Original Neo Abstract Expressionism PaintingeBay Giving Works
STORY Original Neo Abstract  Expressionism Painting
Buy It Now: $150.00
Sale Ends: 3d 7h 23m
SECRET GARDEN Original Abstract Expressionism PaintingeBay Giving Works
SECRET GARDEN Original Abstract  Expressionism Painting
Buy It Now: $150.00
Sale Ends: 3d 7h 26m
THE GARDEN Original Abstract Expressionism PaintingeBay Giving Works
THE GARDEN    Original Abstract  Expressionism Painting
Buy It Now: $150.00
Sale Ends: 3d 7h 36m
CORTIJA Original Neo Abstract Expressionism Painting
CORTIJA  Original Neo Abstract  Expressionism Painting
Buy It Now: $150.00
Sale Ends: 3d 10h 8m
MODERN ABSTRACT EXPRESSIONISM OIL PAINTING - MICHIGAN
MODERN ABSTRACT EXPRESSIONISM OIL PAINTING - MICHIGAN
Buy It Now: $200.00
Sale Ends: 5d 9h 46m
David J Buch Abstract Expressionism 1974
David J Buch Abstract Expressionism 1974
Price: $9.99 (0 Bids)
Sale Ends: 5d 16h 53m
David J Buch Abstract Expressionism 1973
David J Buch Abstract Expressionism 1973
Price: $9.99 (0 Bids)
Sale Ends: 5d 16h 58m
David J Buch Abstract Expressionism 1973
David J Buch Abstract Expressionism 1973
Price: $9.99 (0 Bids)
Sale Ends: 5d 17h 13m
CHRIS ACTION ART ABSTRACT EXPRESSIONISM ORIGINAL BLUE
CHRIS ACTION ART ABSTRACT EXPRESSIONISM ORIGINAL BLUE
Buy It Now: $21,000,000.00
Sale Ends: 7d 8h 17m
CHRIS NYC ABSTRACT EXPRESSIONISM ORIGINAL ACTION ART UK
CHRIS NYC ABSTRACT EXPRESSIONISM ORIGINAL ACTION ART UK
Buy It Now: $21,000,000.00
Sale Ends: 7d 9h 13m
SAOCO Original NEO Abstract Expressionism PaintingeBay Giving Works
SAOCO Original NEO Abstract Expressionism Painting
Buy It Now: $150.00
Sale Ends: 7d 10h 36m
CHRIS NYC ABSTRACT EXPRESSIONISM ORIGINAL ACTION ART UK
CHRIS NYC ABSTRACT EXPRESSIONISM ORIGINAL ACTION ART UK
Buy It Now: $21,000,000.00
Sale Ends: 8d 9h 44m
CHRIS ACTION ART ABSTRACT EXPRESSIONISM ORIGINAL RARE
CHRIS ACTION ART ABSTRACT EXPRESSIONISM ORIGINAL RARE
Buy It Now: $21,000,000.00
Sale Ends: 8d 10h 13m
CHRIS ACTION ART ABSTRACT EXPRESSIONISM ORIGINAL RARE
CHRIS ACTION ART ABSTRACT EXPRESSIONISM ORIGINAL RARE
Buy It Now: $21,000,000.00
Sale Ends: 8d 10h 13m
DISTANCE Original Neo Abstract Expressionism Painting
DISTANCE Original Neo Abstract  Expressionism Painting
Buy It Now: $150.00
Sale Ends: 8d 16h 2m

Sponsored Links