I love this piece. Honestly, I can and should do an essay on each of these movements as a jumping off point because it’s the last frontier of real art movements that moved the needle. Now we live in an excuse of art being made into a movement instead of the other way around.
There is a lot to think about here. In the way you have put these together as a flowing thought to contrast and flex against one another is perfect. Well curated writing, dear Rogue.
Thank you so much for reading! Even though I covered most of them previously in stand alone posts, a lot of readers requested a chronological breakdown. This was a blast to pull together.
This was a thorough and enlightening recap of the fine art movements from the mid-twentieth century on; in other words, during my lifetime. I was especially interested in what is happening in the digital age. Thank you for this!
I admire your ambition and skill in this piece. Having lived through much of it, my views of one movement leadng to another are a bit jaundiced by the role of opportunism and elites n engineering the “next big thing.” Careerism was a bigger imperative than truth in a lot of these developments.
Thank you so much for reading! I completely understand your perspective (and appreciate it)!
The role of opportunism, gatekeeping, and careerism can’t be separated from the trajectory of American art movements (or American culture to be honest) especially when so many of them were propelled less by collective vision and more by who had access, capital, or institutional favor. Sadly, not much has changed. Behind every “next big thing” is a calculated move, not necessarily a cultural shift.
Ah, as an art student, I once had vito aconci as a instructor who required us to watch, as he pulled out naval hairs as performance sculpture? But he would not look at a giant human insect I welded from industrial rods with the front half a woman’s realistic body made from polyurethane. Later, the head of the sculpture dept would not allow us 6 women scupture majors, to cast our pieces in metal we bought. (A follower of writer Mishima, he believed women’s brains could not conceive of art. And it was doing us a disservice to finish our ideas) We had to sign releases, after graduation, working switchboards, waitressing and work from manuals to cast our work. The year, before, I was making small scenes from cities in clay and had to hide them from a female sculpture teacher who believed we need to work like her and make large ugly nudes? Narcissism and “old boy” male privilege were the origins of many movements “in opposition to the status quo.” Louise Nevelson was honest, she told us she blackmailed relatives to set up a studio, Marisol said in truth her father was her serious supporter.
The history of supposed “progress” or developments mostly ignores “her story.” Why no one mentions who were members of the Guerilla Girls. Careerism is often the real impulse for some movements. Nan Goldin’s wonderful photos of friends who were drug addicts was originally controversial. Chance and careerism is inseparable in “movements.”
That said love you made a story that seems progressive, rather than circular as some movements were. They return but not in the same form?. The symbolist art of Redon and Beardsley, surfaces in the textures and icongraphy of art of the 1960s-70’s like Rauchenberg and others. Dada was borrowed in Kruger’s advertising art forms. I think art history is circular, when historical eras become similar.
Thank you so much for sharing this raw, honest reflection. Your experience speaks volumes about the deep sexism and gatekeeping that have long shaped art institutions; how the same people who demand “radical” work often shut down anything outside their narrow lens, especially when it comes from women. Being denied access to materials you bought or told your ideas weren’t worth completing is both infuriating and painfully familiar.
I absolutely agree. “her story” is so often erased, and the anonymity of the Guerrilla Girls reflects both resistance and the tragedy of ongoing exclusion. Careerism and gatekeeping do drive many movements, but as you said, art history is circular. These ideas come back, reshaped by new voices, new contexts.
Good overview of art movements since Abstract Expressionism. I am reading more art history, and just as you bring in DuChamp, I see him rising in perception of impact now, and for a longer period by European critics and historians. A friend lent me a book, The Cultural Cold War, by Frances Stonor Saunders, about the influence of the CIA on world art after WWII. I'm only just starting it; it seems that's something accepted in Europe too. Have you explored that? What do you think? Valid? A reach? Some of both?
Absolutely fascinatin, and yes, it's essential reading if you're diving into postwar art history. I've read it (more than once), and I’d say it’s both eye-opening and deeply valid. (For those who haven't read it), the author meticulously lays out how the CIA, through front organizations like the Congress for Cultural Freedom, covertly promoted Abstract Expressionism as a symbol of American freedom and creative individualism; essentially using it as cultural propaganda to counter Soviet Realism.
Yes, European critics were often quicker to acknowledge Duchamp's long shadow over postwar art, especially in conceptual and anti-aesthetic circles. His influence quietly runs parallel to the state's efforts to canonize Abstract Expressionism. It’s not mutually exclusive; rather, it's a more complex ecosystem of influence; some state-sponsored, some artist-driven, and often overlapping.
I think it’s not a stretch at all. If anything, the reach is in how much we’ve downplayed or overlooked these forces in mainstream American accounts. It's definitely something I’ve explored and keep circling back to, (and I am covering it more indepth in August) especially when thinking about how movements like Minimalism, Conceptual Art, and even Pop unfolded in a world shaped not just by artists, but by politics, funding, and global image-making.
I love this piece. Honestly, I can and should do an essay on each of these movements as a jumping off point because it’s the last frontier of real art movements that moved the needle. Now we live in an excuse of art being made into a movement instead of the other way around.
There is a lot to think about here. In the way you have put these together as a flowing thought to contrast and flex against one another is perfect. Well curated writing, dear Rogue.
Thank you so much for reading! Even though I covered most of them previously in stand alone posts, a lot of readers requested a chronological breakdown. This was a blast to pull together.
This was a thorough and enlightening recap of the fine art movements from the mid-twentieth century on; in other words, during my lifetime. I was especially interested in what is happening in the digital age. Thank you for this!
Thank you so much for taking the time to read it (I realize this was a fairly long one) I really appreciate it 🙏🏼
I'm glad the digital age section resonated with you. It's such a rapidly evolving part of art history.
I admire your ambition and skill in this piece. Having lived through much of it, my views of one movement leadng to another are a bit jaundiced by the role of opportunism and elites n engineering the “next big thing.” Careerism was a bigger imperative than truth in a lot of these developments.
Thank you so much for reading! I completely understand your perspective (and appreciate it)!
The role of opportunism, gatekeeping, and careerism can’t be separated from the trajectory of American art movements (or American culture to be honest) especially when so many of them were propelled less by collective vision and more by who had access, capital, or institutional favor. Sadly, not much has changed. Behind every “next big thing” is a calculated move, not necessarily a cultural shift.
Ah, as an art student, I once had vito aconci as a instructor who required us to watch, as he pulled out naval hairs as performance sculpture? But he would not look at a giant human insect I welded from industrial rods with the front half a woman’s realistic body made from polyurethane. Later, the head of the sculpture dept would not allow us 6 women scupture majors, to cast our pieces in metal we bought. (A follower of writer Mishima, he believed women’s brains could not conceive of art. And it was doing us a disservice to finish our ideas) We had to sign releases, after graduation, working switchboards, waitressing and work from manuals to cast our work. The year, before, I was making small scenes from cities in clay and had to hide them from a female sculpture teacher who believed we need to work like her and make large ugly nudes? Narcissism and “old boy” male privilege were the origins of many movements “in opposition to the status quo.” Louise Nevelson was honest, she told us she blackmailed relatives to set up a studio, Marisol said in truth her father was her serious supporter.
The history of supposed “progress” or developments mostly ignores “her story.” Why no one mentions who were members of the Guerilla Girls. Careerism is often the real impulse for some movements. Nan Goldin’s wonderful photos of friends who were drug addicts was originally controversial. Chance and careerism is inseparable in “movements.”
That said love you made a story that seems progressive, rather than circular as some movements were. They return but not in the same form?. The symbolist art of Redon and Beardsley, surfaces in the textures and icongraphy of art of the 1960s-70’s like Rauchenberg and others. Dada was borrowed in Kruger’s advertising art forms. I think art history is circular, when historical eras become similar.
Thank you so much for sharing this raw, honest reflection. Your experience speaks volumes about the deep sexism and gatekeeping that have long shaped art institutions; how the same people who demand “radical” work often shut down anything outside their narrow lens, especially when it comes from women. Being denied access to materials you bought or told your ideas weren’t worth completing is both infuriating and painfully familiar.
I absolutely agree. “her story” is so often erased, and the anonymity of the Guerrilla Girls reflects both resistance and the tragedy of ongoing exclusion. Careerism and gatekeeping do drive many movements, but as you said, art history is circular. These ideas come back, reshaped by new voices, new contexts.
I deeply appreciate your voice in all of this!
Thanks for reading. And your answer. “where are all the great woman artists?” Is a question rarely asked or answered. You acknowledged!
Good overview of art movements since Abstract Expressionism. I am reading more art history, and just as you bring in DuChamp, I see him rising in perception of impact now, and for a longer period by European critics and historians. A friend lent me a book, The Cultural Cold War, by Frances Stonor Saunders, about the influence of the CIA on world art after WWII. I'm only just starting it; it seems that's something accepted in Europe too. Have you explored that? What do you think? Valid? A reach? Some of both?
Absolutely fascinatin, and yes, it's essential reading if you're diving into postwar art history. I've read it (more than once), and I’d say it’s both eye-opening and deeply valid. (For those who haven't read it), the author meticulously lays out how the CIA, through front organizations like the Congress for Cultural Freedom, covertly promoted Abstract Expressionism as a symbol of American freedom and creative individualism; essentially using it as cultural propaganda to counter Soviet Realism.
Yes, European critics were often quicker to acknowledge Duchamp's long shadow over postwar art, especially in conceptual and anti-aesthetic circles. His influence quietly runs parallel to the state's efforts to canonize Abstract Expressionism. It’s not mutually exclusive; rather, it's a more complex ecosystem of influence; some state-sponsored, some artist-driven, and often overlapping.
I think it’s not a stretch at all. If anything, the reach is in how much we’ve downplayed or overlooked these forces in mainstream American accounts. It's definitely something I’ve explored and keep circling back to, (and I am covering it more indepth in August) especially when thinking about how movements like Minimalism, Conceptual Art, and even Pop unfolded in a world shaped not just by artists, but by politics, funding, and global image-making.
Thank you for that response! I'll definitely dive into that book now.