Art Part 3:

(Art from 1500 A.D. to the Present)

Art, from the modern the age of human history to the
present in late 2018, has transformed culture, human
expression, and the essence of our being. Today, we
honor the sacrifice of artists, the beauty of their
artwork, and the legacy of art itself. From Da Vinci to
Kara Walker, art is universal in scope and wondrous
in its display. Now, as we are near the quarter-
century mark of the 21st century, we certainly are
motivated to promote art as a legitimate vehicle for all
of us to create harmony, to gain more wisdom, and to These legendary artists are Brother Ellis Wilson and
develop more cultural excellence.
Sister Augusta Savage.

These are the 2 legendary artists Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519) and Sister Meta Vaux Warrick Fuller (1877-1968).

Human civilizations were
never completely static or
stationary. It evolves greatly
over the millennia of human
history.
history Therefore, art
constantly changes in its
dispositions worldwide. The
modern era of art is defined by
the following characteristics:
creative shapes, more realistic
displays of imagery, and the
merging of influences among
the different peoples of the
globe. African, European,
Asian, American, and Oceanic
art has shown the world that
diverse forms of art capture
the essence of the human soul
plus the quintessential
imagination of humanity.
During this period of time
(from 1500 A.D. to the
present), monumental changes
existed in world history. The
human race experienced
revolutions, world wars (i.e.
the aftermath of World War II
defines the modern
architecture of the 21st
Prologue
century), depressions, the civil
rights movement, other social
movements, the numerous
independence movements
found in Africa including Asia,
etc. Additionally, art covered
the wide spectrum of human
existence. From the
Renaissance to Post-
Modernism, art continues to
be debated, looked at, and
established as a vital part of
the lives of humankind.
Subsequently, people of color
deserve their works of great art
to be respected as well. Tons of
black peoples, Native
Americans, Asians, Latinx
people, Pacific Islanders,
Aboriginals, etc. formulated
complex, interesting,
amazingly beautiful, plus
excellent works of art.
People among every color have
made great contributions in
human art. As art changes,
modern technology has made
artistic works more readily
accessible to the poor and
middle class. Centuries ago,
much of the creative
sculptures, paintings, and
woodcuts were primarily
accessed by the merchant class
or the rich. As time went
onward, museums and other
requisite platforms allowed a
wide spectrum of people
(regardless of class or wealth)
to witness the myriad forms of
magnificent artwork. The
modern era of human history
is also defined by the growth
of democratic or secular
governments. Imagery, poetry,
and architecture definitely
reflected the reality of new
generations and of the new
realities of world history. Now,
the time is now right to
display crucial, essential
information about the modern
age of art. The goal of social
justice is still permanently
fixed in my conscience and in
my soul.
The work to the left is the
ironic painting of the “Funeral
Procession” made by artist
from Kentucky Brother Ellis
Wilson. He painted images
nationwide including Harlem,
NYC as he was part of the
Harlem Artist Guild.
The Renaissance
Italy is the Birthplace of the Renaissance. The Renaissance was a large movement of artistic
expression that spread from Italy to Northern Europe plus into the rest of the world. It showed the
beauty of the human expression of people and it outlined changes among society. By this time of
Renaissance, Europe escaped the end of the Bubonic plague that killed millions of people in Asia
and in Europe. By this time, many people wanted to escape from many of the problems in Europe.
Also, human beings questioned established orders of government and religion. In Italy, most
people lived in rural communities, but city-states governed a large part of the Italian areas. Places
in Florence, Milan, and other places had leading merchants who controlled the political and
economic functions of many Northern Italian cities. The Renaissance started during the late
Middle Ages. Writers and artists shown religious fervor and they wanted to embrace the many
classical principles of ancient Greece and of ancient Rome.

The Renaissance means rebirth, so the proponents of the Renaissance wanted to shows a rebirth of
the acceptance of the classical ancient philosophies plus views of ancient Greece and Rome
(including its pagan composition as ancient Greece and ancient Rome embraced heavily paganism).
The Renaissance lasted from ca. 1300 to 1600 A.D. By 1453, the Turkish Ottoman forces ended the
Byzantine Empire completely by conquering Constantinople. Many scholars left Constantinople to
go into Italy and this helped to spread the Renaissance ideals throughout Europe. Merchants
facilitated this revolution since they controlled the city-states of Italy. One of the famous
merchants were part of the Medici family who lived in Florence. The Medicis was targets of
assassination and war, but they persisted. Cosimo De Medici was a famous member of this family.
Many of them didn’t overtly govern Florence, but they had dictatorial control over Florence.
Lorenzo de Medici was the grandson of Cosimo and he was a dictator of Florence too (from 1469).

The Renaissance believed in many principles. One was about humanism, which believed that
human potential and achievements can better society. In other words, humanism was placing faith
in humanity and the potential to perfect humanity. Some Renaissance scholars tried to reconcile
Christianity and Greco-Roman culture by merging its traditions or promoting other methods. The
Renaissance also embraced worldly pleasures of parties, fancy clothes, and good music. Some were
secular in promoting even non-religious influence in governing a society. Also, the Renaissance was
in advocacy of being a patron of the arts (or promoting artists, spreading art, spreading literature,
and showing culture). Many men and women like Bladassare Castiglione and Isabella D’Este
promoted the Renaissance including funding artists. Some Renaissance writers wanted to promote
the universal man or a person has to study the arts, play music, and be talented in a diversity of
fields in order for this person to be completed well round. We call this the Renaissance man.
Upper class women were part of the Renaissance, but sexism and discrimination was differently
abundant back then. Some women like Isabella D’Este was born in the city state of Ferra and
married another ruler of another city state Mantua. She was skilled in politics and helped to release
her husband from being captured as a product of a war. Renaissance art included perspective (in
showing three dimensions on a flat surface) with a horizon and vanishing point. In that sense, the
artwork becomes more realistic and honest to detail.

Michelangelo Buonarroti was a painter, poet, sculptor, and architect who made realistic style when
depicting the human body. Donatello made sculptures too. Raphael showed realism in his works.
He loved the Madonna and child imagery. His known paintings are found in Pope Julius II’s
library. He painted famous Renaissance figures like Michelangelo, Leonardo, and himself including
classical philosophers plus their students. The School of Athens painting in 1508 by Raphael
showed the Greek philosophers like Plato and Aristotle, Socrates, and Pythagoras. Raphael was
younger than Michelangelo and Leonardo. Women from the Renaissance like Sofonisha Anguissola
and Artemisia Gentileschi were great artists. Gentileschit painted pictures of strong, heroic
women. Anguissola painted portraits of her sisters and King Philip II of Spain. Leonardo da Vinci
was an artist, a painter, a scientist, an innovator, and a sculptor. He loved to research on how
things worked. That is why he had notebooks about the veins in leaves and muscles. Da Vinci wrote
images of machines like tanks and helicopter-like devices. He made Mona Lisa which was a very
detailed portrait of a woman. Da Vinci’s The Last Supper showed Jesus Christ and his disciples.

It also was a work that outlined their diverse personalities since the apostles were diverse from
many regions of Israel. Authors like Dante works outlined literature in the vernacular or his native
language of Italian. Francesco Petrarch was a humanist who promoted humanism in his literature.
He wrote in Italian and in Latin. He wrote poetry about a woman named Laura. Off color stories
like the Decameron were written by Giaovanni Boccaccio. Niccolo Machiavelli lived during this
time. In his The Prince, he advised people to be more feared than loved in order to achieve power
politically. He wanted to use deception even and any method available to hang onto power. Many
politicians and business leaders utilize Machiavelli's strategies to this very day. Women writers of
the Renaissance in Italy include people like Vittoria Conna. She wrote poetry about wives losing
their husbands to war.

This is the view of Florence, which is the This is Girolamo Macchietti’s portrait of Lorenzo
birthplace of the Renaissance. de’ Medici or the ruler of Florence and the patron
of arts in that region.
 Da Vinci’s Vitruvian Man
wanted to show the
proportions of the
human body according
to Vitruvius (who was an
ancient Roman author & This is the childhood
architect). Da Vinci wrote home of da Vinci at
notes on this work too. Anchinao.

This was da Vinci’s portrait of

Isabella d’Este from 1500. This
image is found in the Louvre. He
was friends with Isabella, her sister
Beatrice, and Cecilla Gallerani. The Mona Lisa
work is world
famous. To this
very day, people
The Last Supper debate where the
painting was about
depicting Jesus Christ
meeting with his
Leonardo da Vinci’s woman is smiling
or frowning. Some
scholars believe
apostles. He or Jesus
already knew that
Judas is the traitor
contributions to Art that this image is
the portrait of Lisa
del Gheradini
according to the Bible. (1479-1542) or the
This artwork was As a well-known polymath, Leonardo di ser Piero da Vinci worked wife of Francesco
finished by the 1490’s. in many fields. He worked in painting, invention, sculpting, del Giocondo. Lisa
The painting is architecture, science, music, mathematics, engineering, literature, had many children.
important since it
anatomy, geology, botany, writing, history, astronomy, etc. Many of
depicts the diverse
personalities of the
his drawings were centuries ahead of its time in predicting the
apostles like John, parachute, the helicopter, and the tank. His mind embraced
Peter, Matthew, etc. Renaissance humanist thought. An immense curiosity and an
inventive thinking process characterize da Vinci fully. Almost 600
years after his passing, human beings are still studying his art and his
other literature.

Da Vinci’s drawing on the left is a plan for

a flying machine and his image on the
right details a tank device. Leonardo da
Vinci had plans for machines hundreds of
years before their time.
This painting is called Annunciation (1475-1480). It
was believed to be one of Leonardo’s earliest
This drawing from da
complete works. It was a painting that was created via
Vinci shows his study
oil and tempera on panel. The painting describes the
of the fetus in the
event of Luke 1:26-39 or when the angel Gabriel (sent
womb. The detail is
by God) tells the virgin Mary that she could
very powerful.
miraculously conceive and give birth to the child
named Jesus (or the Son of the living God). The work
is housed at the Uffizi gallery of Florence, Italy.
The Northern Renaissance is found in the area of Flanders, England, Germany, etc. Many Germans
traveled into Italy to be educated in art and came back into Germany to show their works. Flemish
painters like Jan van Eyck shown everyday life with oil paintings. These paintings have shown
peasant life from weddings to dances plus harvests. The German painter Albrecht Durer was part
of the Northern Renaissance too. Hans Holbein worked hard as a painter. In English, Thomas
More was a Christian humanist. Erasmus was another Christian humanist from Holland. Erasmus
wanted people to study the Bible and reject the frivolous aspects of life. Christian humanists
wanted to reform society. Erasmus influenced the Bible translations of the Reformers. Roman
Catholic Thomas More promoted a Utopian society and wrote in English and Latin too. Many
women like Christine de Pizan fought for equal rights for women as well involving education and
other spheres of life. During the Elizabethan Age, William Shakespeare wrote plays about life, love,
war, tragedy, etc. He used many Greco-Roman stories and myths into his plays too. His plays were
shown in the Globe Theater in London.

By 1592, he lived in London. Macbeth, Hamlet, Othello, Romeo and Juliet, King Lear, and other
plays outline issues discussed today. Almost 500 centuries after William Shakespeare's birth, people
still are influenced by his plays via movies, plays, etc. Shakespeare's words influenced the
development of the modern day English language. Acceleration of Renaissance ideals came by the
Gutenberg printing press. The movable type and other aspects of printing were invented by
Chinese people long before the Renaissance. Johann Gutenberg modernized the printing press to
spread literature worldwide. Ironically, the Renaissance movement inspired the Reformation, the
Scientific Revolution, the Enlightenment, and other like-minded movements. The Renaissance
praised individual achievement and merged Christian plus Greco-Roman influences. It caused the
growth of discoveries, maps, art, and other aspects of human civilization. The Renaissance
definitely changed history forever.

Information relating to William Shakespeare

This shows the title page from the
1609 edition of Shake-Speares
Sonnets.
The Holy Trinity Church, Stratford-
upon-Avon is where Shakespeare
was baptized and is buried.
This is a recently garlanded statue
of William Shakespeare in Lincoln
Park, Chicago. Like minded statues
were created during the 19th and
early 20th centuries.
Baroque
Baroque art has been called neoclasssical art too. It was art most done with imagery and the
showing of great religious significance. It was an art meant to persuade people to embrace religious
views. It depicted Jesus Christ, the saints, Mary, and the apostles. Artists like Caravaggio wanted to
dramatic in its display to outline dramatic realism, bold contrasts of light and dark, and outlines of
emotion. Other artists of the Baroque style included Annibale Carraci, Giovanni Battista Gaulli
(who used illusionism), and others. It or Baroque art was born from the early 17th century to the
late 18th century. The Roman Catholic Church (especially after the Council of Trent) encouraged
this art form as a means to counter the more simplistic and austerity art of the Protestants. The
baroque style wanted to be bigger than life. It spread from Rome, Italy, then to northern Italy,
Spain, Portugal, Austria, and Southern Germany. It was totally flamboyant. Its descendant is called
Rococo which developed in Central Europe during the late 18th century.

One of the most famous images of the Baroque style was the Quadratura or the Trompe l'oeil
which was found in the ceiling of the Church of the Jesu in Rome. It was created by Giovanni
Battista Gaulli (1669-1683). The architecture of the Baroque featured large domes, religious statues,
and many elaborate designs. The most celebrated baroque decorative works of the High Baroque
are the Chair of Saint Peter (1647–53) and the Baldachino of St. Peter (1623–34), both by Gian
Lorenzo Bernini, in St. Peter's Basilica in Rome. The Baldequin of St. Peter is an example of the
balance of opposites in Baroque art with: the gigantic proportions of the piece, with the apparent
lightness of the canopy, and the contrast between the solid twisted columns. There was the bronze,
gold and marble of the piece with the flowing draperies of the angels on the canopy. Bernini made
the statue of David. His sculpture showed David's emotion and his body appearing to move. It is
different than the Renaissance as it shows more emotional intensity, instability, and diagonals than
a typical Renaissance sculpture. Bernini wanted to outline movements. Baroque art works also have
shown the effects of light and colors in transition from light to dark (which is a key part of artistic
creativity).

Other Art movements

Neoclassicism existed after the Baroque period of art. It dealt with decorative and visual arts. It
came about first in Rome during the mid-1700’s. The images promoted the themes of ancient
classical art. It was also influenced by reason and other enlightenment principles. The paintings
readily used cool colors and there was the elimination of perspectives. It wanted to have simplicity.
Many used white marble for sculptures like the ancient Greek and Roman sculptors. The painting
of the Oath of Horatti in 1785 outlined neoclassical imagery greatly. There was Romantic art.
Romantic art is found in the Romantic period. It was a movement that focused on emotion and
the power of the individual. It glorified nature, the past, and shown medieval imagery. It was a way
for human beings to respond to the massive rigidity of the Industrial Revolution. Romantic
thinkers influenced liberalism, radicalism, conservatism, and nationalism. There was Academic art
and Realism in art too. These arts spread worldwide.

The Impressionist movement came about by the late 19th century. It was art filled with small, thin,
but visible brush strokes. It focused on the depiction of light and human perception. It was heavily
found in Paris. Many artists of this movement included Claude Monet with his work from 1872
called “Impression, soleil levant” or Impression, Sunrise. The artwork used many colors and some
of it was done outdoors. The Impressionist paintings depicted ordinary people in parks, near
bodies of water, and others working in various environments. Mary Cassat, Gustave Caillebotte,
Paul Cezanne, Edgar Degas, and others were part of Impressionism in France. Modernism existed
in the late 19th and early 20th century. It used many traditional forms of art. It also reflected the
rapid growth of cities and industrial societies. Many modernists rejected realism and mainstream
religion. Much of the art we see today is Contemporary art which has been created in the late 20th
century (with art forms like Expressionism, Fauvism, Cubism, Dadaism, and Surrealism. Pablo
Picasso was influenced by Iberian sculpture, African sculpture, and other forms of art during the
early 20th century) and early 21st century. It deals with a culturally diverse world. Technology is
changing and art reflects that reality too. Contemporary art doesn’t have one point of view. It is
diverse filled with different forms of artistic creativity. Research from Albert Einstein, the two
world wars, scientific discoveries, TV shows, movies, electronic instruments, etc. accelerated the
arts from the 20th century to the present. Abstract art, holography, fractal art, post-Modernism,
graffiti art, etc. are all examples of Contemporary art.

Art in Africa, Asia, and the Americas

Art is international. It is found in the four corners of the Earth. The majority of people on this
Earth are people of color, so the art from people of color is very important. Some people want to
minimize or ignore art from certain areas of the world, but we aren’t those types of people. We
believe in presenting information and outlining respect for the arts globally. Eastern Art is filled
with diversity in India, China, and Japan. Much of Eastern Art uses a surface patterning and local
color. There is an outline of works. Some paintings of Buddha were used in the context of being a
religious symbol. The Bhutanese painted “thangkas” or paintings on cloths that describe Buddhist
iconography. Eastern Art has calligraphy too. Many Chinese landscape paintings have black lines
and gentle ink wash. Some of those works promoted the concepts of serenity and peace. One of the
greatest Chinese artists was the painter Li Chieng (he lived from 919 to 967 A.D.). One of his
famous works was “A Solitary Temple Amid Clearing Peaks.” He used paintings with excellence
involving ink and scenery. Jeong Seon is a famous Korean landscape painter of the 18th century. He
lived from 1676 to 1759. Religious calligraphy and Islamic paintings are found heavily in Western
Asia. African art uses sculptures like the brass castings of the Benin people. There is folk art as
well. The art of ancient Egypt focused on polytheism, the praise of pharaohs, and images of many
animals. Ancient Nubia had tons of pyramid images too. Sculptures were prevalent during the
Middle Ages throughout Africa. Intricate structures are found in the Zimbabwe civilization with
precise, great architectural designs. The Yoruba sculptures are iconic representations of African
art. Many works in African art use brass heads, brass, and other materials.

Many African art are found in masks and it is represented by folk art too. One of the greatest
artists during the 20th century was Uzo Egonu. He was born in Onitsha, Nigeria. He worked in
political struggles in Africa. His works deal heavily with exquisite paintings. Olu Oguibe from
Nigeria is a famous well known artist and intellectual. He not only makes art. He is a Professor Art
and African-American Studies at the University of Connecticut, Storrs. He is a great art historian
and art curator. Today, the Johannesburg Biennale is a great arts venue in the Motherland of
Africa. The art of Oceania is found in the areas of Micronesia, Polynesia, Australia, New Zealand,
and Melanesia. Oceanic art has used wood, features, and other imagery. There are large structures
in the region as well including abstract art found in the indigenous art of Australia.

Art in the Americans does deal with indigenous cultures and other pre-Columbian themes. Strong
precision is found in the Olmec structures and in the usage of carved jade. Colossal heads are found
in San Lorenzo. Tenochtitlán and La Venta as part of the Olmec civilization. The Mayan
civilization had hieroglyphic carvings. Other paintings and sculptures plus complex architecture
are found in the Mixtec, Zapotec, and other civilizations found in the Valley of Oaxaca. Mosaics,
sculptures, and paintings are found in the Aztec culture. In modern American art, we see
influences from Africa, Native Americans, Asians, Europeans, etc. American art from the early
days to the modern era are filled with quilt work, beads, tipis, pop art, Abstract Expressionism,
and other forms of expression.
 An Ode to Abstract The drawing to the
The Different Types of Abstract Art left is called Mayo
Drawing #14 by

Art
Abstract Minimalist Abstract Geometric Timothy
Expressionism Abstract Floral Abstract Hawkesworth. He
Botanic
used oil pencil and
Abstract Abstract Abstract Abstract
Landscapes Water Maps Photography wax on paper to
color complete this work.

Independent creativity is always part of the beauty of abstract art. It includes compositions
that readily have a unique display of colors, shapes, and sizes. Strict rules of perspective and
other dogma are out of the window with abstract art. It can encompass non-figurative art,
non-objective art, and nonrepresentational art. This form of expression escapes from
reality regularly. Abstract art existed long before the 20th century too. The painter Wang
Mo of the Tang dynasty expressed abstract art. The 19th century painter James McNeil
Whislter in his painting of “Nocturne in Black and Gold: The falling Rocket” form 1872
focused on visual sensation rather than the depiction of objects. Expressionism has a
powerful relationship with abstract art too. To this very day, the power of abstract art
increases our curiosity and makes us focus on the truth that art is never based on rigid
formations constantly. Art is based on the honest self-expression of people in devising
their own interpretations of how humans think of the Universe.

This work is untitled from

Wassily Kandinsky. It was
created from watercolor back
in in 1913). The genius of Pablo Picasso is that he
could break down actual objects into its
basic forms. He was involved heavily in
the development of Cubism. This was one This is Kurt Schwitters’ work
of his words called Violin. He finished it entitled Das Undbild from 1919.
from 1911-1912. Pablo Picasso didn’t just
paint. He was a sculptor, a printmaker,
and he worked in writing as well. He was
influenced by African art and he lived a
prolific longevity.
 This work of art is called John's Diner with John's Chevelle. It was created in 2007 by John
Baeder. Baeder used oil on canvas and the work is 30×48 inches.

Modern Art
This period of art involved an explosion of artistic work from the 1860’s to the 1970’s. That period
of history saw many movements for social change, new philosophies arising, and some of the
radical events in human history. Modern art deals with experimentation. It didn’t embrace rigidity.
Many artists wanted to witness or interpret the world in unique ways. Some contemporary artists
used nature as a motif in developing their works. Modern art evolved from narrative or traditional
art to the concept of abstraction. Many of the modern artists included people like Vincent van
Goh, Paul Cezanne, Paul Gauguin, Georges Seurat, and Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec. These human
beings were vital to the development of modern art. By the early 20th century, there Henri Matisse
plus other young artists existed. There were pre-cubists (like George Braque, Andre Derain, Raoul
Sufy, Jean Metzinger, and Maurice de Vlaminck) who revolutionized the Paris art world with
multi-colored, expressive landscapes and figures paintings that critics called Fauvism. Matisse’s two
versions of The Dance contributed to modern painting. The works had intense warm colors of the
figures against the cool blue-green background.

Initially influenced by Toulouse-Lautrec, Gauguin, and other late-19th-century innovators, Pablo

Picasso made his first cubist paintings based on Cézanne's idea that all depiction of nature can be
reduced to three solids: cube, sphere, and cone. Analytic cubism, the first clear manifestation of
cubism, was followed by Synthetic cubism, practiced by Braque, Picasso, Fernand Léger, Juan Gris,
Albert Gleizes, Marcel Duchamp and several other artists into the 1920s. Synthetic cubism is
characterized by the introduction of different textures, surfaces, collage elements, papier collé and
a large variety of merged subject matter.

The Impressionists believed that people don’t see objects but only the light which they reflect.
Therefore, painters should paint in natural light rather than in studios and should capture the
effects of light in their work. Impressionist artists formed a group, Société Anonyme Coopérative
des Artistes Peintres, Sculpteurs, Graveurs ("Association of Painters, Sculptors, and Engravers")
which, despite internal tensions, mounted a series of independent exhibitions. The style was
adopted by artists in different nations, in preference to a "national" style. These factors established
the view that it was a "movement." These traits—establishment of a working method integral to the
art, the establishment of a movement or visible, active core of support, and international
adoption—would be repeated by artistic movements in the Modern period in art. After World War
II, artistic movements increased its influence in America. The 1950s and 1960s saw the emergence
of Abstract Expressionism, Color field painting, Conceptual artists of Art & Language, Pop art, Op
art, Hard-edge painting, Minimal art, Lyrical Abstraction, Fluxus, Happening, Video art,
Postminimalism, Photorealism, and various other movements. In the late 1960s and the 1970s, Land
art, Performance art, Conceptual art, and other new art forms had attracted the attention of
curators and critics, at the expense of more traditional media. Larger installations and
performances became widespread.
 Examples of Modern Artwork
Numerous
paintings and other
forms of artistic
expression flourish
in modern art.
Modern Art
arouses our
curiosity, and it
has widespread
influence
throughout the Vincent van Gogh, The Scream by
globe. We love art, Country road in Edvard Munch,
and we appreciate Provence by Night, 1893
art’s diversity and 1889, May 1890,
its creativity. Kröller-Müller
Museum

I and the Village At the Moulin Henri de Toulouse-

by Marc Chagall, Rouge (1890) by Lautrec, 1887,
1911 Henri de Toulouse- pastel on
Lautrec. cardboard, Van
Gogh Museum,
Amsterdam

Golden banners An optical illusion Wen-Ying Tsai,

make the Cheddar by the Hungarian- "Super-imposed
Cheese canvas born artist Victor Painting: Random
from Campbell's Vasarely in Pécs Field" (1963)
Soup Cans, 1962
unique (by Andy
Warhol)
By the end of the 1970’s, when cultural critics began speaking of "the end of painting" (the title of a
provocative essay written in 1981 by Douglas Crimp), new media art had become a category in
itself, with a growing number of artists experimenting with technological means such as video art.
Painting assumed renewed importance in the 1980s and 1990s, as evidenced by the rise of neo-
expressionism and the revival of figurative painting.

Towards the end of the 20th century, many artists and architects started questioning the idea of
"the modern" and created typically Postmodern works.
 The Greatness of International Art

This work shows two Bambara
Chiwara from ca. late 19th to early
20th centuries. The Art Institute of
Chicago has this work. Female
(left) and male Vertical styles are
found.
This is a terracotta sculpture of a
male head from ca. 550-500 B.C. It's
found at the Brooklyn Museum
(New York City, USA). The mouth
of its head is slightly open. It maybe
suggests speech, that the figure has
something to tell us. This figure
seems to be in the midst of a
conversation. The eyes and the
eyebrows suggest an inner calm or
an inner serenity.
This Native American ceramic is a This is a Benin ivory mask of the
Black-on-white jar from ca. 1100- Queen Mother Idia. It was created
1300. It was from Kayenta, Arizona from the 16th century. It is made up
and it’s on display at the California of ivory, iron & copper. This work
Academy of Sciences is found in the Metropolitan
Museum of Art.
It is always important to show art
from international locations because
some want to omit or minimize
artwork from non-Western places.
These works refute the lie that real
art solely relates to the West.
Africans, Native Americans, those
of Oceania, Aboriginals, Indians,
Chinese people, Japanese people,
Latino people, and other human These large monoliths are called the
beings developed great works for Moai, and they are found at Rano
millennia. Creativity manifests Raraku, Easter Island. The heads of
itself worldwide. The more that we Easter Island’s meaning or purpose
love diverse cultures, the more that remains a mystery to this very day.
we appreciate our own identity as
human beings. There is the genius
of artists, a creative imagination,
and a forthright strength found in
international art.

This painting shows Wang Xizhi
watching geese. Qian Xuan made it
between ca. 1235 and 1307. It is
found in a handscroll (using ink,
color and gold on paper). Its
dimensions are 91⁄8 x 361⁄2 in. and it
is located now at the Metropolitan
Museum of Art (New York City).
This image of a rooster was created
during the 18th century. It is made
up of copper alloy and it’s found at
the National Museum of African
Art (Washington, D.C., USA).
This sculpture of Buddha was
probably created by Amitabha
(Amituofo) during the 7th century.
This was during the era of the Tang
dynasty, and this sculpture is found
at the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Art in the 21st century
Art during the 21st century is very diverse. It deals with technology, paintings, and other forms of
human expression. There is neo-minimalism. It existed during the late 20th century and continues
to exist during the 21st century. It goes by many names like Neo-geometric art, Post-
Abstractionism, Smart Art, and Simulationism. In essence, neo-minimalism is about using simple
colors and designs in expressing art. There are contrasts and many forms of other materials in
forming the art. It is deliberate in using simplicity of form and a lack of expressive content to
advance art that is widespread. It involves painting, sculpture, architecture, design, and music.
Many contemporary artists associated with neo-minimalism include people like David Burdeny,
Tim Zuck, Laurel Smith, Tanya Rusnak, Eve Leader, Paul Kuhn, Catharine Burgess, Marjan
Eggermont, Christopher Willard, etc. Digital art is a form of art that uses digital technology in
being creative. It is part of the new media art too. It has transformed the skills of painting, sound,
music, sculpture, etc. It is related to net art, digital installation art, and virtual reality. It is so
popular that school classes teach students about digital art constantly.

Digital art is not just found in computers. It can be shown in museums, light shows, and other
means. It is found in vector graphics software, graphics tablets, and other devices. CGI and other
forms of computer generated 3D still imagery are heavily found in this form of digital art.
Excessivism was created in 2015 by American artist and curator Kaloust Guedel with an exhibition
titled Excessivist Initiative. It is a form of art that deals with investigating every aspect of life in an
excessive state. It can use two or three dimensional visual creations, written or spoken words, or
other activities. It wanted a reflection or examination or investigation of the capitalist system
devoid of aesthetic, legal, commercial or other considerations. There is electronic art,
environmental art, algorithmic art, altermodernism, and other forms of 21st century art.

By Timothy

Peace and Blessings.