art history

Abstract Expressionism (Late 1940s-1950s) First American avant-garde movement  Action paintings: artist drips or splatters paint onto a surface Color Field Painting (1960s) Lacks aggression of Abstract Expressionism  Relies on subtle tonal values; variations of a monochromatic hue  Pop Art (1955-1960s) Materials of the everyday world, mass popular culture, celebrities, reaction against Abstract Expressionism  Happenings (1960s)  act of performance initially planned, but involves spontaneity, improvisation, and audience participation Site Art / Earthworks (1970s-1990s)  Interacts with the environment 

The Bay. Helen Frankenthaler. 1963 C.E. Acrylic on canvas. Heaving, atmospheric painting; we see an imposing fluid blue promontory suspended in front of us. Its colors ranging from violet to indigo run into one another; Frankenthaler’s approach here was to use a soak-stain method with diluted acrylic paint. Acrylics gave her more flexibility with viscosity and movement than oils, and allowed her more control; as a substitute for the action of the brush, Frankenthaler would lift the canvas and tilt it at various angles so that the paint would flow across the surface.  She had to account for gravity and the ebb and flow of a liquid across a flat surface, so a fascinating aspect of Frankenthaler’s method is the blend of the artist’s control paired with the unpredictability of the forces of nature. Frankenthaler was inspired by the drip method of Jackson Pollock who began painting on the floor in the late 1940s, but she knew she wanted to work differently.  The color...