Modernism and Postmodernism - Essay Example

MODERNISM AND POSTMODERNISM by The of the The of the School The and where it is located The Date Modernism and Postmodernism To begin with, to determine the meaning of postmodernism is possible only through the relationship with modernism. Modernism in modern science is understood as a kind of cultural consciousness, which is implemented in the artistic practice of symbolism, expressionism and acmeism. In the socio-historical context, it means the period of modernism in the development of culture from the late nineteenth to mid-twentieth century, that is, from Impressionism to a new novel and the theatre of the absurd. Modernism as a world based on the principles of urbanism (the cult of the city), technologism (the cult of the industry), primitivism (the cult of the underdeveloped role model), and others. Postmodernism simultaneously grows and is repelled by the picture of the world, established in modernism. Overcoming modernist tendencies, postmodern cult of the city replaces cosmism, values ​​of industrial society - environmentalism, denying mindless nature and asserting the need for harmonious relations between society and nature. Thus, the ideological concept of postmodernism includes the principles of cosmism, environmentalism and post humanism in a culture of active includes sexual minorities, and the ideas of feminism. Art of modernism and postmodernism is the realization of a universal picture of the world, reflecting the human consciousness of the twentieth century, the main feature of which is the new principle of the relation of being and consciousness. Modernism is the style of art and thought in the first half of the twentieth century. Its critics understood in two ways - in the broad and narrow sense. In the first sense, it represents the totality of artistic movements, schools and trends of early twentieth century, expressed a departure from the cultural values of eighteenth - nineteenth centuries, and proclaimed the new attitudes and values (Barrett, 1997). Fauvism, Expressionism, Cubism, Futurism, Abstractionism, Dadaism, Surrealism - this is an incomplete list of areas of artistic research in the early twentieth century (Barrett, 1997). In a narrow sense, modern designates only one direction in art. “Modern” (fr. Moderne - new, modern, Art Nouveau, Art Nouveau) is a stylistic direction in European and American art of the late nineteenth - early twentieth century (Barrett, 1997). The new trend has spread throughout Europe and primarily affected the architecture and decorative arts. Economic, political and social tensions in Europe increase in the first decade of the twentieth century, and are accompanied by intense spiritual quest in life, especially in art. By this time, the visual tools of art, especially painting and sculpture, are trying to expand through purely formal experiments (Foster, 2004). As a result, the search for new means of visual art of modernism three areas - Cubism, Futurism and Abstractionism successively emerged, which combined rejection of the principle of reflection of reality, an apology for "art for art" (Dahlberg, 2006). Modernist trends and currents hostile attitude combines the best examples of the art of the past. Modernism in all its varieties (cubism, abstraction, surrealism, pop art, photorealism, etc.) is a fundamental and conscious rejection of the ground to the artistic process - the creation of an artistic image (Dahlberg, 2006). To put it simply, the Modernism is the destruction of art, which does not conceal even its theorists. Modernism (avant-garde) is associated with a departure from the culture of realism, with the proclamation of independence of art from reality. Performances of modern artists often took the form of anarchic aesthetic rebellion against the established traditions and canons of art. Vanguard meant walking in front of all that is experimenting with artistic material, creating new, everything is not like the style, the language, the content in the fine arts (Stokstad and Cothren, 2013). Revolution and war in which the whole is drawn myrtle not prevent the experimentation and the search for the new. There is a revision of the earlier concepts of beauty, colour and space. Paris becomes a place of pilgrimage for artists from around the world. The taste for sharp, devastating strain proved to be the banner of the new century (Stokstad and Cothren, 2013). The second aspect of modernism is decadence (dekadentia - decline) - that is, the flight of the rejection of the real world, the cult of beauty as the only values, rejection of social problems (Foster, 2004). Main directions and trends of modernism either rejected or drastically transformed the whole system of art tools and techniques. Specifically, in various forms of art a change in the spatial image and rejection of art-shaped patterns in the visual arts is expressed to revise the melodic, harmonic and rhythmic organization of music. The appearance of "stream of consciousness", the interior monologue, associative editing literature, etc., is another trend in the art of modernism (Stokstad and Cothren, 2013).      The most striking trends of modernism, showing the period as the most dynamic in the first half of the twentieth century, are Dadaism, Surrealism, Expressionism, Fauvism, and Supremacism (Stokstad and Cothren, 2013). Great influence on the practice of modernism have the idea of ​​irrational voluntarism of Arthur Schopenhauer and Nietzsche, the doctrine of intuition by Henri Bergson, CG Jung and psychoanalysis of Dr. Freud, Existentialism of M. Heidegger, Jean-Paul Sartre and Camus, Theory of social philosophy of the Frankfurt School and T. Adorno along with G. Marcuse (Hekman, 1991). Arthur Schopenhauer expressed doubts about the existence of a "last foundation", usually referred to as being, having reached the idea that if a strong support and gain credibility (Hekman, 1991). "The world is the Will," so is this being, but there is only a "representation", as well as their interpretation (Hekman, 1991). He also rejected the existence of truth. Nietzsche rejected Hegel’s systematic way of thinking, contrasting him thinking in the form of small fragments, aphorisms, maxims and aphorisms (Hekman, 1991). He came up with the idea of ​​a radical reassessment of values, rejection of the fundamental concepts of classical philosophy, anticipating an era of escalating nihilism, the loss of faith in the mind of man and humanity. Heidegger, continuing this tradition, focused on criticism of reason and humanism (Hekman, 1991). The reason, according to him, becoming an instrumental and pragmatic, has degenerated into the mind, "is calculated thinking", the highest form and the epitome of which was a technique that leaves no room for humanity (Hekman, 1991). On the horizon of humanity, as Heidegger believed, there is always the barbarism in which "multiplying technique caused the desert." Postmodern as a stage in the development of society as a cultural "era" is associated with the destruction of an irreconcilable social conflict, with the fall of ideological, national, religious barriers, with the age of the information society and universal communication. However, characteristic for postmodern equivalence of all spheres of social activity (economy, politics, law, culture and so on.); centeredness and lack of hierarchy within these areas, pluralism, the dominance of liberalism, the rejection of Eurocentrism (Salberg et al., 2015). The term "postmodern" culture is characterized by a post-industrial information society. The first signs of post-modernism emerged in the Italian architecture in the late 1950s, a bit later; they also appear in the architecture of the United States, other European countries and in Japan. By the end of the 1960s, they spread to other areas of culture and become more sustainable (Salberg et al., 2015). As a special post-modern phenomenon quite clearly manifested itself in the 1970s. In general, the 1970s were a time of self-affirmation of post-modernism. Great response was caused by the appearance in 1979 of the book by French philosopher Jean-F. Loiter "Postmodern Condition", in which many of the features of postmodernism first appeared in the most radical and the relief form (Kellner and Best, 2015). The book caused a lively debate and discussion, which helped get the final recognition of post-modernism, gave it a philosophical and a global dimension and made it a kind of sensation. In the 80 years of postmodernism, it spreads around the world, reaching an impressive success and triumph. Through the means of mass communication, it becomes a fashion, a kind of hallmark of the time, a kind of a pass into the circle of the elect, and dedicated (Kellner and Best, 2015). However, although postmodern and became an international phenomenon, it is most characteristic of Western Europe, as it is here in the most clear form took place prior to his three epochs: Antiquity, the Middle Ages and Modern (Modern). On other continents, the era of modernity is often blurred in the form and in the history of the United States, there are no ancient and medieval. Postmodernism is the result of understanding the development of Western society in the last two or three centuries, called Modern (Kellner and Best, 2015). Accordingly, to describe the era, replace modern, along with the term "postmodernism" and other uses "postmodern," "postmodernism," "late modernity" (Kellner and Best, 2015). The term "postmodernism" is more suitable for art and culture, while others have a broader meaning, covering the whole of society. An important feature of postmodern culture is the nature of the game in general and the staging, which covers all areas of life today. Virtually, all of any significant events take the form of a bright and spectacular show or a show. Theatricality permeates political life. One of the artists of postmodernity is Andy Warhol who worked in a style of pop art (The Art Story, 2015). Politics thus ceases to be a place of active and serious human citizen, but is increasingly becoming a noisy spectacle, becoming a place of emotional discharge. Source: Webs.wichita.edu, (2015). Ulrich Museum of Art - Wichita State University. [online] Available at: http://webs.wichita.edu/?u=ulrichmuseum&p=/art/permanentcollection/warholcampbells/ [Accessed 14 Nov. 2015]. Source: The Art Story, (2015). Andy Warhol Biography, Art, and Analysis of Works. [online] Available at: http://www.theartstory.org/artist-warhol-andy.htm [Accessed 14 Nov. 2015]. In to some degree, a reaction to customary scholastic art, the art of modernism is about individual expression. Art students of history frequently utilize "self-governing" to portray present day workmanship. The vernacular would be “art because of art” purpose (Stokstad and Cothren, 2013). Postmodernism pulls far from the cutting edge concentrate on inventiveness, and the work is intentionally unoriginal. While modern craftsmen, for example, Barnett Newman or Mark Rothko settled on shading decisions that were intended to unite with the viewer inwardly, postmodern specialists like Robert Rauschenberg acquaint chance with the procedure. Source: paintingandframe.com, (2015). Mark Rothko Four Darks in Red 1958 painting - Four Darks in Red 1958 print for sale. [online] Available at: http://paintingandframe.com/prints/mark_rothko_four_darks_in_red_1958-15825.html [Accessed 14 Nov. 2015]. The first course in the twentieth century modernist art is considered to be Fauvism. French critics called Fauvism group of young artists that included Henri Matisse, A. Deron, M. Vlaminck, A. Marque and others (Stokstad and Cothren, 2013). Their joint exhibition activity has been most intense in the years 1902-1907. Fauves had his own theory of the manifesto (Worldofarts.eu, 2015). The members were united only by the desire for pictorial experimentation with colour. For Fauves, seeks to open the bright colours they are widely used in the genre of landscape. The maximum expression of colour, the organization with the help of artistic space, the active influence of colours on the composition ratio of pieces of art - all this is characteristic of Fauvism (Worldofarts.eu, 2015). Colour experiments by Fauves painters had a definite influence on the formation of the fine arts of the twentieth century. Source: The Great History of Art, (2015). Fauvism. [online] Available at: http://thegreathistoryofarts.weebly.com/fauvism.html [Accessed 14 Nov. 2015]. Source: Worldofarts.eu, (2015). Fauvism – World of Arts. [online] Available at: http://worldofarts.eu/fauvism/ [Accessed 14 Nov. 2015]. Another direction of modernism became Dada (French dadaisme by duda - horse, horse, metaphorically - a rambling sophomoric), an avant-garde trend in Western European art, which has developed mainly in Switzerland, France and Germany during World War I (1916) (Foster, 2004). Dada originated in Switzerland among the intelligentsia prone in their protest against the war to a unique artistic outrageous. The founders of the Dada poets were T. Ttsara and R. Gyulzenbek, artist G. Arp, and others (Foster, 2004). Source: Imaginasie. (2012). DADA 1916 - 1922. [online] Available at: https://imaginasie.wordpress.com/2012/08/16/dada-1916-1922/ [Accessed 14 Nov. 2015]. Futurism as the direction of modern art declared itself in 1909. The birth of art of the future (from the Latin - Futurum) accompanied by loud scandals. Futurists believed that the work of art should not reflect the reality. The object of art should not be the objective world, and the motion introduced by the artist in the matter by the synthesis of time, place, form, colour, and tone. Futurism opposed itself to realism, abandoning the realization of art image of man, his spiritual and physical beauty (Foster, 2004). Rejection of realism was closely linked to Futurism with intuitional, which, along with the elements of Nietzsche was the philosophical base of this trend. Conclusion If quoted a modernist myth for approval of the hierarchy of values, the appeal to the postmodernist myth leads to the destruction of the sacred. Thus, the opposition of modernism and postmodernism comes down to different interpretations of reality under which contemporary culture involves text and creates his art on the verge of text and reality. Postmodernism does not display the same reality, but creates new one or a few realities that exist as a single hypertext. The principle of hypertext implemented in any dictionary or encyclopaedia, in which each article has links to other articles of the same dictionary. In other words, hypertext - text is arranged in such a way that it turns into a system, a hierarchy of texts, at the same time making their unity and set. In addition, if literature of modernism offers a subjective vision of objective reality, complicated allusions and cultural allusions, the postmodern work is a model of the world, the only possibility for its creator. In the postmodern, aesthetic world is a closed system on the principle of hypertext, playing masks of the past. Bibliography Foster, H. (2004). Art since 1900. New York: Thames & Hudson.\ Hekman, S. (1991). Reconstituting the Subject: Feminism, Modernism, and Postmodernism. Hypatia, 6(2), pp.44-63. Imaginasie. (2012). DADA 1916 - 1922. [online] Available at: https://imaginasie.wordpress.com/2012/08/16/dada-1916-1922/ [Accessed 14 Nov. 2015]. Kellner, D. and Best, S. (2015). Postmodern Theory. Chapter 1: In Search of the Postmodern. [online] Pages.gseis.ucla.edu. Available at: https://pages.gseis.ucla.edu/faculty/kellner/pomo/ch1.html [Accessed 14 Nov. 2015]. Paintingandframe.com. (2015). Mark Rothko Four Darks in Red 1958 painting - Four Darks in Red 1958 print for sale. [online] Available at: http://paintingandframe.com/prints/mark_rothko_four_darks_in_red_1958-15825.html [Accessed 14 Nov. 2015]. Salberg, D., Stuart, R., Wesley, K. and Weiss, S. (2015). Postmodernism and Its Critics - Anthropological Theories - Department of Anthropology - The University of Alabama. [online] Anthropology.ua.edu. Available at: http://anthropology.ua.edu/cultures/cultures.php?culture=Postmodernism%20and%20Its%20Critics [Accessed 14 Nov. 2015]. Stokstad, M. and Cothren, M. (2013). Art history. Boston: Pearson. The Art Story. (2015). Andy Warhol Biography, Art, and Analysis of Works. [online] Available at: http://www.theartstory.org/artist-warhol-andy.htm [Accessed 14 Nov. 2015]. The Art Story. (2015). Mark Rothko Biography, Art, and Analysis of Works. [online] Available at: http://www.theartstory.org/artist-rothko-mark.htm [Accessed 14 Nov. 2015]. The Art Story. (2015). Postmodern Art - Modern Art Terms and Concepts. [online] Available at: http://www.theartstory.org/definition-postmodernism.htm [Accessed 14 Nov. 2015]. The Great History of Art, (2015). Fauvism. [online] Available at: http://thegreathistoryofarts.weebly.com/fauvism.html [Accessed 14 Nov. 2015]. Webs.wichita.edu. (2015). Ulrich Museum of Art - Wichita State University. [online] Available at: http://webs.wichita.edu/?u=ulrichmuseum&p=/art/permanentcollection/warholcampbells/ [Accessed 14 Nov. 2015]. Worldofarts.eu. (2015). Fauvism – World of Arts. [online] Available at: http://worldofarts.eu/fauvism/ [Accessed 14 Nov. 2015]. Read More