Art History 306 - Dissertation Example

Based on your reading of both of Irving Sandler’s pieces on the New York school (the milieu of the New York school in the early fifties, and the community of the New York school” How would you characterize the art scene in New York at this time? The emergence of the New York art scene in the early fifties was a unique phenomenon. It was a social movement as well as an artistic one. The end of World War II brought artists such as Hofmann and de Kooning from Europe to America. Along with other vanguard artists, they settled in and around the area which came to be known as “Tenth Street” (Sandler, 1978, p.30) in downtown New York where they “live, work and show” their work.

The proximity and accessibility of the artists to each other’s lives and work sprouted an art “scene” with “constant face to face encounters…constant feedback, mutual awareness” (Sandler, 1978, pg. 30) and frequent socializing in “semi-public and public meeting places”. (Sandler, 1978, p. 29) The ambience was electric, for it “generated social and intellectual exchanges”, “and it was natural for vanguard artists in every field to gravitate to the world of the New York school” (Sandler, 1978, p.22). This solidarity was reinforced by a post war sentiment of alienation which could best be summarized as “you had a feeling … of you and your friends against everyone on the outside.

” (Sandler, 1978, p. 29) Disillusioned further by the political climate and pseudo culture of Middle America, the vanguard artists turned to their art for “self-discovery, freedom of belief and action, and autonomous, honest creation.” (Sandler, 1978, p.21) The canvas became an “arena in which to act” (Rosenberg, 1959) and gestural painting was adopted by such influential figures as de Kooning and Hofmann. Art produced during this time was coined Abstract Expressionism (Rosenberg, 1959).

Hofmann stressed the importance of painterliness because every stroke was a step towards self-actualization and it was believed by many artists that “the artist is one of the most moral and idealistic of beings”. Hofmann and de Kooning were influential figures promoting this spirit as “heirs of modern European art” (Sandler, 1978, p.8) and abstract art became a fertile ground for self-discovery. The concentration of artists following Hofmann and de Kooning grew and the art scene which began as a loose network of acquaintances (Sandler, 1978, p. 1) became more organized.

De Kooning and others “organized a club (dubbed simply the Club)” and “it was to be the focal point of New York school activities for more than a decade”. Discussions were held at the Club of “every conceivable aesthetic issue” but recurring themes revolve around the “basis of the group identity and what changes had occurred in the New York school as the fifties progressed”. (Sandler, 1978, p. 31) This pursuit of a collective identity was taken outside “the Club” to “informal talk” at the Cedar Street Tavern.

(Sandler, 1978, p.32) This “identity” of being “in” the New York school was closely guarded by the group as they loved the “drabness” of Cedar’s because it “discouraged Greenwich Village Bohemians and slumming Madison Avenue types from frequenting”. (Sandler, 1978, p.32) After harnessing a collective identity, artists began to show their works to the public at “salons” such as the “Ninth Street Show” and “Stable Annuals”. Despite the audience it drew, Abstract Expressionism was not accepted into mainstream galleries until much later.

The artists decided to open their own art galleries, attracted many art critics “all of whom made a practice of visiting studios and of bringing kindred artists”. The vanguard artists also attracted artists from other fields and “provided them with a search on simultaneous fronts for the personal voice”. (Sandler, 1978, p.22) The fascination for the vanguard artists, their work but mostly their way of life at the time was probably “the energy these people generated” and some even said they “totally bought Abstract Expressionism as spiritual autobiography”.

(Sandler, 1978, pg.23) In short, the New York art scene in the fifties provided a sense of community and identity to a group of dissident vanguard artists and a much appreciated platform. To reiterate, it was where they “live, work and show their work.” Text and References Sandler, Irving. (1978). The New York School in the Early Fifties. New York. Harper & Row. Rosenberg, Harold (1959). The Tradition of the New. (1959) - Ayer Co Pub.