Pop Art

21 Aug, 2004 in art pottery by admin

Pop Art
Pop Art

A Brief History of Pop Art

Pop art started in the USA during the earlier period of the 1960's. But it was already making its presence felt in the late fifties. Pop art was basically an art movement which aimed to replace the abstract mode of artistic expression with messages that are easier to understand. The pioneers of this art movement were Robert Rauschenberg and Jasper Johns. The boom of this art movement or phenomenon mainly happened in New York City. The initiators of Pop art believed that the metaphysical complexities of abstract art are already out of tune as times and people had become different. As its followers believed in the power of easy to recognize images of common items, pop art introduced new objects such as flags, maps and targets or stuffed animals and rubber tires on paintings. Irony, sarcasm, and mockery were the favorite aspects of this art movement. Pop art in many ways was a form of rebellion to the dictates of traditional expressionism. According to pop art, confining ourselves to the old rules of the arts can make us stagnant as they fit only with the old era.

Some of the known advocates of this new artistic movement were Claes Oldenburg, James Rosenquist Andy Warhol and Roy Lichtenstein. They shocked the painting world with their works that courageously introduced pop culture symbols such as comic strips, advertisements, and media images. Pop art was not just a far cry from the traditional rules on visual expression. It was in itself a slap in the face to the dictates of abstract painting style. Because the public could easily relate to its features, pop art gained the appreciation and support of many art critic groups. But in spite of that traditional abstract expressionism continued to flourish as it is the respected root of classic art. As they say, nothing beats the original. As pop art maintained its mockery activities, it did not reduce the popularity of abstract expressionism.

As abstract expressionism prevailed, pop art also continued to make its presence felt. The rivalry between these two styles resulted in the establishment of two new schools of abstraction: minimalist art and color-field painting. Minimalist art reduced art to its bare elements in reaction to the flamboyance of abstract expressionism. Frequently criticized for being too unapproachable, minimalist art has also been celebrated for its unprecedented immediacy. It attains this immediacy through abstract form, absence of decorative detail, and emphasis on geometry. On the other hand, color-field artists moved toward a more impersonal and austerely intellectual aesthetic. In their works they dealt with what they considered to be the fundamental formal elements of abstract painting. These elements are pure, unmodulated areas of color, flat and two-dimensional space, monumental scale, and the varying shape of the canvas itself.

Pop art and abstract expressionism engaged in a somewhat bitter rivalry in the American sixties. These two artistic styles struggled to get hold of the public's support. While abstract expressionism tried to keep its old tradition and rules, pop art considered its rival an elitist approach that influenced America's consumer society.

About the Author

Mark Traston is an associate with Portrait Painting. The company specializes in turning a photo to painting. Each portrait artist specializes in a specific area including wedding paintings, baby portraits, and executive portraits.

is a painting of the human heart considered pop art?

because i need to do a painting for art class and i was wondering if the human heart would be considered pop art since its easily reconizable
if not .. any ideas of what i could do?

Pop art doesn't mean the picture has to be stylized. Pop art is short for popular art, art of icons, household things, readily recognizable because they're a part of popular culture. I don't think a heart would count as pop art because it isn't a big part of popular culture. Yes it's easily recognizable but not because of popular culture. The king from burger king is pop art, Jesus could be considered pop art, Mickey Mouse and the Pillsbury dough boy, a microwave, a happy meal... etc

Introduction to Pop Art