New Genres
Encyclopedia
New Genres is an artistic movement begun in the early 20th century. The movement is marked by many famous artists through sculpture, film, body art, installation, performance, photography, painting, and media yet to be discovered.
and Marcel Duchamp
initiated this movement. Their work laid a foundation for the experimental practice of New Genres. Duchamp's "Fountain" (1917) introduced the idea of the readymade object: a non-art object which becomes viewed as art due to the intention and designation of the artist. This new use of artistic power and questioning of the art object opened up the conceptual sphere of New Genres. Man Ray invented new photographic techniques, notably solarization
and rayographs. These discoveries illuminated the idea that art was possible outside the field of the classical genres, such as painting and sculpture.
To understand the movement of New Genres, it is important to look at the events occurring simultaneously in the 20th century. In the first half of the century, World War I
broke out and caused devastation to much of Eastern Europe. In America, the Great Depression
caused a major economic crises that affected many parts of the world. World War II
quickly followed, splitting the world into two alliances: the Allies
and the Axis
. This war caused tremendous damage, and introduced new tragedies into the world, such as the Holocaust, and the first nuclear weapons.
At the end of the 1970s, new media art
began to enter the scene. A major focus of this art was, self-explanatorily, the use
of new and developing technology. While photography had been around for many years, cameras and film you could easily and compactly travel with were newly born in 1889 by George Eastman. In 1895, Louis Lumiere is said to have created the first video, or motion picture, camera. Though many people before him had created similar cameras, he is credited with the invention of a portable video camera, a film processing unit, and projector. These three things made the Cinematographe, which began the motion picture era . Using these two technological advancements, along with many others, artists began to expand their ideas about materials and their function in art, dipping into the modern art
movement.
Definition
As much as the method of New Genres art-making is open-ended, the definition of New Genres is various and composed of contradictory ideas. One way to construe New Genres is to understand it through Larry Shiner's theory of the modern system of art: despite the continual acts of resistance, "the fine art world [is] expanding its own limits, by assimilating new types of art, [...] and by seemingly dissolving its boundaries completely."Historical context
While there is no official date that begins the New Genre period, many believe that the early 20th century work of Man RayMan Ray
Man Ray , born Emmanuel Radnitzky, was an American artist who spent most of his career in Paris, France. Perhaps best described simply as a modernist, he was a significant contributor to both the Dada and Surrealist movements, although his ties to each were informal...
and Marcel Duchamp
Marcel Duchamp
Marcel Duchamp was a French artist whose work is most often associated with the Dadaist and Surrealist movements. Considered by some to be one of the most important artists of the 20th century, Duchamp's output influenced the development of post-World War I Western art...
initiated this movement. Their work laid a foundation for the experimental practice of New Genres. Duchamp's "Fountain" (1917) introduced the idea of the readymade object: a non-art object which becomes viewed as art due to the intention and designation of the artist. This new use of artistic power and questioning of the art object opened up the conceptual sphere of New Genres. Man Ray invented new photographic techniques, notably solarization
Solarization
Solarization refers to a phenomenon in physics where a material undergoes a temporary change in color after being subjected to high energy electromagnetic radiation, such as ultraviolet light or X-rays. Clear glass and many plastics will turn amber, green or other colors when subjected to...
and rayographs. These discoveries illuminated the idea that art was possible outside the field of the classical genres, such as painting and sculpture.
To understand the movement of New Genres, it is important to look at the events occurring simultaneously in the 20th century. In the first half of the century, World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
broke out and caused devastation to much of Eastern Europe. In America, the Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
caused a major economic crises that affected many parts of the world. World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
quickly followed, splitting the world into two alliances: the Allies
Allies
In everyday English usage, allies are people, groups, or nations that have joined together in an association for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out between them...
and the Axis
Axis Powers
The Axis powers , also known as the Axis alliance, Axis nations, Axis countries, or just the Axis, was an alignment of great powers during the mid-20th century that fought World War II against the Allies. It began in 1936 with treaties of friendship between Germany and Italy and between Germany and...
. This war caused tremendous damage, and introduced new tragedies into the world, such as the Holocaust, and the first nuclear weapons.
At the end of the 1970s, new media art
New media art
New media art is a genre that encompasses artworks created with new media technologies, including digital art, computer graphics, computer animation, virtual art, Internet art, interactive art, computer robotics, and art as biotechnology...
began to enter the scene. A major focus of this art was, self-explanatorily, the use
of new and developing technology. While photography had been around for many years, cameras and film you could easily and compactly travel with were newly born in 1889 by George Eastman. In 1895, Louis Lumiere is said to have created the first video, or motion picture, camera. Though many people before him had created similar cameras, he is credited with the invention of a portable video camera, a film processing unit, and projector. These three things made the Cinematographe, which began the motion picture era . Using these two technological advancements, along with many others, artists began to expand their ideas about materials and their function in art, dipping into the modern art
Modern art
Modern art includes artistic works produced during the period extending roughly from the 1860s to the 1970s, and denotes the style and philosophy of the art produced during that era. The term is usually associated with art in which the traditions of the past have been thrown aside in a spirit of...
movement.
See also
- FuturismFuturismFuturism was an artistic and social movement that originated in Italy in the early 20th century.Futurism or futurist may refer to:* Afrofuturism, an African-American and African diaspora subculture* Cubo-Futurism* Ego-Futurism...
- Joseph BeuysJoseph BeuysJoseph Beuys was a German performance artist, sculptor, installation artist, graphic artist, art theorist and pedagogue of art.His extensive work is grounded in concepts of humanism, social philosophy and anthroposophy; it culminates in his "extended definition of art" and the idea of social...
- Marcel DuchampMarcel DuchampMarcel Duchamp was a French artist whose work is most often associated with the Dadaist and Surrealist movements. Considered by some to be one of the most important artists of the 20th century, Duchamp's output influenced the development of post-World War I Western art...
- John CageJohn CageJohn Milton Cage Jr. was an American composer, music theorist, writer, philosopher and artist. A pioneer of indeterminacy in music, electroacoustic music, and non-standard use of musical instruments, Cage was one of the leading figures of the post-war avant-garde...
- Man RayMan RayMan Ray , born Emmanuel Radnitzky, was an American artist who spent most of his career in Paris, France. Perhaps best described simply as a modernist, he was a significant contributor to both the Dada and Surrealist movements, although his ties to each were informal...
- Dan GrahamDan GrahamDan Graham , is a conceptual artist now working out of New York City. He is an influential figure in the field of contemporary art, both a practitioner of conceptual art and an art critic and theorist. His art career began in 1964 when he moved to New York and opened the John Daniels Gallery....
- Allan KaprowAllan KaprowAllan Kaprow was an American painter, assemblagist and a pioneer in establishing the concepts of performance art. He helped to develop the "Environment" and "Happening" in the late 1950s and 1960s, as well as their theory. His Happenings - some 200 of them - evolved over the years...
- Black Mountain CollegeBlack Mountain CollegeBlack Mountain College, a school founded in 1933 in Black Mountain, North Carolina, was a new kind of college in the United States in which the study of art was seen to be central to a liberal arts education, and in which John Dewey's principles of education played a major role...
- NSCAD conceptual artNSCAD conceptual artNSCAD conceptual art refers to a period beginning in 1969 when Nova Scotia College of Art and Design , a post-secondary art school in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada became an important art centre with an international reputation.-History:...
- ConstructivismConstructivismConstructivism may refer to:* Constructivist epistemology, the philosophical view* Constructivism in international relations* Constructivism , a philosophical view on mathematical proofs and existence of mathematical objects...
- Institutional CritiqueInstitutional CritiqueInstitutional Critique is an art term that describes the systematic inquiry into the workings of art institutions, for instance galleries and museums, and is most associated with the work of artists such as Michael Asher, Marcel Broodthaers, Daniel Buren, Andrea Fraser, Fred Wilson and Hans...
- Relational Aesthetics
- Performance ArtPerformance artIn art, performance art is a performance presented to an audience, traditionally interdisciplinary. Performance may be either scripted or unscripted, random or carefully orchestrated; spontaneous or otherwise carefully planned with or without audience participation. The performance can be live or...
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