Art Movements: From Chinese Prints to Modern Design
Art Movements: A Timeline
1. Chinese Prints:
- Invention of paper in 105 AD: To enable Chinese scholars to study their scriptures, the classic texts and accompanying holy images were carved onto huge, flat stone slabs. After the lines were incised, damp paper was pressed and molded on the surface, so that the paper was held in the incised lines. Ink was applied, and the paper was then carefully removed. The resulting image appeared as white lines on a black background. In this technique lies the very conception of printing. The development of printing continued with the spread of Buddhism from India to China; images and text were printed on paper from a single block. This method of combining text and image is called block-book printing.
2. Industrial Revolution
3. Turn of the Century: Dehumanizing effect of mechanization and industry…but on the other hand, there’s a trend about handcrafted elements and the importance of humanity.
4. Arts and Crafts:
- Back to Middle Ages.
- Straight lines:
- With soft curves.
- Harder contour.
- Clean.
- Negative Space.
- Woodcut feel.
- Font: gothic, serif.
5. Aestheticism: (1870-1914) A search for ideal beauty.
6. Art Nouveau: (1890-1919) Use of natural forms, high contrast shapes and patterns.
- Use of figure/ground relationship.
- Stone Lithography based on wood cut.
- Thick to thin sweeping lines.
- Organic/nature themes and symbols.
- Feminine, fairies.
- Contour lines.
- Layers.
- Font: sweeping, thick and thin, serif.
7. Fine Art: Post-Impressionism.
8. Art Deco: (1920-30)
- Progressive women’s movement.
- Speed:
- Automobile, train.
- Space.
- Egyptian motif.
- Crisp, tailored.
- Louder, solid colors.
- Font: sans serif, thick.
- Mindset: an embrace of technology
- Machine inspired.
- Sleek lines.
- Bold geometric shapes.
- Lavish ornamentation.
- Lack of any scientific inner philosophy.
9. Cubism: (Characteristics) figures broken up into abstract forms, techniques of the past, not imitate natural forms. Influences Picasso.
- Grids, alignment and typography were disregarded.
- Letters were now expressive elements of design.
- Emphasized the attributes of motion and speed fused with cubism abstraction.
10. Fine Art: Cubism:
- Grids, alignment and typography were disregarded.
- Letters were now expressive elements of design.
- Emphasized the attributes of motion and speed fused with cubism abstractions.
11. Dada (1916-1923): The essence of dadaism is the manipulation of images depending on the context and the purpose (something so contemporary like the memes)
12. Abstract Modernism (30’s):
- Futurism.
- Dadaism.
- Expressionism.
- Randomness.
- Chance.
- Collage/photos.
- Artists as designers.
- Font: Capital letters.
- Random various.
- Languages, many fonts.
- Anamanapia, sans serif.
13. Surrealism.
14. Mark Rothko.
15. Mid-Century Modern:
- Advertisements switch to youth.
- National TV.
- Magazines.
- Design curriculum in college.
- Leisure and family.
- Cheerful optimism after WWII.
- Working mom’s.
- Influences advertisement.
- Font: variety, tag lines, story plots.
16. 60’s-70’s:
- Hallucinogenic drugs.
- Peace Campaigns.
- Bright color.
- Mixed media.
- Japanese prints.
- Eastern Influence.
17. 80’s-90’s:
- In your face advertising.
- Photography.
- Style over substance.
- Sex sells.
- Use of supermodels and stars.
- Bold colors.
18. Present:
- Clean lines.
- Simple compositions.
- Space.
- Return to early modernism.
- Use of nostalgia for humor.
- Limited resources for models.
- Use of illustration and silk screen.
- Green Design.
- Less about the consumer, more about the world/environment.
- About empathy.