Early Modern Art
The Early 20th Century: The Age of Anxiety
It is no secret why the early 20th century can be referred to as “The Age of Anxiety”. This monumental time was marked by incredible change; industrial, economical, social and cultural. Defining events of the early 20th century include The Great Depression, World War I, and more. All of these rapid changes greatly impacted the arts during this time, but they weren't always positive. All of the uncertainty and anxiety experienced by whole societies were expressed and reflected through the artwork produced during this time. To further prove that point, I'll be discussing works from artists Jackson Pollock, Dorothea Lange, and Hannah Höch.
The Flame (1934-1938)
The Flame by Jackson Pollock, I believe, is accurately representative of the stress, anxiety, and overwhelming fear the people of this time must've experienced. Pollock was an American painter, and the leading force behind the abstract expressionist movement in the art world during this time and beyond. Although this painting isn't very Dada-style art, it's still very much abstract art, which is an important element of Dada. Painted with oil on a canvas, this painting is extremely angry and intimidating, but the raw energy it beholds intrigues me. The colors to express the emotions of this painting are vibrant red, orange, yellow, tan, white, brown, black, and very light pink. Pollock painted a series of angry flames intertwining and crowding each other. The use of black is very functional, as it amplifies the vibrant colors of the flames and brings them into focus. Besides the dead give away of the title, I think it's safe to assume that Pollock painted shapes of flames due to the wicked, curved lines and fiery colors he used. This makes me wonder what he's burning? Or is this just representational of what is going on in his mind? After conducting research on The Flame, I found out that Pollock was likely influenced by the scenes of flames and human sacrifice in José Clemente Orozco's famous mural at Dartmouth College, The Epic of American Civilization (1932-34), which Pollock had visited in 1936. I learned that the color white is used to depict a burning skeleton. I think this painting would look great in a high-end tattoo parlor, because that's the only fitting place I could think of in today's time. Like I said, this piece is intimidating and angry... Perfect for a tattoo parlor.
The Migrant Mother (1936)
Instead of a painting, I wanted to incorporate photography into my blog as well. The Migrant Mother was taken by Dorothea Lange, and it's one of the most iconic photographs from the Great Depression. Frances Owens Thompson, the main subject of this image, was a thirty-two year old, homeless pea-picker, who was out of work due to failing crops. Attached to her are her two small children, as well as her young infant cuddled in her lap. This image instantly became very circulated during the 1930’s due to how well it humanized the Great Depression. Looking into the face of Frances, she looks tired and worrisome. The deep wrinkles forming upon her forehead and brow express her exhausted, worried state. The two children laying their heads on each of her shoulders provide a really powerful emotion for me. I feel sad for her and her family. I can tell she is struggling very hard to support not only her children, but herself as well. I believe that this photograph, and the story behind it, is superior in regards to demonstrating the anxiety of the time.
Cut with the Kitchen Knife Dada Through the Last Weimar Beer Belly Cultural Epoch of Germany (1919)
Keeping the trend of introducing artwork other than paintings, here is a photomontage created by Hannah Höch that I found incredibly intriguing. Cut with the Kitchen Knife Dada Through the Last Weimar Beer Belly Cultural Epoch of Germany is a cross section of Weimar Germany's cultural and political milieu. This very abstract piece can have an array of interpretations. As you can see, this is an extremely busy, messy, and overwhelming collage-- something that I don't really enjoy looking at, to be honest. However, it's very intriguing to me because there is so much going on that I feel is important to dissect. There are many elements that are representative of the post war feelings at that time, like the scattered words "Dada" and "Anti". I see a lot of industrial/environmental settings in this collage, like tire wheels, cars, gears, and tools. I believe this is representative of the period after World War I ended in Europe, and the nation started to rebuild, but it was still a time of uncertainty and anxiousness. Although the main colors used are tan, soft white, black, and rusted brown, I do see some hints of blue. I appreciate that little pop of color, as blue is very calming for me. I did some research on this piece and noticed things I didn't notice on my own at first. In the lower right corner, you can see that Höch included a map. I learned that this map actually indicates what countries where women were allowed to vote -- a right only recently ratified in Germany in 1918. Höch was classified as a "New Woman", which was basically a historical construct meaning she was a young, independent, often smartly dressed with a short bob hairstyle, eschewing home and family life in favor of joining the workforce woman. This made her artwork relevant not only to German culture and politics, but to changing gender roles too. What a bad ass!
Overall, as influential and important Cut with the Kitchen Knife Dada Through the Last Weimar Beer Belly Cultural Epoch of Germany is, it's a little overwhelming and not so aesthetically pleasing to me. I do appreciate the creativity and passion of it, though. I wouldn't own this collage in my own home, but I can see this in a historical themed coffee shop, centered on a wall surrounded by neutral colored, smaller artwork.
Reflection
Though it may not be the first thing many people think to turn to in relation to understanding history, artwork can do a great job of not only showing what happened in the past, but it can also show how society felt and what they cared about during different periods. In less than forty years, the world was changing rapidly, especially in America. Though change can be good, it is often stressful, which is why societies were so anxious during the early 20th century.
Sources
"Jackson Pollock: The Flame" Art and Artists. The Museum of Modern Art, 2020. https://www.moma.org/collection/works/79680
"Migrant Mother, 1936)" Eye Witness to History, 2005. https://www.eyewitnesstohistory.com/migrantmother.htm
"Hannah Höch, Cut with the Kitchen Knife Dada Through the Last Weimar Beer Belly Cultural Epoch of Germany" Dr. Karen Barber. SmartHistory, August 18, 2020. https://smarthistory.org/hannah-hoch-cut-kitchen-knife-dada-weimar-beer-belly-germany/
"Styles That Emerged After WW1, Before WW2" Visual Arts in the Early Modern Era. Lisa Kljaich, November 3, 2020. https://art200.community.uaf.edu/2009/04/24/03-visual-art-2/
The three pieces you chose I think greatly characterize the anxiety of the era. I have never seen that Jackson Pollock piece before, and I really love it! The colors and chaotic patterns really emphasize the fire. I also analyzed Hannah Höch’s photomontage in my Blog. I like that you can draw two diagonals representing either Dada or “anti-dada” elements. From the top left to the bottom right is Dada and from the top right to the bottom left is “anti-dada.” I agree with you that its not my favorite piece of art to look at, but it is fascinating. Great post!
ReplyDeleteThe Migrant Mother is one of my favorite pieces from this era. It's very simple but carries an extreme amount of weight. It's something I saw and kind of pushed aside before I took AP US history in my junior year, and we really dug into this picture during our great depression unit. I totally agree that this image really humanizes the depression. It's easy to see it as pictures of long bread lines and worthless money as the face, but in reality it's exactly what you've brought to light here. It's people struggling and trying their best just to survive. It's people worn thin from daily trauma, and the seemingly nothingness of everyday life
ReplyDeleteChandler,
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed reading your post and how you made connections to the art. My favorite work that you chose to discuss is The Flame by John Pollock. I really enjoyed looking at this work and studying it. My favorite part is how chaotic the work appears to be. The way that Pollock captured the flames fascinates me. I love how he used the dark black to offset the beautiful and vibrant orange, red, yellow, and tan colors. It makes me feel like I am sitting outside the pitch black looking at the flames coming to life. Like you mentioned in your post, I also wondered what he was burning. I was just at a bonfire the other night which made reviewing this work even more fun for me.
I also chose to discuss The Migrant Mother for my blog post. I really liked incorporating something different into my blog besides paintings just as you did. This photo shows how hard times were back then and how people were struggling. When looking at the mother’s face, you can see how stressed, tired, and sad she is. She almost looks defeated. It also breaks my heart to look at the children who appear to be hiding on her and who also seem defeated and sad. The art element that I noticed for this work was texture. I really like photographs because they can really capture the texture of things and make them feel real.
Cut with the Kitchen Knife Dada Through the Last Weimar Beer Belly Cultural Epoch of Germany is an extremely interesting piece of work. It honestly confuses me, and I cannot find a real connection to it. I really appreciate that you chose this work and were able to form a connection with it because I certainly would not have been able to! This was an awesome challenge that you took on and the way you dissected it was wonderful.
The painting “The Flame” gives me anxiety trying to comprehend how the people lived during the “Great Depression” of this experience trying to live their daily lives, along with trying to survive this hardship they had to endure. The painting of the “Migrant Mom” shows how stressed, tired, exhausted, and worried about how she is trying to think of how she is going to provide for her and her children. It makes me sad also, because of the hardship she and her children endured.
ReplyDelete