Author: xerkss

The Future of Art

With the ever-changing climate, political, socio-economical, and global, the future is uncertain. However these things are clear: climate change, shifting demographics, and geopolitics are shifting rapidly. We can rest assured knowing that there will be changes. It’s worth considering how artists will respond to these changes. As well as what purpose art serves, now and in the future.

Reports suggest that by 2040 the impacts of human-caused climate change will be inescapable. Making it the big issue at the center of art. Art could become more collective and experiential. With political movements and environmental issues taking center stage. The Instagram age for digital art could change from being visible online for all to see to anonymity becoming more desirable than fame.

Art inclusivity

Curator Jeffreen M. Hayes, suggest that “ art in 20 years will be much more fluid than it is today,”. “In the sense of boundaries being collapsed between media. Between the kinds of art that are labeled art, in the traditional sense. I also see it being much more representative of our growing and shifting demographics, so more artists of color, more female-identified works, and everything in between.” He continued.

Some curators look at African Art and artists as the future of art. These artists from African, African-American, Afro-European, and Afro-Latin descent are trending globally. The recent showing at the 2019 Venice Benniale marked an opening to African diaspora artists. Artists are challenging the old social norms through different artistic mediums, and are all on center stage.

Activism

Activism-art campaigns are another trend in the art world. Activist- artists are revealing the power dynamics and unseemly cost that it takes to operate within the art world. Decolonize This Place, a group of artists and activists describing themselves as an “action-oriented movement centering around Indigenous struggle, Black liberation, free Palestine, global wage workers, and de-gentrification protested against the New York’s Whitney Museum of Art vice-chairman Warren B Kanders. Kanders owns a company that manufactures military supplies currently being used to tear-gas people around the world. The protest took place this spring, calling for the Whitney to remove Kanders. The letter produced by the group also contained over 200 signatures from artists and curators, including some of which who took part in the biennial.

Even social media is feeling the effects of activist artists. Photographer Spencer Tunick took part recently in protest at Facebook headquarters where he and the activist group The National Coalition Against Censorship (NCAC) against Facebook’s female nudity policy.

The Age of Modern Art

In 20 years, the market might not differ from what it is today. The modern painting still dominating the art scene. However, works from the second half of the 20th Century may include more women and minorities. These artists may increase in value over time as we’ve seen in the past. The 2017 sale of a painting by Jean-Michel Basquiat, Untitled (1984), set a new record for the most expensive contemporary artwork sold at auction for $110.4m. Also, the market for contemporary African and African diaspora continues to set records. Kerry James Marshall sold at an astounding $21.1m for his work” Past Times: (1997). Setting a new record for living African-American artist.

Modern art sales are still the major driver within the art world. Their sales dominating the market. Most modern paintings made during the first half of the 20th Century continue to be in high demand. And are currently the most inticing and most expensive artworks on the market.

The Future of Art

While some things may not change for the arts, others may change entirely. Museums, for example, maybe an altogether very different place from where we go today.

A museum is not just a place for the audience to visit art. It’s a platform for the artist’s voice to be heard. A museum is a place to find inspiration, where we can take refuge in, and lose ourself in the thoughts and creations of others. With those voices changing steadily museums will most likely include a more diverse selection of artwork. Which will most likely include more minorities and female artists.

“Cultural institutions and collections are highly political and have perpetuated and consolidated a very dogmatic understanding of history,” says Maite Borjabad curator at The Art Institue of Chicago. “That’s why collections like the Art Institute are the perfect material to help us rewrite histories. Plural, rather than just a history.”

In the very near future, art might not look like what we’re used too. However, it will be a reflection of our culture, and politics and environment, just as its always been. This is what makes the future of art so exciting. The ever-changing social norms and taboos shifting. Activists artists using their platform to question politics and normative social tropes. Hopeful artists exploring new mediums to create and display with. The future of art, like all things, is undetermined. It will be what we make it. Hopefully, we will make it a brave and daring one, where we use the past to better our tomorrow.

Social Art

Where the arts thrive, freedom of expression thrives. Art can directly empower the most vulnerable members of society. How does art create social change? Today, artists are committing themselves to create works that address pressing social issues. Using their platform to advocate for changes that the world needs. While some artists use traditional forms of art to make work that reflects on social change others are reaching out – adhering new mediums. This engages communities in an interactive exchange. For example, an artwork might take the form of a website, a street performance, a story exchange, or an urban planning project. Socially engaged art ignites outrage and demands for change. Creating, a platform for reflection, collaboration, and building community. These artistic expressions focus on the community, whether it is local or global.

Many movements in art history have tried to change society in one way or another. Responding to the first world war, Dada artists advocated for silliness and nonsensical behavior in daily life. Groups like the Situationist International played a major role in the revolutionary Paris events of 1968. Exposing the divisions between artists, consumers, and the means of production. And of course, art takes the form of protest, when addressing political and social issues with direct action.

Art Politics

In 1969 a group of Moroccan artist known as the Casablanca School traveled to Marrakech. Owing to the majority of their style to the aesthetic of Bauhaus in Germany, they staged an exhibition in the street. Tapping into the history of abstraction in Arabic art, and heavily influenced by the “hard-edge” paintings in New York by Frank Stella or Elsworth Kelly. They staged an exhibition in the streets. The paintings hung on the city’s dusty walls, were a riot of color and pattern. Taking place near the city medina the Exposition-Manifeste intended to snub the official showroom of Moroccan art.

In more current events, companies like Facebook have faced backlash from censoring art. So much so that they were forced to meet with activist protesting the site’s stance on female nudity. The #FreetheNipple movement is bringing awareness to the constant inequalities women face when bearing their bodies.

How Art brings about Social Change

In 2014, a Pakistani teenager called Saba Qaiser was shot by her father and uncle and thrown into a river. It was her punishment for having eloped with a man she loved. Saba survived and became the protagonist of the documentary about so-called honor killings. A Girl in the River: The Price of Forgiveness. The film went on to win an Oscar.

After seeing the film, Pakistan’s Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif promised to take a tougher line on honor killings. Consequently, he fulfilled his promise. Parliament passed a new law that will make it much harder for the perpetrators to walk free.

In this case, through the power of storytelling, the Pakistani people called for change. Good art educates and creates empathy, and empathy and understanding leads to change. Global leaders in business and politics are increasingly aware of this. Investitures in art is a way of engaging with communities. Thus, improving lives and boosting economic growth. Of course, stories of injustice, protest and resilience are waiting to be told all over the world.

Art and the artist plays a major role in our society. An artist leads, follows, uplifts and provokes us with their work. Creative thinking for social change comes from politicians, economists or business leaders. Likewise, it can come just as easily from musicians, journalists, and visual artists. Art not only provides pleasure and creative inspiration; it also creates a dialogue and brings important issues to the public eye.

Out Of Africa: Noma Osula

The contemporary art movement out of Africa doesn’t seem to be slowing down. Especially not for Nigerian born photographer, Noma Osula. Born and based in Lagos, Nigeria, Osula interest in portraiture is a mainstay in the young artist life. Teaching himself how to use the camera on his final year of university. He found photography to be an ideal format to express his ideas, and portraiture a compelling genre to display them in.

Using color as the focal point in many of his photographs, he captures moments as vivid as they are somber. Dominating the background of his photographs are bursts of color, However, the jubilance feels misplaced in the scenes’ wider contexts.

“Capturing people in bright outfits and awkward poses or weird gestures is my way to reflect on what I see around me,” he explained. “I get a lot of inspiration from my locale — Lagos is a chaotic, colorful, energetic place to be in, and that definitely informs my pictures.” He continues to explain the use of color. “Life in Nigeria is very much defined by color, in a way that’s completely different from the West,” he said. “We have a lot of vibrant patterns all around us, from the clothes we wear to the objects we use.”

The Portraiture: Noma Osula

However, Osula’s pictures don’t just want to challenge local customs. Their aim is to also critique the West’s perceived prestige, in Africa. Through the subjects, the textiles, accessories, and garments they wear, and the sets that surround them, his photographs celebrate the African aesthetic.

“Throughout modern history, western standards have deeply influenced and affected many aspects in African society, including what’s supposed to be aesthetically pleasing,” Osula said. “We’ve been taught to appreciate sharp noses over wide ones, light skin over dark. To shy away from our form of beauty. ” He continued.

“Both subjects didn’t care of what other people might think of them posing like that,” Osula said. “They were ready to experiment, which is why I chose them. We have a lot of social norms in Nigeria, and Africa in general, when it comes to beauty, identity, sexuality, and gender. Society is quite conservative and conforming. There are set ideas on what’s feminine or macho, from colors to garments to how you behave in public. With the people in my photos, I’m trying to push back on that.”

The old tropes and narrow purview of Africa and its many peoples from different countries and cultures is long overdue for a change. With that, Osula believes artists from the continent must help with that narrative. “Most people think of Africa as one big country, not a continent. It’s like, we’re all the same to them. They think it’s a jungle, where people still live in primitive ways and according to exotic notions of beauty. Western photography has often pushed that perspective, as have the media. But we are not primitive,” Osula said.

Unafraid of challenging the social norms Noma Osula work chronicles the beginnings of new era in African art.

The earliest stylings of American artist were based primarily on English ideals. During the 19th century, American artists became well known. However, it was in the 20th century when the United States began its major influence on the international art world. The great American artist took on the worlds art stage with their talent, daring and innovation.

The first prominent art movement in the United States was Realism. These scenes depict contemporary social realities and the lives of ordinary people. Abstract Expressionism is the first American movement to specifically achieve international influence. It emphasized on conveying strong emotional or expressive content through abstraction. Following that movement was Pop Art. This is characterized by the use of recognizable imagery from popular cultures.  Advertisements, celebrities, and comic book characters are all apart of pop art. The U.S. also played a major role in modernism, Neo-Expressionism and Graffiti Art.

Here is a list of a few great American artists, and their amazing masterpieces.

Landscape – Thomas Cole

Technically English, Thomas Cole is a great American artist. He is most known for his depictions of the American landscape. Originally an engraver, Cole was a self-taught painter. He relied on books and studied the works of other artists. However, this does not diminish his natural talent. While he is known for his landscapes, Cole also painted many allegorical works. Most famous among them was a five-part series The Course Empire.

Cole’s work went on to influence entire generations. He founded the Hudson River School and his work is currently on display at museums and galleries across America.

Abstract Expressionism – Jackson Pollock

Skipping ahead a century after Thomas Coles’ depiction of the American frontier we have Jackson Pollock and abstract expressionism. Abstract expressionism is the first American art form to affect the international art stage. Pollock was a major figure in the Abstract Expressionism movement. Widely noticed for his technique of pouring or splashing liquid household paint onto a horizontal surface. Labeling this the ‘drip technique’, enabling him to view and paint his canvases from all angles. Action painting is another term assigned to Pollock. Using the force of his whole body to paint, often in a frenetic dancing style. Often dividing the critics: some praised the immediacy and fluency of the creation, while others derided the random effects. In 2016, Pollock’s painting titled Number 17A  generated attention for it US$200 million in a private purchase.

Realist – Edward Hopper

Hopper is widely acknowledged as the most important realist painter of twentieth-century America. However, his vision of reality was a selective one. Consequently, reflecting his own temperament in the empty cityscapes, landscapes, and isolated figures. His work demonstrates that realism is not just a literal or photographic copying of what we see but it is also an interpretive rendering.  In 2018, Hoppers masterpiece ‘Chop Suey” amazed bidders. Believing the work would most likely make its way to sell for no less than $100 million. However, instantly recognizable, the piece was estimated to sell for $70 million. Going on to sell for drastically higher than the estimated price with copious amounts of fanfare.

Modernist – Georgia O’Keeffe

Peaking between the two World Wars, American Modernism is an artistic and cultural movement. It is a deliberate departure from tradition and use of innovative forms of expression. Georgia O’Keeffe became the leading figure in American Modernism. Combining abstraction and representation, she challenged the boundaries of artistic style with her paintings. Creating dramatically large, sensual close-ups of flowers – she essentially made them into abstract images. Notably, Georgia O’Keeffe was highly significant in influencing the gender balance in the artistic scene. Certainly, the “Mother of American Modernism“, she is not only the most famous female American artist.  She also one of the most influential figures of 20th-century art.

Pop Art – Andy Warhol

No list of great American artist would be complete without mentioning the master of pop art – Andy Warhol. Warhol is the best known and most influential artist of the Pop Art movement.  So much so he is known as the “Pope of Pop”.  His style is neither classical or really painting combined with the commercial aspects of his paintings initially caused offense. Consequently, his style was an affront to the technique and philosophy of abstract expressionism. Undoubtedly, his works created an uproar in the American art world.  The resulting controversy made Warhol a household name. A prolific artist, he explored a wide variety of media including painting, silk screening, photography, film, and sculpture. His most famous paintings are silk screenings of typical American objects and celebrities.  

Graffiti – Jean-Michel Basquiat

Graffiti now commonly known as street art is a common practice in our cities. Tagging our urban landscapes with brightly colored buildings, across the city skyline. Heralding the charge for this movement was Jean-Michel Basquiat. Homeless and unemployed,  Basquiat began his career as a graffiti artist. The movement, reaching its peak in the U.S. in the late 1970s and early 1980s. In 1976, Together with his friend Al Diaz the duo spray-painted graffiti on buildings in Lower Manhattan and on the New York Transit Line. Using the pseudonym SAMO, an acronym for “Same Old Shit” the tag team are first generation street artist. However, in 1979, the team split and the project ended.

By the 1980s, Basquiat swiftly rose to become one of the most well-known artists in the United States. As a result, his art focused on “suggestive dichotomies”. Highlighting the gaping discrepancies between wealth versus poverty, integration versus segregation, and inner versus outer experience. Jean-Michel Basquiat is perhaps the most famous American artist of the Neo-expressionism movement. His work gave rise to an entire generation of street artists. Certainly, artists such as Banksy, Above, Keith Harring use themes inspired by Basquiat.

The influence of these artists and many more have inspired hundreds of artist. Consequently, creating a narrative through time with art. Innovation, daring, and cunning are just a few words to describe the great American artist. Certainly, their works reflect the greatest of Americana – bravery, unyielding courage, and passion.