We started this lecture by finishing our discussion of Surrealism with Frida Kahlo’s The Two Fridas (1939). Kahlo did not consider herself to be a surrealist, as her work was not depicting dreams but rather her reality. In this painting, she depicts herself as two different people, exemplifying her complex racial identity, as her mother was an indigenous Mexican and her father was a Hungarian jew. She is dressed in traditional Mexican clothing on the right and in a Victoria dress on the left. Kahlo’s work was likely inspired by retablos and ex-votos, two traditional types of Mexican art.
We then discussed Abstraction and De Stijl, starting with Piet Mondrian’s Composition en Rouge, Bleu et Jaune (1930). This painting is a key example of reduction, featuring only horizontal and vertical lines, three primary colors, and black and white. There is no shading, as color is applied in a completely flat way. De Stijl was founded in Amsterdam by Mondrian and other artists and architects. They believed that geometric abstraction was utopian, resulting in spiritual harmony and perfection. This new image of the world was based upon the underlying mathematical structure of the universe, and art was seen as the medium through which this harmony could be conveyed. We also examined Mondrian’s earlier paintings of trees from 1908-1912, revealing how his style developed through simplification of lines and abstract application of color. We then looked at several buildings, starting with Gerrit Rietveld’s Schröder House (1924) in Utrecht. Like the work of Mondrian, Rietveld’s architectural style uses primary colors and geometric harmony. We then looked at Walter Gropius’ Bauhaus (1925-26) in Dessau. Bauhaus was an art school founded in Weimar in 1919 as a “workshop-like school embracing modernity.” The utilitarian design of the building emphasizes the utopian ideals of the institution itself, coupled with the newfound love of technology in the Machine Age. It features a glass curtain and socle. Next we examined Le Corbusier’s Villa Savoye (1928-29). This villa is mostly white and has a notable lack of decoration.
We then looked at three pieces: Paul Strand’s Wire Wheel (1917), Margaret Bourke-White’s Fort Peck Dam, Montana (1936), and Charles Demuth’s My Egypt (1927). All three of these pieces demonstrated an artistic celebration of American technology.
After this, we looked at postwar art, particularly examples of Abstract Expressionism. First was Arshile Gorky’s The Liver is the Cock’s Comb (1944). At this time, the Western art capital was shifting from Paris to New York. Gorky was born in Armenia, but moved to the U.S. as a child. He began work as a surrealist, which is still observable in the figurative aspects of his work, although, unlike surrealist art, this work is almost entirely abstract. It includes biomorphic forms, only a few of which are vaguely identifiable, including an egg and some sort of shrimp. Next we looked at Jackson Pollock’s Male and Female (1942), which portrays male and female archetypes. Pollock was a severe alcoholic who underwent Jungian therapy, which emphasizes archetypes like the ones expressed in this painting. We then looked at a more typical Pollock, Autumn Rhythm: Number 30 (1950). This painting was made using a drip technique, as Pollock placed the canvas on the floor and dripped paint from sticks. This provided him with extreme control, which can be observed in the manner that the loops of paint closely approach but do not cross the edge of the canvas. Then we examined Willem de Kooning’s Woman I (1950-52), part of a series of paintings of women. Most notable about this painting is the abolition of the distinction between figure and ground. The lecture ended with a discussion of several of Robert Rauschenberg’s Neo-Dadaist art, including Odalisk (1955-58), Erased de Kooning (1953), and Retroactive I (1963).