Modern art helps create freedom for people by challenging conventional thinking. In this article I broadly outline the development of abstract art and conclude with reflections and examples on how abstract art relates specifically to our modern era.

1. How
to
understand
the
value
of
challenging
modern
art
By
Simon
Brushfield
This
creative
article
will
help
you
understand
the
origins
of
abstract
art.
It
will
give
you
greater
confidence
to
evaluate
and
feel
comfortable
with
challenging
or
weird
modern
art.
Below,
I
broadly
outline
the
development
of
abstract
art
and
conclude
with
reflections
and
examples
on
how
abstract
art
relates
specifically
to
our
modern
era.
Here’s
the
main
point
of
the
article….
Point
1.
Abstract
art
helps
create
freedom
for
people
by
challenging
conventional
thinking.
‘Fountain’
sculpture
created
in
1917
by
Marcel
Duchamp.
The
work
presented
an
enormous
challenge
to
conventional
thinking
about
what
exactly
is
art?
In
our
instantly
accessible
modern
era,
digital
photography
is
taken
for
granted,
it’s
difficult
to
imagine
in
previous
generations
photography
once
didn’t
exist.

2.
Painting
and
drawing
was
once
the
only
way
to
capture
and
record
real
life.
People
believed
the
best
art
must
look
real.
Point
1.
Therefore,
master
artists
like
Rembrandt
or
Rubens
were
greatly
admired
in
high
Renaissance
society.
The
intricate
detail
of
horses
in
battle
and
aristocratic
portraits
of
noble
kings
and
queens
were
only
accessible
by
the
wealthy
class.
The
gap
between
the
rich
and
poor
was
enormous.
In
contrast
to
the
instantly
accessible
digital
photography
of
today,
creating
a
realistic
painting
during
the
Renaissance
was
extremely
time
consuming
and
very
expensive.
But
the
industrial
revolution
and
modernist
thinking
changed
everything.
Photography
developed.
And
the
printing
press
too.
Suddenly
factories
were
able
to
print
and
distribute
images
and
information
on
a
wide
scale.
The
poor
became
more
educated.
A
middle
class
developed
and
commodities
were
produced
on
mass
scale.
Goods
became
less
expensive.
Point
2.
Modernism
encouraged
the
spread
of
new
ideas,
freedom
of
thought
and
extensive
commercial
progress.
With
new
modern
ways
of
thinking,
abstract
art
began
to
flourish
too.
It
offered
greater
freedom
for
innovative
artists
like
Picasso.
Abstract
art
is
common
today,
however
it
wasn’t
always
a
popular
way
of
thinking.
Early
abstract
artists
encountered
great
difficulty
breaking
through
the
public
mindset.
People
had
grown
comfortable
with
paintings
that
looked
real.
Point
3.
The
traditional
mindset
is
always
resistant
to
change.
One
famous
modernist
piece
of
abstract
art
by
Marcel
Duchamp
was
painted
in
1912
and
titled
‘Nude
descending
the
staircase’
pictured
below.
It
caused
great
controversy.

3.
‘Nude
Descending
a
Staircase’
(1912)
by
Marcel
Duchamp.
Oil
on
Canvas
147
cm
×
89.2
cm
Philidelphia
Museum
of
Art
The
painting
and
the
artist
are
famous
for
encountering
massive
opposition
and
public
outcry,
so
much
so,
that
Marcel
Duchamp
removed
his
painting
from
the
wall
midway
through
the
exhibition.
He
later
focussed
upon
playing
chess
abandoning
the
art
world
all
together.
One
New
York
Times
critic
disdainfully
wrote
the
painting
looked
like
‘an
explosion
in
a
shingle
factory’
hence
the
reference
to
factories
–
a
concept
dominant
in
the
minds
of
people
living
during
the
industrial
revolution.
However,
there
is
an
element
of
truth
to
the
critic’s
comment.
It’s
no
coincidence
that
Duchamp’s
painting
contains
visual
elements
similar
to
the
rhythmic
repetitive
nature
of
a
machine
in
operation.
Point
4.
The
mass
production
of
industrial
life
was
changing
the
way
people
perceived
themselves.
During
the
industrial,
or
shall
we
say
modernist
era,
three
towering
figures
of
modern
art
arose.

4.
Matisse
(1869-­‐1954)
Picasso
and
Duchamp
who
helped
define
a
new
visual
direction
and
entirely
new
way
of
thinking,
in
turn
giving
validity
to
the
liberating
ideas
underpinning
abstract
art.
The
history
of
art
provides
a
long
list
of
artists
who
changed
public
thinking
altering
the
dominant
status
quo
in
society.
Point
5.
Artists
have
long
played
the
role
of
provoking
society,
being
the
instigators
of
change
and
challenging
conventional
thinking.
Art
is
a
culturally
acceptable
vehicle
for
change.
Duchamp,
Picasso
and
Matisse
were
often
ridiculed
for
challenging
conventional
thinking.
Their
abstract
style
of
paintings,
were
frighteningly
bold
for
the
time
and
excessively
unrealistic.
Their
innovative
artwork
was
difficult
for
the
public
to
accept
as
genuine
art
during
the
1900’s.
Challenging
new
ideas
from
visionary
artists
provoked
society’s
dominant
traditional
mindset.
‘The
Joy
of
Life’
by
Henri
Matisse
(1905)
Oil
on
Canvas
175
x
241cm
The
shape
and
form
of
Matisse’s
paintings
conveyed
powerful
emotional
force.
Heavily
influenced
by
traditional
paintings,
Matisse
was
also
inspired
by
his
contemporaries
Gaugin,
Cezanne
and
Van
Gogh
who
also
used
colour
excessively.

5. Point
3.
Matisse’s
use
of
colour
astounded
people.
He
is
considered
one
of
the
founding
fathers
of
modern
art.
Never
before
had
a
painter
been
so
pure
in
his
approach
to
colour.
He
quickly
became
known
for
his
radical
position
and
always
displayed
signs
of
quiet
rebelliousness
during
his
artistic
career.
Matisse
was
in
constant
search
for
freedom.
His
life
parallels
the
history
of
modern
art,
which
can
be
interpreted
as
a
continual
struggle
to
break
free.
Eliminating
barriers
of
constraint.
A
pattern
typified
by
the
history
of
modern
art.
Matisse
once
said,
“An
artist
must
never
be
a
prisoner.
Prisoner?
An
artist
should
never
be
a
prisoner
of
himself,
prisoner
of
style,
prisoner
of
reputation,
prisoner
of
success…”
–
Henri
Matisse
Breaking
from
traditions
of
the
past,
Matisse
led
an
art
movement
called
the
‘Fauves’
in
1905.
Meaning
‘the
wild
beasts’.
This
title
referred
to
the
group’s
use
of
extreme
emotionalism,
vivid
colours
and
distorted
shapes.
Predictably,
the
Fauves
first
exhibition
brought
a
hostile
public
response.
One
critic
wrote,
‘A
pot
of
paint
has
been
flung
in
the
face
of
the
public’
Henri
Matisse,
Les
toits
de
Collioure,
1905,
oil
on
canvas,
The
Hermitage,
St.
Petersburg,
Russia

6. Point
4.
When
artists
express
a
vision
people
have
never
seen
before,
great
opposition
and
vehement
criticism
often
follows.
Here’s
3
things
I
love
most
about
abstract
art.
Firstly,
in
every
sense,
abstract
art
is
liberating.
Unpredictable
and
uncontrollable,
it
challenges
people
to
think
differently
on
a
variety
of
levels.
Especially
questioning
the
concept
of
commercial
value.
Many
people
struggle
to
understand
someone
would
pay
thousands,
even
millions
of
dollars,
for
what
looks
like
a
child’s
painting.
Matisse
understood
how
people
thought
in
his
day,
but
he
didn’t
allow
it
to
stifle
his
creative
progress.
Power
5.
Matisse
understood
the
infinite
power
and
longevity
of
ideas
to
overcome
restrictions
created
by
narrow-­‐minded
thinking.
I
love
creating
abstract
paintings.
And
can
never
predict
results.
There
is
freedom
in
relaxing
and
‘going
with
the
flow.’
Allowing
the
paint
control
the
direction
of
the
artwork.
In
this
process,
the
subconscious
mind
is
free
to
express
what
needs
to
be
expressed.
There
have
been
many
paintings
and
drawings
I
have
created
whereby
an
image
has
emerged
I
had
no
conscious
control
in
bringing
it
to
life.
As
an
artist,
this
is
fascinating
to
observe.
The
most
famous
psychoanalyst
Carl
Jung
once
taught,
the
subconscious
mind
expresses
deeply
intuitive,
often
important
messages
to
people
through
archetypes.
Likewise,
Matisse
emphasised
the
importance
of
intuition
and
instinct
in
the
creative
process.
Similar
to
abstract
art,
the
subconscious
mind
creates
abstracted
fragmented
messages
unfamiliar
to
the
conscious
mind
and
difficult
to
process
through
logical
conventional
thinking.
Abstract
art
accommodates
for
the
unpredictability
and
irrationality
of
the
human
mind.
Point
5.
Matisse
believed
he
was
not
in
control
but
that
colour
and
form
dictated
the
painting
themselves.
The
second
thing
I
love
about
abstract
art
is
the
variety
of
responses
it
evokes
from
viewers.
Some
people
simply
love
the
shapes.
Other
people
are
drawn
in
by
an
emotional
reaction
to
colour.
Still
others
have
very
personal
interpretations
of
the
subject
matter,
discovering
specific
meaning
to
their
inner
lives.

7.
Abstract
art
offers
unique
value
to
individuals.
It
respects
and
encourages
diversity.
Honouring
people’s
different
perspectives.
‘The
Peninsula’
by
Simon
Brushfield
(2010)
oil
&
acrylic
on
canvas,
2m
x
1.8m
(Sold:
Private
Collection)
In
the
painting
above
I
was
commissioned
by
an
Australian
art
collector,
who
wanted
a
large
abstract
piece
for
his
lounge
room.
Like
Matisse,
the
painting
contains
a
mix
of
realistic
and
unrealistic
emotive
colour
and
highly
personal
imaginative
subject
matter
symbolic
of
the
owner’s
background
and
childhood
by
the
sea.
Point
6.
Unlike
mathematics,
in
abstract
art
there
are
no
right
or
wrongs.
Matisse
pursued
emotional
meaning
in
his
art
and
was
not
afraid
to
make
mistakes.
He
used
colour
with
powerful
intent,
striving
for
artistic
freedom
desiring
to
express
the
purity
of
colour
in
life.
He
acknowledged
difficulties
encountered
and
saw
art
as
a
means
of
bringing
hope
and
happiness
into
a
troubled
world.
He
once
said,
“What
I
dream
of
is
an
art
of
balance,
purity,
and
serenity
devoid
of
troubling
or
depressing
subject
matter….a
soothing,
calming
influence
on

8. the
mind,
something
like
a
good
armchair
which
provides
relaxation
from
physical
fatigue”
–
Henri
Matisse
I
love
Matisse’s
paintings
because
he
boldly
declares
hope
-­‐
despite
what
others
think.
His
life
and
art
display
courage,
a
fierce
determination
and
skilful
ability
to
break
through
into
new
territory,
leaving
behind
a
legacy
of
artistic
and
personal
freedom
for
others
to
enjoy.
Point
7.
Modern
art
epitomises
the
human
spirit
and
its
desire
to
breakthrough
traditional
barriers
into
greater
regions
of
freedom.
Matisse
was
keen
to
disable
constraining
influences
and
use
art
to
bring
light
and
clarity
to
a
foggy
world
that
he
believed
was
sometimes
too
depressing
and
colourless.
From
my
perspective,
the
Matisse
legacy
encourages
people
to
live
life
to
the
fullest
in
bright
beautiful
colour
even
through
difficulties,
criticism
and
vehement
opposition.
Matisse
is
considered
a
father
figure
of
modern
art.
He
was
an
intuitive
artist
who
accepted
gracefully
the
challenging
consequences
of
living,
loving
and
thinking
in
new
ways.
Allowing
nothing
to
halt
his
creative
progress.
Matisse
once
said,
“He
who
loves,
flies,
runs
and
rejoices;
he
is
free
and
nothing
holds
him
back.”
Matisse
lived
and
worked
during
a
time
of
great
change
in
the
way
people
lived
and
thought,
termed
‘Modernism.’
An
era
heavily
influenced
by
the
industrial
revolution.
Today,
we
live
in
a
similar
time
of
significant
change,
characterised
by
the
information
age.
Historians
have
broadly
labelled
our
time
‘Postmodernism’.
The
abstract
painting
below
is
a
visual
interpretation
of
living
my
life
during
the
postmodernist
era.

9.
‘Postmodernism’
by
Simon
Brushfield
(2011)
Oil
and
Acrylic
on
Canvas
80cm
x
60cm
(framed)
For
more
interesting
articles
on
art
and
creativity
visit
the
website
www.simonbrushfield.com
or
contact
Simon
on
the
details
below…
email:
simon@simonbrushfield.com
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