World events in the mid-20th century immensely
influenced the course of human life and, with it, the
course of art history. World War I (1913-1914) and
World War II (1941-1945), in particular, shifted the
political, economic, and cultural world stage away from
Europe and on the “New World” continent, America.

The New York School
In the 1920s and 1930s, aspiring young American
painters, sculptors, and writers sailed to Europe to
expand their horizons. But during the dark days of
World War II, a reverse migration brought European
scientists, architects, and artists to American shores.
New York, in particular, became a haven for the
arrived artists and their American counterparts.

The result was the establishment of what came to be known as
“The New York School”—as opposed to “The School of Paris”
that had been very influential in Europe. The daring young
artists in this movement succeeded in creating their own
synthesis of Europe’s cubist and surrealist styles. Their style
came to be known as abstract expressionism.

Pollock worked on huge canvases spread
on the floor, splattering, squirting, and
dribbling paint with (seemingly) no pre-planned
pattern or design in mind. The total effect is
one of vitality, creativity, “energy made visible.”
Pollock’s first one-man show in New York in
1943 focused worldwide attention on abstract
expressionism for the first time.
One form of abstract expressionism was seen in the works of
Jackson Pollock. These were created through what came to be known as
“action painting.”

Autumn Rhythm
Jackson Pollock, 1950
Oil on canvas

In contrast to the vigorous gestures of the action
painters, another group of artists who came to be
known as “color field painters” used different color
saturations (purity, vividness, intensity) to create their
desired effects. Some of their works were huge fields of
vibrant color—as in the paintings of Mark Rothko and
Barnett Newman.

Magenta, Black, Green on Orange
Mark Rothko, 1949
Oil on canvas
Vir Heroicus Sublimis
Barnett Newman, 1950 - 1951
Oil on canvas

Others took the more intimate “pictograph” approach, filling the
canvas with repeating picture fragments or symbols - as in the work of
Adolph Gottlieb and Lee Krasner.
Forgotten Dream
Adolph Gottlieb, 1946
Oil on canvas
Abstract No. 2
Lee Krasner, 1948
Oil on canvas

By the early 1960s, the momentum of The New York
School slowed down. In its place, a new crop of artists came on
the scene using lighter treatment and flashes of humor, even
irreverence, in their artworks.
The movements they brought about have come to be
called:
• neodadaism and pop art
• conceptual art
• op art
• the new realism

Like the dadaist movement that arose after World
War I, the neodadaism of the 1960s wanted to make
reforms in traditional values. It also made use of
commonplace, trivial, even nonsensical objects. But
unlike the angry, serious tone of the original dadaists,
the neodadaists seemed to enjoy nonsense for its own
sake and simply wanted to laugh at the world.

Their works ranged from paintings, to posters, to
collages, to three-dimensional “assemblages” and
installations. These made use of easily recognizable
objects and images from the emerging consumer
society—as in the prints of Andy Warhol. Their
inspirations were the celebrities, advertisements,
billboards, and comic strips that were becoming a
common place at that time. Hence the term pop (from
“popular”) art emerged.

Roy Lichtenstein (1923-1997) was an American pop artist. During the
1960s, along with Andy Warhol, Jasper Johns, and James Rosenquist among
others, he became a leading figure in this new art movement.
Twelve Cars
Andy Warhol, 1982
Art print
Marilyn Monroe
Andy Warhol, 1967
Silkscreen print

Wham!
Roy Lichstenstein, 1963
Acrylic and Oil on canvas
In the Car
Roy Lichstenstein, 1963

As the term implies, conceptual art was that
which arose in the mind of the artist, took concrete
form for a time, and then disappeared (unless it was
captured in photo or film documentation).
Conceptualists questioned the idea of art as objects
to be bought and sold. Instead, theybrought their
artistic ideas to life temporarily, using such unusual
materials as grease, blocks of ice, food, even just
plain dirt.

A key difference between a conceptual artwork and a
traditional painting or sculpture is that the
conceptualist’s work often requires little or no
physical craftsmanship. Much of the artist’s time and
effort goes into the concept or idea behind the work,
with the actual execution then being relatively quick
and simple. An example is this conceptual art piece
by Kosuth.

One and Three Chairs
Joseph Kosuth, 1965
An actual chair (center), with a photograph of the same chair and
enlarged copy of dictionary definition of a chair.

Another movement that
emerged in the 1960s was optical
art or “op art.” This was yet another
experiment in visual experience—a
form of “action painting,” with the
action taking in the viewer’s eye. In
op art, lines, spaces, and colors
were precisely planned and
positioned to give the illusion of
movement.
Current
Bridget Riley, 1964
Synthetic polymer paint on composition board

As the eye moved over different
segments of the image, perfectly
stable components appeared to
shift back and forth, sometimes
faster, sometimes slower as the
brain responded to the optical
data. Viewers experienced
sensations varying from
discomfort to disorientation to
giddiness.
Current
Bridget Riley, 1964
Synthetic polymer paint on composition board

As the eye moved over different
segments of the image, perfectly stable
components appeared to shift back and
forth, sometimes faster, sometimes
slower as the brain responded to the
optical data. Viewers experienced
sensations varying from discomfort to
disorientation to giddiness.
Current
Bridget Riley, 1964
Synthetic polymer paint on composition board