1970 - 1985
Neo-expressionism
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1970 – 1985
This art movement developed as a reaction against the conceptual art and minimal art of the 1970s. Neo-expressionists returned to imagery, figurativeness, a lively and emotional manner, bright saturated colors. They depicted recognizable objects using abstract painting techniques. Neo-expressionism flourished mainly in Germany, where its representatives are sometimes called “new wild”.
Key artists:
Anselm Kiefer
Jean-Michel Basquiat
Key ideas:
The main features of Neo-expressionism are:
– The denial of traditional standards of composition and design;
– A dual and acute emotional mood in the reflection of modern life and values;
– The absence of visual idealization;
– The use of bright and sharp combinations of colors;
– Objects were depicted in a primitivistic manner.
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Франк Ауэрбах - британский художник и гравер еврейского происхождения, уроженец Германии, яркий представитель «лондонской школы авангардистов», совмещающий в своих произведениях экспрессионистскую абстракцию и фигуративную живопись. Наряду с Люсьеном Фрейдом и Френсисом Беконом, является ключевой фигурой модернистского искусства Великобритании.
April 29, 1931, Berlin, Weimar Republic (Germany)
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David Salle is an American artist, photographer, stage designer, author of original collage paintings based on the aesthetics of Pop art. Like many artists of his generation, he drew inspiration for his rich visual language from famous works of art, arbitrarily adding elements of advertising and everyday culture to them. Salle's techniques in contemporary graphic design are also original.The name of the artist has become famous since the mid-1980s. His paintings filled with humor, theatricality and eroticism are multifaceted and contain a large number of cultural references. In paintings of David Salle, you can find references to the works of such classics as Velazquez and Bernini, allusions to the themes of Post-impressionists Cezanne and Giacometti, motives of Surrealist Magritte, as well as vivid images of American post-war art.The almost photographic accuracy of the images in the paintings of Salle, which paradoxically creates a sense of unreality, is breathtaking. The longer you look at the master’s works, the more and more exciting details, hints and parallels you find. Creating his works, the artist acts intuitively; this makes his works close to Surrealism and Classical Expressionism.David Salle is known not only as an artist but also as an authoritative art critic and art theorist. According to him, any painting should be created, first of all, for the people, and not for "abstruse" art critics. Therefore, his works are aimed at explaining the meaning of the works of past years in an accessible and understandable way, emphasizing their importance for contemporary art and tendency to continuity.
1952
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A modern American artist, architect, musician, photographer and film director. Julian Schnabel is known not only for painting but also for his films, one of which is dedicated to his friend, talented artist Jean-Michel Basquiat, who died at the age of 28. Despite the fact that Schnabel made a successful career in cinema - he was nominated for an Oscar and won the Golden Globe in 2007 - he considers himself primarily an artist who is pleased to engage in interesting projects in the field of art.Schnabel brightly declared himself immediately, appearing on the New York art scene. With his defiant behavior, frankness and selfishness, he attracted many enemies and also got numerous fans. He became an example of a bohemian artist, was friends with Andy Warhol and did open self-promotion.In the 1980s, Schnabel was one of the leading Neo-Expressionist artists reviving figurative painting. His vivid, expressive nature, provocative statements and shocking behavior immediately attracted the attention of society and were reflected in his works. Julian Schnabel became famous for his so-called "plate paintings", which he created from fragments of broken dishes. Instead of the canvas, the artist used unusual materials: animal skins, tarpaulin, velvet and linoleum.The work of the American master covers a wide variety of areas. He is the architect of a huge pink house in Manhattan, the Maybach car designer, the author and performer of musical compositions, the director of several films, the plot of which tells of unusual people who find themselves in extraordinary and strange circumstances. His work is often provocative and ambiguous. Often they are sharply criticized and controversially discussed, but they never leave the viewer indifferent.His active public life, participation in various contests and events also contribute to the popularity of Julian Schnabel and do not allow the public to forget the name of the artist, no matter what he does.
1951
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A German Neo-expressionist artist and avant-garde sculptor, one of the founders of the New Wild group. The real name of the artist is Kern, and he took the pseudonym from the name of his native town of Deutschbazelitz, located near Dresden.The artist’s “calling card”, which makes his paintings instantly recognizable, is human figures located upside down on the canvas. Georg Baselitz began depicting people in this way around 1969.The uncompromising and rebellious spirit of the future famous artist led to the fact that Georg Baselitz was expelled from the art school; his works “What a night fell” and “Naked Man” were banned as obscene, and seized by the police during his first exhibition.Forced to work in the official style of socialist realism while living in East Berlin, the artist switched to abstract art after moving to the western part of the city. Gradually, Baselitz rejected both movements and began to revive German Expressionism, which flourished before the war but was objectionable to the Nazi government. The human figure took the central place in the work of Baselitz, and the paintings became scandalous and defiant.Georg Baselitz played a key role in the development of German art after the Second World War, expressing national identity with the help of symbolic and expressive images.The artist's works were often criticized because of their repulsive and unaesthetic content; however, at the same time, they inspired a lot of European and American artists, contributing to the revival of figurative art.Today, Georg Baselitz is an internationally recognized artist whose work is one of the most expensive works of contemporary painters and sculptors. He continues to work tirelessly, creating a kind of "remake" of his compositions of past years.
1938
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Basquiat was famous as a graffiti artist and as a very successful Neo-expressionist. He is the author of a series of crazy paintings.From childhood, the painter spoke English, French and Spanish. Young Basquiat read Symbolist poems, as well as myths and historical books. He became interested in arts at an early age and also dreamt of becoming a cartoonist.
1960 - 1988
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German painter and sculptor, key figure in Neo-expressionism and one of post-war Germany’s most famous artists. He is famous for using atypical materials such as straw, ash, clay, lead, wood, glass and shellac in his works. He also creates images for theaters and books.Kiefer’s style has developed under the influence of the philosophy of Kabbalah, mysticism and works of different spiritualists such as Robert Fludd. His works include symbolic elements connected with national identity, theology and mysticism.
1945