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Thread: pictures that break composition rules

  1. #121
    Abuser of God's Sunlight
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    Re: pictures that break composition rules

    It's popular to cite Kandinsky as the originator of abstraction, but it's quite easy to argue for others, even if Mr. K was the most influential innovator of the idea. Around 1912, when he was doing his first pure abstractions, there were others working in a similar vein, including Delaunay and Kupka. Curators at the Tate posit that Hilna Klint predated Kandinsky. Here's one of hers from 1907:

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    When it comes to abstraction inching its way into painting, you have to look back to the Romantics (Whistler, etc.).

    And of course we're just talking about Western art here. Islamic art has had a tradition of abstraction for hundreds of years.

  2. #122
    Drew Wiley
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    Re: pictures that break composition rules

    Well, you and I are always going to lock horns on terminology, Paul, though I'm eager to see what you do with your upcoming book, since the theme seems right up youd alley, and hope you will forgive me for suggesting you are more in the vein of constructivism than "new topographics", even though I hate being pigeonholed myself. But "abstraction" for all practical purposes is a term molded in Western Art. Islamic art can be highly decorative, just as Appalachians quilts
    can be, and many other things. But they weren't conceptually trying to achieve the same thing. And when the time is right in history, it is always because of an atmosphere of precedent. A lot of haystacks were piled up and finally someone threw the match. I'll defer to the experts who might or might not have thrown the first one. But there's little doubt whose match started the first forest fire in that respect. And yes, we can go clear back to Courbet if necessary. But crossing the finish line in abstraction certainly didn't seem to happen until slightly after the turn of the Century.

  3. #123
    Abuser of God's Sunlight
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    Re: pictures that break composition rules

    Drew, we're probably not going to lock horns on this one (unless now we're locking horns over locking horns). I think it's a reasonable argument that Western abstraction is a different tradition than the non-western abstractions I mentioned (although I could well be ignorant of global traditions that are closer.

    I also don't like to push too hard with the who-did-what first line of inquiry, since what seems to matter most in history is who the influencers are. There are often ahistorical examples of things ... people who seemed to be way ahead of their time, but who sit outside the historical flow because (sad for them) no one noticed. 19th century photography is full of examples that seemed to prefigure much later movements. These are great reminders of how history can leave individuals behind, but it doesn't help us understand the evolution of a movement or tradition.

    I brought up people like Klint to just show that the claims of Who's First always need some hedging. I'd agree Kandinsky was the granddaddy of abstraction, even if he had some formidable contemporaries and antecedents. He just kicked so much abstract ass.

    Re: my being a constructivist ... ok. I'll entertain the idea. But won't get bogged down in it. And I would never claim to be a New Topographer. Those guys are defined by an exhibit, and are a solid generation ahead of me.

  4. #124
    Drew Wiley
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    Re: pictures that break composition rules

    Hmmm.... We seem to agree on a lot today. Must be the phase of the moon. Anyway, hope you are enjoying your project!

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