Non-Objective Art
Definition, History: Geometric Abstract
Painting/Sculpture.
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Non-Objective Art
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Non-Objective ArtContents • Definition
of Non-Objective Art |
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Art Work Examples Where (1960) Drought (1962, Tate Modern, London) Black
Abstraction (1927)
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The term "Non-Objective Art" (also known as concrete art) describes any type of abstract art (including abstract sculpture) which is wholly devoid of any reference to the natural world. This category of non-representational painting and sculpture typically uses geometrical imagery, which is one of the few sources of non-naturalistic motifs. Hence it is also referred to as geometric abstraction. The term non-objective art was first used by the Russian Constructivist artist Alexander Rodchenko (1891-1956) in the titles of some of his pictures (eg. Non-Objective Painting: Black on Black 1918, MoMA, New York). It was then taken up by others, such as his compatriot Kasimir Malevich (1878-1935) - the inventor of Suprematism - who wrote (in 1919) "In referring to non-objectivity, I wish to make it clear that Suprematism is not concerned with things, objects, etc." |
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Malevich later wrote a book called The Non-Objective World, which was published in 1927 by the Bauhaus. Note that non-objective art (and concrete art) are not synonymous with abstract art, as although the latter may be wholly non-representational, the images used may derive from natural sources. For example, while abstract sculptors like Jean Arp (1887-1966), Joan Miro (1893-1983) and Barbara Hepworth (1903-1975) all specialized in abstract works, they tended to employ rounded abstract forms based on those found in nature. This form of biomorphic/organic abstraction is different from non-objective art. The earliest pioneers of non-objective art were Kandinsky (1866-1944), Piet Mondrian (1872-1944) and Theo van Doesburg (1883-1931), Mikhail Larionov (1881-1964) and Natalya Goncharova (1881-1962), Kasimir Malevich and Alexander Rodchenko. Major abstract art movements which embraced geometric abstraction included, in chronological order: Cubism (1908-14), Futurism (1909-14), Orphism (c.1910-13), Rayonism (1912-14), Vorticism (1913-14), Suprematism, (c.1913-18), De Stijl (1917-31), Constructivism (c.1919-1932), Bauhaus (1919-33), Mondrian's Neo-Plasticism and Doesburg's Elementarism. Thereafter, non-objective art was promoted by the Abstraction-Creation Group (c.1931-36), Hard Edge Painting (Late 1950s, Early 1960s), Op-Art (fl.1960s), and Post Painterly Abstraction. Non-objective painting typically uses geometric motifs on a shallow picture plane. As a general rule no use is made of linear perspective to create the illusion of pictorial depth, neither is impasto emplyed to create textural effects. Also, the picture is purposely devoid of any references to worldly things, either material or emotional. Non-objective art is abstraction in its purest form. Aesthetic By avoiding all references to naturalism, non-objective art cannot age. Nor will its significance be downgraded as a result of negative associations in the mind of the spectator. Instead, the picture will be judged on its own merit. Moreover, according to Platonic philosophy, beauty lies in the ideal - the ideal form of a thing, rather than its worldly actuality. Thus non-objective art possesses an aesthetic quality unattainable by regular representational painting. Some artists (eg. Kandinsky) have gone so far as to endow concrete art with the same sort of 'spirituality' and 'purity' as music. Two important collectors of non-objective art include Solomon R Guggenheim (1861-1949), and Peggy Guggenheim (1898-1979). Well known geometric abstractionists include: • Wassily Kandinsky (1866-1944) |
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Abstract paintings can be seen in many of the best art museums around the world. Here is a small selection of such works, listed in chronological order of artist. • Wassily Kandinsky (1866-1944) • Frank Kupka (1871-1957) • Piet Mondrian (1872-1944) • Kasimir Malevich (1878-1935) • Paul Klee (1879-1940) • Mikhail Larionov (1881-1964) • Natalya Goncharova (1881-1962) • Theo Van Doesburg (1883-1931) • Robert Delaunay (1885-1941) • Sonia Delaunay-Turk (1885-1979) • Josef Albers (1888-1976) • Ljubov Popova (1889-1924) • Alexander Rodchenko (1891-1956) • El Lissitzky (1890-1941) • Laszlo Moholy-Nagy (1895-1946) • Jean Helion (1904-87) • Victor Vasarely (1908-97) • Agnes Martin (1912-2004) • Ellsworth Kelly (b.1923) • Kenneth Noland (b.1924) • Robert Ryman (b.1930) • Bridget Riley (b.1931) • Frank Stella (b.1936) |
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