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Concrete Art
Definition, History, Famous Artists, Abstract Paintings.
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Concrete Art
CATEGORIES OF ARTS
For painting and drawing,
see: Fine Art.
For sculpture and assemblage,
see: Plastic Art. Contents
For ornamental designwork,
see: Decorative Art.
For crafts and design, • Definition of Concrete Art
see: Applied Art.
For a general category, • History of Concrete Art
see: Visual Art. • Artists
For concepts of beauty,
see: Aesthetics. • Paintings
WHAT IS ART?
For an explanation of the
the creative arts, see:
Art Definition, Meaning.
FORMS OF ART
For a guide, see: Art Types.
HOW TO EVALUATE PAINTING Also, geometric abstraction is in line with classical aesthetics: Plato for example
Read our article for students and
teachers on appreciation, see: maintained that the highest form of beauty lies in the 'ideal' concept or
Art Evaluation: How to Appreciate Art. geometry of a thing, rather than its actual appearance in the natural world.
Finally, by having nothing to do with the material world, concrete art may be
viewed as possessing a spiritual dimension. It is this spiritual dimension, for
example, that underlies the "infinite pattern" designs of Islamic art. It is all a
far cry from the figurative humanism of the High Renaissance. Another
synonym for concretism is "non-objective art". Early pioneers of this form of
avant-garde art include Kandinsky (1866-1944), Piet Mondrian (1872-1944),
and Kasimir Malevich (1878-1935).
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History
Geometric forms of abstract painting had appeared long before the term
concrete art. Islamic art, for example, is famous for its geometrical designs
such as the "infinite pattern", as are common Celtic designs such as spirals,
mazes, knots. Later, 20th century movements like Cubism (1908-14), Futurism
(1909-14), and De Stijl (1917-31) all used the genre, as did Kandinsky as well
as schools like the Bauhaus Design School. It was also prevalent in the
international section of the famous Armory Show. But the genre was given
extra attention when the term first appeared in Van Doesburg's Manifesto of
Concrete Art, which was issued in Paris in 1930. Van Doesburg argued in favour
of a type of abstract art that would be entirely free of any basis in observed
reality - a form also devoid of any symbolic implications. He stated that: "The
work of art should obtain nothing from nature's formal properties or from
sensuality or sentimentality... Technique should be mechanistic, that is to say
exact and anti-impressionistic." In effect, Doesburg wanted to create a totally
independent and self-contained form of art, which focused exclusively on itself.
He saw no need for any imitation of nature, or linear perspective to create a
false 'depth' to the painting, because he thought that nothing was more
concrete (or more real) than a line, a colour, or a plane (a flat area) of colour.
Sadly, Van Doesburg passed away a year after issuing his manifesto, but his
ideas were continued and developed by the Abstraction-Creation group - led by
the Belgian artist Georges Vantongerloo (1886-1965) and the French painters
Jean Helion (1904-87) and Auguste Herbin (1882-1960) - whose members
included the cream of European abstract sculptors, such as Jean Arp (1886-
1966), Naum Gabo (1890-1977), El Lissitzky (1890-1941), Antoine Pevsner
(1886-1962), Barbara Hepworth (1903-1975) and Ben Nicholson (1894-1982).
(Note: several of these artists later moved to non-geometric art forms, such as
lyrical or biomorphic/organic abstraction).
Concrete art was later exemplified by the spiralling abstract sculpture of the
Swiss ex-Bauhaus architect, sculptor and designer Max Bill (1908-94), who
publicized and popularized the genre in his own country - notably, by
organising the first international exhibition of concrete art in Basel in 1944 -
and also introduced it to Italy, Argentina and Brazil. In keeping with the Swiss
talent for minimalist graphic design and poster art, Bill's works have been seen
as precursors of minimalism in sculpture. There is a museum of Concrete art in
Zurich, Switzerland.
RUSSA
Leading Russian exponents of concrete art include:
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Founder of Rayonism.
Natalya Goncharova (1881-1962)
Co-founder of Rayonism (Luchism).
Lyubov Popova (1889-1924)
Leading Constructivist painter/designer.
El Lissitzky (1890-1941)
Known for his geometric-style 'Proun' paintings.
Alexander Rodchenko (1891-1956)
One of the leading Constructivist painters.
Konstantin Medunetsky (1899-1935)
Russian Constructivist artist, famous for his Colour Constructions.
NETHERLANDS/BELGIUM
Leading Dutch/Belgian exponents of geometric abstraction include:
FRANCE
Leading French painters of non-objective art include:
USA
Leading American geometric abstractionists include:
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Minimalist painter noted for geometric hard-edge painting & shaped canvas.
Sean Scully (b.1945)
Irish-American painter, famous for large-size, abstract paintings.
SWITZERLAND
Leading Swiss exponents of non-objective art include:
BRITAIN
Leading British concrete artists include:
HUNGARY
Leading Hungarian exponents of concrete art include:
Famous Paintings
Examples of concrete art 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. For a larger list see: Abstract Paintings: Top 100.
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• Ad Reinhardt (1913-67)
Abstract Painting Diptych (1959, Private Collection)
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