Hey Friends!
Let’s take a trip back in time to the 1940s! Did you know that was 80 years ago? What is there for us to discover all the way back then? Well. I’m glad you asked!
In the 1940s, Americans came up with the Abstract Art Movement right after World War II. This became one of the most popular trends, and it lasted through to the 1950s. Have you ever heard of New York? New York became one of the most popular states in America during this art movement because many abstract artists were making their art there and showcasing it in fancy galleries to the people who lived in that area.
Let’s take a trip back in time to the 1940s! Did you know that was 80 years ago? What is there for us to discover all the way back then? Well. I’m glad you asked!
In the 1940s, Americans came up with the Abstract Art Movement right after World War II. This became one of the most popular trends, and it lasted through to the 1950s. Have you ever heard of New York? New York became one of the most popular states in America during this art movement because many abstract artists were making their art there and showcasing it in fancy galleries to the people who lived in that area.
What is abstract art?
If something is abstract, it means that it might not look like the same thing to everyone; it is not an image of something you can recognize right away. Abstract art is usually art made through shapes, lines and colors that are put together in a way that makes people want to just stop and look at it.
We love to see different patterns and shapes and colors combined in different ways. Different artists use these same elements in creative ways to catch our attention and make us feel different emotions. Abstract art, just like any other art, connects to our emotions.
In the picture above, you can see how artist Jackson Pollock used paint dripping to make different kinds of abstract art pieces. Have you ever seen art like this before? How does this artwork make you feel?
We love to see different patterns and shapes and colors combined in different ways. Different artists use these same elements in creative ways to catch our attention and make us feel different emotions. Abstract art, just like any other art, connects to our emotions.
In the picture above, you can see how artist Jackson Pollock used paint dripping to make different kinds of abstract art pieces. Have you ever seen art like this before? How does this artwork make you feel?
Abstract Artist
Mark Rothko
Mark Rothko was born in New York in 1903. He believed an artist could use only colors to express their emotions in a painting, without having to add any everyday objects. This made him an abstract artist and he was very popular during the abstract art movement.
He created huge paintings called Color field paintings and you can see one below here. His paintings were huge. It may look simple, but it took a very long time to make it. It looks like just one big color but Mark Rothko would put a bunch of layers on top of each other. This process of making paintings was new to the art world and people still love his work today!
Talk about the painting you see here with someone in your home. What colors do you see? How many different colors do you see? How do these colors make you feel? If you could put this painting anywhere in your house, where would you put it, and why?
He created huge paintings called Color field paintings and you can see one below here. His paintings were huge. It may look simple, but it took a very long time to make it. It looks like just one big color but Mark Rothko would put a bunch of layers on top of each other. This process of making paintings was new to the art world and people still love his work today!
Talk about the painting you see here with someone in your home. What colors do you see? How many different colors do you see? How do these colors make you feel? If you could put this painting anywhere in your house, where would you put it, and why?
Another Abstract Artist:
Benjamin Britton
Another Abstract artist--and probably one of the most creative ones we’ve shown here at the Albany Art Museum--is Benjamin Britton. He had an exhibition here at the AMA called This Unfolding Idyll, and it is from the year 2018.
His art is abstract. We know that because we’ve never seen it before in real life. It’s not something that we can recognize or remember. That is because it is not a part of our natural world.
It takes a long time to look at all the different pieces of his artwork because he uses a lot of patterns and colors in one piece. There’s a lot more going on this picture below than we saw in the color field paintings of Mark Rothko. Even though they have two different styles of making art, they are both abstract artists.
His art is abstract. We know that because we’ve never seen it before in real life. It’s not something that we can recognize or remember. That is because it is not a part of our natural world.
It takes a long time to look at all the different pieces of his artwork because he uses a lot of patterns and colors in one piece. There’s a lot more going on this picture below than we saw in the color field paintings of Mark Rothko. Even though they have two different styles of making art, they are both abstract artists.
Now you can make your own!
With the help of an adult, you can make your own abstract art piece right in your own home. This is in quick and easy activity. All you would need is a sheet of white paper, some colorful markers and a black sharpie. Also, don’t forget your creativity!
Step One:
Use your sharpie to fill your paper or canvas with lines and shapes.
Step Two:
Get even more creative and see how many more lines you can add next to the ones you’ve already made. If you want your work to look more like artist Benjamin Britton, you can try to fit in as many lines as you can to make your picture look more busy. But if you like things simple and easy, you don’t have to add as many.
Step Three:
when you’re finished making your lines, you can fill up the spaces in between them with different colors using your markers or paint. It doesn’t matter which color you use or how many different ones. Just have fun and fill up all of your spaces!
Step One:
Use your sharpie to fill your paper or canvas with lines and shapes.
Step Two:
Get even more creative and see how many more lines you can add next to the ones you’ve already made. If you want your work to look more like artist Benjamin Britton, you can try to fit in as many lines as you can to make your picture look more busy. But if you like things simple and easy, you don’t have to add as many.
Step Three:
when you’re finished making your lines, you can fill up the spaces in between them with different colors using your markers or paint. It doesn’t matter which color you use or how many different ones. Just have fun and fill up all of your spaces!
