Modernity, especially modernity in art, is a subject that is not necessarily about encompassing the present. Instead, it can be interpreted as looking at a phenomenon from the perspective of a person living in the present. Modernity, while often associated with nonconformism and nuanced approaches to stagnant processes, is also connected to a vision of the past under the circumstances of the present. As a result, conservatism and history are being rejected not because of the essence but because of the everchanging forms that they take. These forms require various depictions that change based on the time when the expression is being shared with an audience. Artists who have a modernist approach are willing to add a certain novelty to a phenomenon to create a new and appropriate image, which is why audiences can relate to what is being portrayed.
An example of modernism portrayed by artists is the political manifestos of Mexican muralists in the 20th century. After an extended civil war, Mexico was on the path of extending privileges for workers and addressing social issues that were being left out previously.1 However, the global reforms and the rising social focus present in multiple countries at the time inspired certain artists to adopt this influence into their works. The Mexican muralists José Clemente Orozco, Diego Rivera, and David Alfaro were examples of how pictures that combine national identity with social reforms portray modern ideas that were relevant at the time. The social and cultural changes have inspired them to leave a permanent mark through art that depicts unity, justice, and equality in combination with traditional Mexican imagery. Thus, modernism, in this case, does not imply a rejection of tradition but a rethinking of it based on national aims present in the 20th century. The people who lived through the events that inspired such phenomena were able to relate to the murals that the artists created. Not only did the modernists depict the national ideals and values that were meaningful from the perspective of the people, but they also created works that individuals deemed in line with the agenda that was prominent. The mixture of national characteristics, modern ideas, and socio-cultural changes within the society is the perfect example of how they managed to illustrate presence through painting.
A seemingly different yet very similar example is the photography of Ishiuchi Miyako. The photographer managed to incorporate modernism while depicting tragic events from the past. Thus, the similarity with the artists mentioned prior is the incorporation of the present in the past. Miyako has focused on objects left out as a result of the Japanese war and Hiroshima.2 Thus, the artist took photos of clothing items and accessories that belonged to people who died as a result of the use of the atomic bomb. The emptiness and the loneliness illustrated in the images of glasses, blouses, and gloves that will never be worn again is an excellent depiction of modernism. Thus, the artist looks at the devastating events from the perspective of a person living in a different era. The trauma and the outcomes are still present in Japanese society, and art perfectly illustrates how the pain lives on even after so many years. This, again, depicts the social and cultural shifts in relation to processing what has happened through the eyes of the current society.
Modernism as a rethinking of conservativism may also be attributed to French impressionists who were eager to step over the standard techniques and create a different vision. Jules-Antoine Castagnary has written about the first impressionist exhibition, which took place in the second half of the 19th century. Among the participants, the new well-known Monet has impressed the public with his take on naturalism.3 Monet’s avant-garde approach to the art of painting was a breath of fresh air disrupting the traditional concepts used by the painters at the time. This may be attributed to a socio-cultural shift to a less rigid and more free expression. Thus, the artists were willing to play with colors, images, and styles to portray the modernist ideas of freedom of expression onto canvas. In this case, painters implemented emotions and the aim to impose certain feelings on the audience through nuanced painting styles and revisionary art never seen before. Moreover, this fits the modernism approach of interpreting an idea based on current societal aims. Since, at the time, European societies were becoming more apperceive of personal freedom, liberty was well-desired in all aspects of life, including the artistic field.
Based on the aforementioned examples, it is clear that modernism as a concept may have various connotations while sharing one crucial idea. Considering the particular circumstances that align with the social and cultural phenomenon, modernism in art allows for an interpretation of certain aspects based on the characteristics of a certain epoch. Thus, modern art is an expression that portrays the societal ideals most in line with current agendas and changes that people, institutions, and mindsets experience. Modernism does not always imply a rejection of norms, standards, and common techniques. Instead, it allows for unique and new visions to alter an experience of a historic phenomenon for it to become relevant for modern audiences. As a result, art constantly changes and is expressed in various forms depending on social and cultural circumstances.
Bibliography
Whitney Museum of American Art. “Los Tres Grandes | Vida Americana: Mexican Muralists Remake American Art, 1925–1945.” 2020. Web.
Behdad, Ali. “The Orientalist Photograph: An Object of Comparison.” Canadian Review of Comparative Literature / Revue Canadienne de Littérature Comparée 43, no. 2 (2016): 265–81. Web.
Castagnary, Jules Antoine. The Exhibition on the Boulevard Des Capucines, 1874.
Lu, David J. “Early Meiji Political Development.” Japan: A Documentary History, 2016, 325–64. Web.
Mitchell, Timothy. “Orientalism and the Exhibitionary Order.” Grasping the World, 2019, 442–60. Web.
Mitsuda, Yuri. “Ishiuchi Miyako’s Chronicles of Time and History.” Aperture, no. 220 (2021).
Reclus, Elisee. “A Great Globe.” The Geographical Journal 12, no. 4 (1898): 401. Web.
Footnotes
- Whitney Museum of American Art, “Los Tres Grandes | Vida Americana: Mexican Muralists Remake American Art, 1925–1945,” Web.
- Yuri Mitsuda, “Ishiuchi Miyako’s Chronicles of Time and History,” Aperture, no. 220 (2021).
- Jules Antoine Castagnary, The Exhibition on the Boulevard Des Capucines, 1874.