Abstract Art Pictures Definition
Source(Google.com.pk)Defining Abstract Art pictures:
The term "abstract art" is like the term "modern music" in the sense that it is a very broad umbrella sheltering a wide variety of art. But like "abstract math," the general sense of the term is that it is the opposite of the concrete, or "realism." At one end of the continuum is a painting of a violin so perfectly rendered that we feel we could reach into the frame, pick up the instrument, and play it. At the other end is a canvas painted all one color. There is nothing in it to reach out and touch.
A simple, common definition of "abstract art" is "not realistic." Yet many artists who call their work abstract, actually do have a subject in mind when they paint. They take a figure or landscape and simplify it, exaggerate it, or stylize it in some way. They are not trying to imitate nature, but to use nature as a starting off point. Color, line, and form are more important to them than the details of the actual subject matter. They want to give a sense or feel for the subject rather than an exact replication.
Historically, the term "abstract" has been associated with a variety of art movements. The cubism of Picasso, Braque and Cezanne was a geometrical abstraction. In the United States , a group also known as the New York school of action painters were defined by critics as "abstract expressionists." Yet the individuals in this group varied greatly in their approaches. Jackson Pollock did overall drip paintings. Mark Rothko painted shimmering color field canvases based on a simple square pattern. Willem de Kooning did not abandon subject matter like the others, but abstracted the female figure in much of his work.
Art that has no intentional beginnings in any subject matter is sometimes referred to as "non-objective." or "non-representational." A related term is "minimalism," or the tendency to take as much away from the painterly surface of the canvas as possible. A white square painted on a white background is an example of minimalism. The end result is not so much the point as the daring it took to get there.
"Modern art" is another term commonly used to refer to abstract art, though originally this term was used to differentiate the experimenters of the twentieth century from the traditional European painters and sculptors. Thus, "modern art" began over seventy years ago, and is no longer new. Many movements in art have come and gone since then. For example, "pop art" incorporates popular culture such as comics and movie stars. Well-known artists of this genre include Andy Warhol, who painted Cambell's soup cans and portraits of Marilyn Monroe; and Jasper Johns, who did a series of flag paintings.
"Contemporary art" is another one of those terms that covers a wide variety of art. The best definition of "contemporary" is the work of any living artist, though the term has also been used to mean art that you would hang in a contemporary home. This sense of contemporary is more like the term "modern," in that it means the opposite of "traditional." Thus, "contemporary art" is also sometimes used to mean "abstract art."
Another way to define the term "abstract art" is to enter it as a search term on Google or Yahoo and look at the results. There will be millions of them, proving that the term is used today to cover a vast amount of art. I use the term "abstract art" to define my own painting because I know that people who love my art tend to define it this way. They often find me by entering the term on Google. Others use the term "modern art" or "contemporary art" to find me.
So where does that leave us in our definition of abstract art? Like most definitions of art movements, the answer is complex. We can look at it historically from an art critic's perspective, or use it as the general public would, to mean something other than traditional realistic representation.
One of the wonders of being a visual artist is the intensity with which the world appears to me. This has nothing to do with 20/20 vision, but with the attention artists pay to our surroundings. We may not notice the scent of new-mown grass or the song of nearby birds, but the play of light and dark on the landscape at dusk will fascinate us.
One of my favorite sights, probably because it is so different from the typical northeastern landscape I see on a regular basis--is the California desert, with endless sand-colored dunes undulating in the sunlight as far as the eye can see. I love the strangeness of these badlands, the sense of isolation and abandonment they give me, as if I were alone on the planet.
When I fly, I always take the window seat. Sure, clouds were exciting the first time I saw them from an airplane, but what still excites me is the view of the earth, with its varying hues and shapes. Looking down at the squares of cultivated land in brown, tan, pale green, maybe with a river winding through or a lake interrupting the flow, is like staring at an abstract painting.
Since I am an abstract painter, I am continually turning the natural world around me into abstract compositions. On walks near my house, I follow the patterns of shadows on the ground, or the sun's reflection in puddles. I look up at the web of branches overhead forming an intricate pattern of criss-crossing lines. I study the texture of bark on the trees. Any of it might form the basis for an abstract design.
Representational artists, on the other hand, might look at the landscape around them with a photographer's eye, selecting the best shots and "framing" them. Finding interesting subject matter is the first step in their work, and many artists travel all over the world with their cameras and sketch books to stimulate their art. Others paint plein air directly on their canvases, translating what their eye sees directly into the forms they paint.
Seeing like a photographer is always fun, even if you're just sitting in a waiting room with nothing else to do. I like to compose unlikely shots of corners or doorways, squinting to clarify the major lines of my composition. A portrait painter might find the faces of those waiting more intriguing, composing a portrait of sadness, pain, or impatience.
You can teach yourself to see more in the world around you just by paying closer attention. Instead of burying yourself in a book or staring at a computer screen when you travel, relax and let your eyes wander slowly over the scene around you. Study the faces you see on buses and trains, in airports, passing you on the street. Or make a study of clothing--its textures, colors, and style.
The most exciting times to see nature, even scenes you see every day, is when the light changes. In early morning, at dusk, or when the weather causes changes in the lighting, ordinary images stand out in starker, more surprising contrasts. The first blanket of snow changes everything you see around you. A sunny morning after an ice-storm brings you into a metallic-like alien landscape. The arrival of Spring presents you with colors you only get to see at this time of year--the startling yellow-green shades of new growth that soon turn the more common darker greens.
Artists are blessed with a natural interest in the visual world, but others can cultivate this sense by paying attention to their surroundings. Take off the headphones, put down your book, and see. You will be amazed at the joy you can experience by just looking.
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