### **Abstract Expressionism – Summary** **Period:** 1940s–1950s **Centres:** Primarily New York City (often called the “New York School”) **Notable Artists:** Jackson Pollock, Willem de Kooning, Mark Rothko, Franz Kline, Barnett Newman, Clyfford Still, Lee Krasner, Helen Frankenthaler --- ### **Overview** Abstract Expressionism was the first major American art movement to achieve international prominence, establishing New York as the new centre of the art world after the Second World War. It represented a radical departure from representational art, focusing on the act of painting itself as an expression of the artist’s psyche, emotion, and existential condition. Although conceived by individual artists working in relative isolation, the movement later became entwined with American cultural identity — a symbol of post-war freedom and creativity that would, in time, serve ideological purposes beyond its makers’ intentions. --- ### **Core Characteristics** 1. **Gesture and Process** The physical act of painting was central. Artists such as **Jackson Pollock** developed “action painting,” dripping or flinging paint to emphasise energy, spontaneity, and movement. 2. **Large Scale and Immersion** Canvases were monumental, enveloping the viewer in fields of colour or gesture, turning the painting into an immersive environment rather than a mere image. 3. **Emotional and Existential Depth** Influenced by **existential philosophy** and the trauma of the war, artists treated painting as an arena for confronting inner conflict or seeking transcendence. 4. **Abstraction with Individual Voice** Despite shared ideals, each artist forged a distinct language — **Rothko’s meditative colour fields** contrasting with **de Kooning’s vigorous brushwork**. 5. **Freedom and Rebellion** The movement rejected both European realism and political didacticism, asserting art as a form of individual freedom — a stance that would later acquire geopolitical meaning. --- ### **Substyles** - **Action Painting:** Dynamic, gestural, and process-driven (Pollock, de Kooning). - **Colour Field Painting:** Vast planes of colour expressing meditative or spiritual emotion (Rothko, Newman, Still). ![[Franz Kline_0108.jpeg]] --- ### **Critical Context and Influence** Initially divisive, Abstract Expressionism came to symbolise **American modernism’s rise** and the **cultural ascendancy of the United States** during the Cold War. In the 1950s, the **CIA — through cultural fronts such as the Congress for Cultural Freedom and the Museum of Modern Art’s international programmes — covertly promoted Abstract Expressionist exhibitions abroad** as emblems of artistic freedom and individuality. This **propagandistic use of avant-garde art** was intended to contrast the creative liberty of the West with the state-controlled art of the Soviet bloc. Most artists were unaware of this sponsorship, and many would likely have resisted it had they known. Critics have since argued that this entanglement shaped both the movement’s **critical reception** and its eventual canonisation, recasting radical, introspective works as symbols of American ideological triumph. --- ### **Legacy** Despite these complexities, Abstract Expressionism remains a defining chapter in twentieth-century art — a synthesis of **psychological depth, material experimentation, and existential inquiry**. Its influence extended into **Minimalism**, **Post-Painterly Abstraction**, and later **Neo-Expressionism**, which reintroduced figuration and personal myth in response to the austerity of mid-century modernism. --- `Concepts:` `Knowledge Base:`