Copyof socialrealism.pptx
Transcript of Copyof socialrealism.pptx
AmericanSocial Realism
Nicole FudeLindsay MagaldiGrant Mckinney
What is it?Mainly focuses on lower-class Americans in urban settings, and on their hardships and surroundings
Attempts to create art that is truly American in subject and style (rather than copying European innovations and movements)
Rejects the abstract styles that many modern art movements utilized
Mediums include, but not limited to, photography, prints, etchings, and of course, different methods of painting like oil and watercolor
Social Realism was developed as a reaction against idealism and the exaggerated ego encouraged by Romanticism. Consequences of the Industrial Revolution became apparent; urban centers grew, slums proliferated on a new scale contrasting with the display of wealth of the upper classes. With a new sense of social consciousness, the Social Realists pledged to “fight the beautiful art”, any style which appealed to the eye or emotions.
● They focused on the ugly realities of ● contemporary life and sympathized with ● working-class people, particularly the ● poor. They recorded what they saw (“as it ● existed”) in a dispassionate manner. The ● public was outraged by Social Realism, in ● part, because they didn't know how to look ● at it or what to do with it
Two AmericanRealist Movements
Scene Painting/Regionalism
Focuses on settings and objects distinctly identifiable as American
Often depicts farmers and their work
Champions values such as hard work and independence
Promotes American patriotism and nationalism
Social Realism Focuses on lower-classes, particularly those of New York Immigrants and laborers are common subjects Draws attention to poor living conditions Often promoted communist sentiment
Dorothea Lange, Migrant Mother(1936)
Compare/ContrastSocial Realism Regionalism
Grant Wood, American Gothic(1930)
Influences on Social Realism
Robert Henri and his Ashcan Artists hold the "Independent Exhibit of Artists" in 1910, with many paintings depicting New York City and the lower classes.
The Progressive Era brought "muckrakers", journalists who went to great lengths to find the truth and to spread awareness of social problems.
Finally, the Great Depression convinced many that capitalism had failed. It also inspired some artists to portray the hardship around them.
Diego Rivera
Born in Mexico in 1886, died in 1957
Helped found the Communist Party in Mexico
Mainly a painter of murals that portrayed the everyday life and work of the lower class
One famous mural displayed in the Detroit Institute of Art is Detroit Industry (1933)
Detroit Industry, 1933
The Arsenal, 1928
Edward Hopper
Born in 1882, died in 1967 One of Robert Henri's students, but he considered himself separate from the "Ashcans" Preferred to paint scenes with very few people depicted
Girl at Sewing Machine, 1921
Automat 1927
Dorothea Lange
Born in 1895, died in 1965 Worked as a photographer during the Depression, documenting the plight of the poor and homeless
Migrant Mother, 1936
The White Angel Breadline, 1933
Ben Shahn
Born in Lithuania in 1898, died in 1969.
As such, he had a lot of sympathy for immigrants, demonstrated by his series of paintings known as The Passion of Sacco and Vanzetti
Worked with Dorothea Lange during the Depression, taking photos to document the poverty
The Passion of Sacco and Vanzetti, 1932
Lest We Forget, 1937
Reginald Marsh
Born in France in 1898, died in 1954
Portrayed lots of New York street life
Also had a fondness for portraying women in provocative positions
● Usherette, 1939
The Park Bench, 1932
Jacob Lawrence
Born in 1917, died in 2000.
Lawrence's paintings are less "realistic" than that of other social realists
He created "sets" of paintings, almost like a comic strip
He based many paintings on his experiences and his observations in Harlem
Carpenters, 1977
The Migration of the Negro, panel 1, 1941