Category Archives: Formalism and Post-Modernism

Formalism is “art for the sake of art.”  The theory behind Formalism is that the piece of art can stand alone just based on its aesthetic values.  The form of the object is of the biggest concern to the artist. … Continue reading →

Art is something I have always loved.  I feel that it allows you to be you, to express yourself in anyway that you want to. What I don’t understand is when people tell you that your art is wrong.  How … Continue reading →

This weeks reading provided a very interesting comparison between Formalism and Postmodern Pluralism.  The philosophies behind each form of art differ on a fundamental level.  In Why is That Art? the authors do a nice job of positioning these forms … Continue reading →

I find myself stuck, as an art lover and sometimes even a creator, between whether I believe in the formalist view of art or if I find that postmodernism is a better lens to view art through.  The thing about … Continue reading →

Art is such a broad concept, and any attempt to define or classify the medium is a challenge within itself. However, Terry Barrett does an awesome job in What is ThatArt? of splitting art up in to four categories, Formalism, … Continue reading →

Every art movement has merit of some sort.  The idea of ‘merit,’ of course, is rather subjective, but I think that most of us can find at least a few things in any given art movement that we consider merit-worthy.  … Continue reading →

When I was eight years old I asked my step mother (who is an artist) “why is that art?” She very cleverly responded by saying, “well they made it, and called it art.” Though this may seem like a small … Continue reading →

So many categories for works of art, so little time. I used to think that all art was just ‘for the sake of art’, clearly not the case.  There is a special category for art that is just art, Formalism. … Continue reading →

Formalism is strange.  I know that the authors of the textbook include a little disclaimer that’s all “Oh yeah, people that don’t appreciate formalism just don’t know about it,” but I don’t buy this argument. At the risk of sounding … Continue reading →

I found the statement below about expressionism and cognitivism most in line with my own personal philosophy. “Expressionism and cognitivism hold artworks to be uniquely valuable: Open experiences to us we would otherwise miss.” Although opinions widely differ on art, … Continue reading →