Cubism was one of the strongest art movements in the 20th century that gavebirth to many other movements such as futurism and suprematism. The Forefathersof this revolutionary way of painting were Pablo Picasso and George Braque.Although it may have seemed to be abstract and geometrical to an untrained eye,cubist art do depict real objects. The shapes are flattened onto canvas so thatdifferent sides of each shape can be shown simultaneously from many angles.
Thisnew style gave a 3 dimensional look on the canvas. The cubist movement gave riseto an extraordinary reassessment of the interaction between form and spacechanging the course of western art forever. The groundbreaking DemoisellesdAvignon was controversial not only for the way the women looked but also forthe positions of the women. Although Picasso did not emphasize on detail, he”saw that the rational, often geometric breakdown if the human head and bodyemployed by so many African artists could provide him with the starting pointfor his own re-appraisal of his subjects”(Cubism 53).
“The naked womenbecome inextricably bound up in a flux of shapes or planes which tip backwardsand forwards from the two-dimensional surface to produce much the same sensationas an elaborate sculpture…”(Cubism 54). Futurism was an art movement, whichwas influenced by cubist art. Cubism showed no motion it was futurism that wasfascinated with machinery, transport and communications.
In paintings andsculpture, angular forms and powerful lines were used to convey a sense ofactivity, this was a Futurists way of showing motion and speed. One of itsinnovators was Umberto Boccioni who said “We want represent not the opticalor analytical impression but the physical and total experience” (Futurism101). “They now pinned less faith on the power of new subject matter andstrove to complement their colour divisionism with fragmentation of the cubistsort” (Futurism 101). Suprematism was influenced by cubism because of itgeometric shapes but “suprematism was not so much a movement in art as it isan attitude..
.” (Suprematism 138). This non-movement was created by KasmirMalevichs , “His elemental forms were designed both to break the artistsconditioned responses to his environment and create new realities no lesssignificant then the realities of nature herself” (Suprematism 138). Asuprematist work, banishes every trace of subject, it used color and form andthere interaction to form a subject. While cubism had definite subject it wasalso the interaction of color and shape that made the subject.
Constructivismwas influenced by suprematism, this movement swept away traditional notionsabout art, believing that it should imitate the forms and processes of moderntechnology. “Often constructivism was overtly propagandist in nature:sometimes by the placement of simple geometric forms in the kind of literarycontext which turns such forms into representations…” (Constructivism 161).De Stijl was mostly influenced by painters Piet Mondrian, Theo Van Doesburg andarchitect Gerrit Rietveld. These men believed that art should strive towardscomplete harmony, order clarity in a constant process of refinement. The worksin this movement were of course geometrical, using mainly square forms.
Themovements forms were deeply philosophical and were rooted in the idea thatart should in some way reflect order. All of these movements progressed fromcubism (hence my title); they developed from shapes into other worldly meanings.They all branched out to their own ways and fell to their feelings and desirers.All of these movements developed from geometrical objects to seem as a true formsuch as a body or face then turn into a geometrical form.
All of theseinnovators thought differently, they wanted to change everyone elses state ofmind and with their unlikely way of thinking they have. But we have become soaccustomed to it that we do not recognize it and take these powerful shapes andcolors for granted.
