Abstract Expressionism in Europe

Art is a state of Plastic Consciousness. Federico von Borstel

Everything has beauty, but not everyone sees it. Confucius

I hear and I forget. I see and I remember. I do and I understand. Confucius

Pierre Soulages

Georges Mathieu

Nicolas de Stael

Antoni Tapies

Alberto Burri

Lucio Fontana

Hans Hartung

Jean Fautrier

Wols

Henri Michaux

Jean-Paul Riopelle

Optional Materials: Sketchbook, 11 in. x 14 in., 27.9 x 35.6 cm, 60 lb., 89 g/m2

All graphite pencils, soft, Pencil, 2B. Kept sharp, Pencil Sharpener

Pen, bold and medium, black. Straight edge, ruler, triangle

Erasers, Color pencils, Prismacolor, markers or other, Brush

This course is part of our Contemporary Art Courses which include:

•Introduction

•Precedents

•Abstract Expressionism

•Abstract Expressionism in Europe

•Post-Painterly Abstraction

•Transition Artists

•Minimalism

•Op Art

•Pop Art

•Collage and Assemblage

•Installation Art

•Performance, Environments and Happenings

•Earth Art

•Electronic and Video Art

•Hyper Realism

•Issue Based Art

Sensorial Art

The first generation of Abstract Expressionism flourished between 1943 and the mid-1950s. The movement effectively shifted the art world’s focus from Europe (specifically Paris) to New York in the postwar years. The paintings were seen widely in traveling exhibitions and through publications. In the wake of Abstract Expressionism, new generations of artists—both American and European—were profoundly marked by the breakthroughs made by the first generation, and went on to create their own important expressions based on, but not imitative of, those who forged the way.

Soulages has said, "My instrument is not black but the light reflected from the black.“ Naming his own practice Outrenoir, (Beyond Black) the paintings he produces are known for their endless black depth, created by playing with the light reflected off of the texture of the paint.