Extreme Abstraction

Catalog description

This course examines the historical foundation, critical debate, and ideological motivations regarding abstraction in the modern era. It also explores some of the key theorists of abstraction (Wassily Kandinsky, Paul Klee, Clement Greenberg, Stan Brakhage, and B.H.D. Buchloh), as well as the critical grounds for the shift toward the nonfigurative. Relevant historical movements that will be studied include Abstract Expressionism, Suprematism, De Stijl, Cubism, the Monochrome, Photographic and Filmic Abstraction, and the limits of representation. Key artists to be considered include: Man Ray, Charles Biederman, Gerhard Richter, Chuck Close, Ellsworth Kelly, Robert Ryman, Agnes Martin, Robert Mangold, Bridget Riley, Tony Conrad, Stan Brakhage and Harry Smith.