The history of art is often divided into six major movements, which together comprise the entirety of modern art. These movements are typically categorized by their respective time periods, but they all share common roots and inspirations.
The six movements are Impressionism, Expressionism, Cubism, Futurism, Constructivism, and Surrealism. Each of these movements had their own distinct style and approach to art.
Impressionism was the first modern art movement to emerge in the late 19th century. It was led by Claude Monet and other French painters who sought to capture the ever-changing effects of light on their subject matter. They used broken brush strokes that emphasized the immediacy of their work and blurred the boundaries between representation and abstraction.
Expressionism was a movement that developed in Germany during the early 20th century. It focused on capturing strong emotions and feelings through distorted forms, intense colors, and exaggerated lines. The works of Max Beckmann and Edvard Munch best exemplify this movement’s unique style.
Cubism was developed around 1907 by Pablo Picasso and Georges Braque in response to the limitations of conventional perspective in painting. This movement sought to break down forms into basic geometric shapes in order to emphasize their two-dimensional nature as well as create a sense of depth on a flat canvas surface.
Futurism was an Italian movement that began in 1909 with the publication of Filippo Tommaso Marinetti’s Futurist Manifesto. This movement sought to celebrate progress, technology, speed, violence, and war through its bold use of colour and form to depict motion. The works of Giacomo Balla are some of the best examples of this style.
Constructivism emerged from Russian avant-garde circles around 1913 with a focus on bringing art closer to everyday life by emphasizing machine-like forms over organic shapes as well as promote social change through its works. The works of El Lissitzky are some of the best examples from this period.
Surrealism was an international movement that emerged in Paris during the 1920s under the influence of Sigmund Freud’s theories about dreams and psychoanalysis. Artists such as Salvador Dali sought to explore nonlinear connections between thoughts and ideas through dreamlike images that defied logic yet still held meaning for them personally or collectively as a group.
Conclusion:
The six major modern art movements – Impressionism, Expressionism, Cubism, Futurism, Constructivism, and Surrealism – have all had significant impacts on our understanding of what constitutes contemporary art today. Each movement has its own unique style that has shaped our understanding not only about how we view artwork but also how we interpret it collectively as a society.