Contemporary Art for "For Dummies"

Contemporary  art, though its 100 years history is still intriguing. There are a lot of reasons for that and this article is not covering this matter. Keeping this enigmous character of contemporary art in mind, let’s delve into my small cheat list on contemporary art with illustrations,works of famous artists and sculptors of the 20th century. It is rather a joke, and perhaps my own attempt to systematize and bear it in memory.

1. If you see colored scrawls and spots, as if the artist heartily blurted paint, it is abstract expressionism.

2. If it's a toilet, brick, excavator, garbage and other ordinary things, but given a clever explanation, it's conceptualism.

Damien Hirst, For the love of God (platinum skull with diamonds, shows the triumph of the religion of the Golden calf). Joseph Beuys, Chair with fat (and this is an attempt to "merge with nature at the mystical-shamanic level").

3. Same toilet, but without any explanation — ready-made. The artist just took the toilet and put on the pedestal, and all cleverly nodding their heads: yes, they say, understand.

Marcel Duchamp bought a urinal in the store (according to another version, found in the trash) and put it under the name Fountain and under the pseudonym R. Mutt (fool). By the way, it was sold for $ 1 million plus

4. If what you see in the picture looks like a bad dream, it is likely to be surrealistic. In general, we say "surrealism" when we see Dali’s works. We say Dali, we see surrealism.

5. When it seems that the artist brazenly schemed, giving a picture for a picture, it is hyperrealism. And if all wet or naked, so do not doubt.

6. Someone took a picture from a glossy magazine and clumsily painted in Paint, and when a little bit emboldened, redrawn comic? All in bright colours? Well, it's definitely pop art.

The Work Of Andy Warhol

Roy Lichenstein, "In the car," Jeff Koons, "Dog»

7. If you ask yourself a question: is this some magic or am I just drunk, can I believe my eyes? Be sure that this is op art (another option that you are really drunk before meeting with art).

8. If something tells you that the artist in school got As for technical drawing , be sure — in front of you is a work of constructivism.

9. If an artist plays the piano upside down, dances in a cake costume, wraps himself with a python and lies in the center of a burning star — in general, this is a performance.

Tilda Swinton in the performance Wardrobe hugs with clothes Joseph Beuys in the performance Coyote: I love America, and America loves me locked up for three days in a room with a coyote.

10. The happening is almost the same as the performance, only with the participation of the audience. And he has no script and no one knows where this fun will lead.10.

Yves Klein rolls the audience in paint and draws to the music of the orchestra.

11. You enter a hall where there, for example there are chairs with nails, and mannequins with suffering on their faces sit on them,  not be frightened, it is an installation. In short, it is a work of art that you can enter and touch (if permitted) everything there.

The installation "In orbit" at the Museum of Dusseldorf. Ilya Kabakov, "The man who flew into space", "Mirror maze" in Hyde Park (London).

Love art, as We do!

Author: Daria Mudrova @darimudrova

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