Analysis of Art Movement Documentaries

• Gothic Revival

The gothic movement was first done in the mid-12th century—to be more specific, by the year 1150 to 1375—in Northern France (Gothic art - Google Arts & Culture, n.d.). However, as times changed, it was no longer the main art movement. Though, in the 1800s the gothic art movement made its comeback. The revival of the art movement firstly occurs in England. One of the main figures that greatly influenced this art movement is Sir George Gilbert Scott. He is known for building a large number of gothic revival church in the past, which became the highlight for this era. The movement could flourish during this times as the people start to desire to have meaningful buildings. Due to its tall structure and intricate designs, the rich began to take a liking towards the gothic architecture (OpenLearn from The Open University, 2013).

• Arts and Crafts

The Arts and Crafts art movement occurs on the year 1863 in the United Kingdom. This art movement was originally an act of rebellion against the use of machinery in the industry as the existence of machinery brought along the process of mass production. This led to the skills of workers no longer in use. The Arts and Craft movement was led by William Morris who believes that the industrial production causes people to be less creative and eliminate the use of skills in the manufacturing process. One of the highlighted event of this movement is the result of a positive impact on the economic and social reform as well as providing support for workers and craftspeople. The movement was able to appeal to society as they create a sense of support for workers and craftspeople who had been unemployed due to the use of machinery in mass production (OpenLearn from The Open University, 2013).

• Bauhaus

Bauhaus was built in Germany in 1919. This school provided different subjects relating to both art and design instead of teaching the two subjects separately. The main purpose was to develop and unify the skills in art and crafts while understanding the operation of technology. Marcel Breuer is one of the influential figure during that time. He was known to create the cantilever chair after being inspired by the steel tubes from his bicycle. The cantilever chair was then the first lightweight, mass-produced metal chair. Since then, the art and design world drastically changed. One highlighted impact of the movement is the implementation of minimalism, simplicity, as well as the pure form of geometry in designs. The movement was able to flourish during that period of time due to it placing its importance on ideas, innovations, and exploration. It also provides a new perspective in the art and design world, making people realise how both worlds are codependent to one another (OpenLearn from The Open University, 2013).

• Modernism

Modernism happened around the 20th century, when people began to look for change after the war (OpenLearn from The Open University, 2013). This movement originally began in Europe in the mid-19th century and expand to the US in the early 20th century (Google Arts & Culture. n.d.). There are several important figures that further develop the modernism art movement. Some of these figures include Picasso, Escher, and Dali—who created a new worldview. There are also sub groups of the modernism movement. It includes cubism, symbolism, impressionism, surrealism, and many more. The main highlight of modernism is the idea of designing and developing a better society. They were able to combine function and form together, making this movement to be one of the most effective and influential since that time until now (OpenLearn from The Open University, 2013).

• American Industrial Design

The American Industrial Design movement is an act started by the manufacturers to make people begin buying once again. This movement was done during the 1920s in America after the Great Depression. The Great Depression negatively impact the consumer behaviours of men, therefore, manufacturers began to innovate to increase consumer demands. Norman Bel Geddes is considered to be one of the main design influencer during that time. He popularised the streamline shape and is one of the founder of utilitarian art. The 1939 Futurama World Fair shows the new era of American Industrial Design. This brought back the consumer behaviour and they realise the importance of good and eye-catching designs. This movement was able to flourish as the manufacturers placed importance on design and function to attract consumers to buy products (OpenLearn from The Open University, 2013).

• Postmodernism

Postmodernism began in the year 1972 in France. The post modernists believe that the modernism movement failed as they believe less is not an interesting concept (OpenLearn from The Open University, 2013). Andy Warhol was one of the famous postmodernist influencers. He created the Marilyn Diptych artwork and popularised the pop art culture (The Art Story. n.d.). One main higlight of each movement is the ability to explore new concepts and shapes instead of sticking to one theory or idea. The movement was able to flourish as it provides a media of creative self-expression (OpenLearn from The Open University, 2013).

• Analysis

Based on my personal analysis, these movements relate to one another as it requires the same elements, such as shape and color. These movements also is an act done by people who were unsatisfied or believes that the world could be improved through the existence of the movements and all these movements’ main purpose is to fulfill the lacking aspect that people may experience or feel (gaining self-satisfaction). There are also several behaviours that is adapted from one movement to another. This could be seen as the movements all focus—purposely or unknowingly—on combining function and design. In the end, these movements exist to act as a form of self-expression today.

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Works Cited:

Google Arts & Culture. n.d. Gothic art - Google Arts & Culture. [online] Available at:

<https://artsandculture.google.com/entity/gothic-art/m03mmhl?categoryId=art-movement>

[Accessed: 19 August 2021].

Google Arts & Culture. n.d. Modernism - Google Arts & Culture. [online] Available at:

<https://artsandculture.google.com/entity/modernism/m04y41?categoryId=art-movement>

[Accessed: 20 August 2021].

​​OpenLearn from The Open University, 2013. American Industrial Design: Design in a Nutshell

(5/6). [YouTube Video] Available at: <https://www.youtube.com/watchv=ceKmk

vOLD3Q&list=PLhQpDGfX5e7CJ87BDeuTdXTpxl0YM2Tdb&index=5> [Accessed: 20 August

2021].

OpenLearn from The Open University, 2013. Arts and Crafts: Design in a Nutshell (2/6).

[YouTube Video] Available at: <https://www.youtube.com/watch?

v=CBq73yxha0o&list=PLhQpDGfX5e7CJ87BDeuTdXTpxl0YM2Tdb&index=2> [Accessed: 19

August 2021].

OpenLearn from The Open University, 2013. Bauhaus: Design in a Nutshell (3/6). [YouTube

Video] Available at: <https://www.youtube.com/watchv=ZQa0BajKB4Q&list=PLhQ

pDGfX5e7CJ87BDeuTdXTpxl0YM2Tdb&index=3> [Accessed: 19 August 2021].

OpenLearn from The Open University, 2013. Gothic Revival: Design in a Nutshell (1/6).

[YouTube Video] Available at: <https://www.youtube.com/watchv=NsfL8KpM7Qs&list=P

LhQpDGfX5e7CJ87BDeuTdXTpxl0YM2Tdb&index=1> [Accessed: 19 August 2021].

OpenLearn from The Open University, 2013. History & the Arts – Postmodernism: Design in a

Nutshell (6/6). [Youtube Video] Available at: <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lKomOq

YU4Mw&list=PLhQpDGfX5e7CJ87BDeuTdXTpxl0YM2Tdb&index=6> [Accessed: 20 August

2021].

OpenLearn from The Open University, 2013. Modernism: Design in a Nutshell (4/6). [Youtube

Video] Available at: <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vDCEtnXlA4Y&list=PLhQ

pDGfX5e7CJ87BDeuTdXTpxl0YM2Tdb&index=4> [Accessed: 20 August 2021].

The Art Story. n.d. The Most Important Art of Postmodern Art. [online] Available at:

<https://www.theartstory.org/definition/postmodernism/artworks/> [Accessed: 20 August 2021].

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