vendredi 26 septembre 2014

About Figurative And Genre Art

By Elsa Noel


Genre art pictures scenes from everyday life, usually people doing something. According to the Academy systematization, genre painting is one of the types of paintings, together with history painting, portraiture, landscape, animal paining and still life. Figurative and genre art aren't synonyms, although they can both picture animal or human figures in different situations. Genre art is figuratism, while figuratism doesn't have to be genre art.

Figurative art is best described as artworks that obviously represent something that exists in the real world. This art usually has volume, shape, perspective and structure, and this is achieved using colors and lines, different materials and techniques, depending on the particular artist. All techniques and medias are accepted, but the subject is something that comes from the real world.

Although figuratism may contain different simplifications of the form, especially when it comes to paintings, this type of art is basically representational rather than abstract. Generally it may be said that figurative may be applied to all art before abstract. Today, this term is mostly used to define any art form that isn't abstract. In short, if you can tell what it is, it is definitely figuratism.

It doesn't matter what media is used. All are accepted, including oil, watercolor and pastel. People are the main subject, whether they have their clothes or not. Of course, some artists are more interested in describing particular emotions or moods, while others might be more focused on reality. Generally, all portraits that are recognizable are certainly figurative artworks.

There are no real limits to interpretation. Although this is a real figure based representation, using different styles, methods and materials results in countless variations. The main thing is that the main subject has to be recognizable at some point. Although expressionism is the best example for this category, other styles, for example cubism, belong to figurative paintings as well, as long as it is recognizable.

Figuratism covers extremely wide area. One extreme is the photo realism, and all the way on the other side is nearly abstract, barely recognizable form of expression. Again, cubism. Cubism is abstract or not, depending on the author. Unrecognizable as something based on the real world, it is abstract. If you can tell what it is, however distorted it is, it can be considered as figuratism.

Numerous contemporary artists represent different approaches to figuratism. Some of the most interesting ones are John Currin and Jenny Saville, for example. If you would like to explore the world of modern figurative artists, make sure to check the work of Hollis Dunlap, Johan Van Mullem, Marlene Dumas, Jas Knight, Gillian Carnegie and numerous other interesting artists.

Different abstract art forms popular in twentieth century made figurative arts a little bit neglected. They tried to improve the art. In the eighties, this forgotten art form became popular again, thanks to numerous enthusiasts such as John Currin. Contemporary figurative art reflect modern world and definitely has something to offer. Maybe art cannot be improved, but it can offer something new and exciting.




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