Essay on Modern Art Evolving: Examining Futurism Through Frank Stella's Work

Introduction

Thesis: In my view, the modern state of painting right now is evolving. I will use the futurism theory by Filippo Tommaso Marinetti to support my argument. The artist I will use as a representative of a painter of our time is Frank Stella.

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Contemporary art continues to evolve over the years, with artists coming with new creations and designs. It is a creative way of responding to rationalist practices as well as the perception of new ideas and lives that come with technology advances (The Art Story Foundation, 2020). Modern society is manifesting itself in innovative approaches to comparing the past and present, such as the creation and use of painting art to communicate those ideas. The development of modern paintings is more focused on the artists' intention to portray topics currently existing in the world based on the individuals' unique perspective as well as accepted or rejected traditional values and styles. The paper focuses on the trend of development of modern painting guided by the futurism theory and supported by the artwork of Frank Stella to show that the contemporary state of painting right now is evolving.

The Present State of Painting

The current status of painting is evolving based on the futurism view on the development of modern art. Futurism theory emerged from Italy during the early 20th century, and its purpose was to apprehend the dynamism as well as energy found in the contemporary art world (Artland Aps, n.d). Futurists well understand the modern developments in science and philosophy. They are highly fascinated by movement, aviation, cinematography, and criticize the past that promotes oppressive cultures. Their art features celebrated modernity, the art industry, as well as technology. Danto (2014) stated that the history of art is the difference from that of science as it emphasizes on the role played by the visual in communicating abstract ideas. Futurism is more concerned with achieving the scientific goals of art history. Painters are concerned with representing the present experience, and newness in modern life using creative ways.

Painting is evolving, and what is outdated is being swept away by the artists from time to time. The traditional views of paintings are barely represented in modern artwork as the artists present a dynamic engagement with the symbolic meaning of art (Danto, 2014). Instead, painters, like other contemporary artists, are replacing the traditional views of art by celebrating the machine age. Futurism holds that contemporary art focuses on dynamism in that it wants to represent the vision of the future, which is changing from time to time (Artland Aps, n.d). The use of new technologies, working-class, speed, violence, movement, and urban landscapes are portrayed and glorified. Speed and motion are felt within the modern painting, and that demonstrates the intended action and dynamism of art. Blurring and repeating are techniques used by modern painters through the use of lines of different sizes.

According to Bruce and Adelheid (1991), the modern history of the painting represents a continuous and disrupted tradition from ancient times. Contemporary paintings represent ongoing creativity that has continued up to the 21st century, whereby more conceptual and straightforward methods of art are gaining favor. Painters are more focused on presenting their narratives based on a master narrative of a specific idea, or place and their significance. The aspect of master narrative in contemporary painting incorporates the development of the concept and the science paradigm grounded in the artists' setting (Danto, 2014).

The Painter that Represents the Modern State of Painting as Evolving

Frank Stella is an artist who represents the modern state of painting as evolving. Frank Stella is a postwar artist from America and an influential painter for generations that go beyond the minimalist as well as abstract expressionism (Artsy, 2020). Through futurism, a person can identify the dynamist that is evident in the paintings of Frank Stella from one decade to another. The early works of Frank Stella focused on draining any obvious symbolism of meaning from the created pictures. The painter reduced the images to the geometric arrangement and eliminated any illusionistic effects. The objective of Frank Stella during his early time in painting was to make the images in a pictorial form where force originated from materiality and not symbolic meaning. For Frank Stella, what a person sees in the painting is precisely that, and there is no hidden or symbolic meaning or a specific piece of art.

Images such as the Narowla II, 1971, Sharpsville (State II), 1973, Charlotte Tokayer, 1972 and Schwarze Weisheit for D.J., 2000 (Appendix) are examples of paintings created by Frank Stella in the 1970s (Artsy, 2020). The pictures are more geometrical and do not present any symbol for a different meaning. What the viewer can see, it is exactly what is in the painting. The Narowla II, 1971, is a painting of acrylic that can be felt combined with a paper collage on panel. Frank Stella used straight lines and different colors to represent the shape of the painting. Sharpsville (State II), 1973, is a lithograph painting on Saunders's paper. The lines merge from big to small inwards to create a viewpoint image whereby the eyes experience the reduced view from outside towards inside of the painting. Charlotte Tokayer, 1972 is also a lithograph painting that depicts a reduced view of the image from outwards to inside. Frank Stella used print media during the 1970s to produce the paintings. There are no symbolic meanings that the audience can deduce from the three images.

During the 1980s and 1990s, Frank Stella changed from the minimalist approach of art to a more adaptive approach that captures monuments and twists of metal to create polychromatic paintings. The Imaginary Trouble, 1986, and East Euralia, From Imaginary Places, 1995, are two images that depict Frank Stella's paintings in the 1980s and 1990s. The Imaginary Trouble is a painting created using oil on anodized aluminum. The image depicts motion, change of direction, and feelings depending on the interpretation of the viewer. It demonstrates the futuristic effect of dynamism in a painting done by Frank Stella. He changed the medium and design to adopt a new approach that communicates more details of the idea when compared to the previous paintings in the 1970s. The East Euralia, From Imaginary Places, 1995, is a painting that reveals the movement. The master narrative aspect of modern art is evident to depict the painters' idea to reveal the idea of movement and science model that explains the environment of the artist (Danto, 2014). Frank Stella used continuous lines and colors from one end to another continuously to reveal the intention of moving from one place to another. The painter combined technology for screen print, color lithograph, and etching as well as aquatint and embossment to produce the final product. The adaptive approach to art demonstrates the futurism idea of dynamism and the capturing of modern ideas (Artland Aps, n.d). Screenprint reveals the modern age of digital applications in art.

By now, I believe that paintings should be digital, and Frank Stella was not left out in applying technology, including the digital media in the paintwork. In the 2000s, Frank Stella enhances creativity in a painting by using technology to present the Schwarze Weisheit for D.J., 2000 painting. It is a combined eight-color etching, lithograph, aquatint, and relief with embossing painted on white TGL handmade paper. Futuristic elements of the development of modern art are evident with the essence of motion in the painting. Frank Stella used dynamic lines that are intersecting to create a concentric movement that reveals motion from right to left.

Futurism depicts the technical progress of modern art in the machine age. Vitality, change, speed, dynamism, and energy are highly depicted in the works of art produced by the painter (Artland Aps, n.d). Frank Stella's paintings reveal change over the years from the representation of abstract ideas to the reduced meaning of the presented painting. According to Rubin (1970), the development of modern art is depicted in Frank Stella's paintings, whereby they change as the years go. The early paintings of Franks Stella have no stylistic heritage and represented a rejection of the traditional and everything that would be regarded as a painting. Over the years, the artworks by Frank Stella reveal extended and manifested roots in abstract painting in the new generation in reacting to spontaneous gesture.

Based on the paintings presented, Frank Stella used print media to present loose brushwork to reveal abstract expressionism in paintings that stress on control and meditation. From the used print to digital media on the screen, Frank Stella seems to be against the freedom of expression common during the Romantic Era (Rubin, 1970). The style is different from a beautiful painting that rejects allusions to another world that is outside the painting. The canvas and the convergence stripes are the 20th-century signs for abstract representation and mechanized speed. That effect is achieved in the painting by streamlining the machine design in contemporary art where the lines of force in futurist art are evident.

Conclusion

In my view, the state of painting right now is evolving. The futurism theory depicts the changes in the development of painting in contemporary art. Frank Stella is one of the artists who represent a painter of our time. The paintings from the 1970s to the 2000s reveal dynamism, speed, energy, change, and vitality. The observation made from the artworks reveals that abstract paintings created by Frank Stella in the 1970s and 1980s are free from representational art features. However, futurism is spanning from one decade to another, whereby a viewer can see the artworks in the past and future context of painting that continues to evolve in contemporary art.

References

Artland Aps. (n.d). Art movement: Futurism: definition and overview. The Artland Magazine, https://magazine.artland.com/art-movement-futurism/

Artsy. (2020). Other works by Frank Stella. https://www.artsy.net/artwork/frank-stella-spectralia

Bruce, C., & Adelheid, Gealt. (1991, December 15). Art of the western world: From Ancient Greece to postmodernism. New York: Simon and Schuster. ISBN: 978-0-671-74728-2.

Danto, A. (2014). Master narratives and critical principles. In A. C. Danto. After the end of art. contemporary art and the pale of history. Princeton: Princeton University Press. 41-58. ISBN: 9780691163895

Rubin, W. (1970). Frank Stella: The Museum of Modern Art, New York. Library of Congress Catalog. https://www.moma.org/documents/moma_catalogue_1945_300299009.pdf

The Art Story Foundation. (2020). Modern art. The Art Story. https://www.theartstory.org/definition/modern-art/history-and-concepts/