Postmodernism vs Modernism Essay

Understanding the concept postmodernism ought to begin from the definition of modernism, an art movement that dominated the art and design industry between the 1860s and 1950s. Postmodernism was brought by various influential modern artists whose forward-thinking and radical approaches were destined to change the landscape of the industry. The new movement of postmodernism came with technological positivity, enhanced progress as well as the ideologies of western domination. Postmodernists were reacting to the modernists' concepts of design and came with aims of bringing something brighter, warmer and more experimental. Pop art and Neo-Dada arrived in America after the war, changing the mindset that modernism had set. This arrival saw art, and artistic designs take various forms such as minimalism, conceptual art, performance and video art, in resistance to modernism. Postmodernism exhibited diverse characteristics breaking down cultural hierarchies, challenging the concepts of originality and authenticity, and emphasis on both image and spectacle. The features of postmodernism showcased the representation of fragmented subjects in not only playful but also ironical manner. In essence, postmodernism rejected such narratives that history and knowledge could be embodied theories but embraced the temporary the contingent and the local understanding (Jencks and Jencks). In as much as postmodernism was also accused of various forms of fraud such as being superficial, ugly, derivative and profit-oriented, it can be seen as a reaction against the modernists' understanding of artistic concepts and designs.

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Various postmodernism enthusiasts including Michael Graves, Charles Moore, and Philip Johnson led the movement which revolted against calcified modernist architectural establishments. Their postmodern designs came out to be warm, engaging and funny. While the modernists propagated the notions of glass and concrete, which were affectless, the postmodern designs brought variety, and individual feel that appeal to all everyone (Jencks and Jencks).

Michael Graves is one of the highly decorated postmodernist architects whose designs such as the Indianapolis Art Center, the Portland Municipal Building located in Portland, Oregon, and Louisville's Humana Building, are still intact up to date. Michael Graves was born on July 9th, 1934 in Indianapolis and grew up in the Indianapolis suburbs. In 1952, he graduated from Broad Ripple High School, which is located within the city. His educational journey then proceeded to the University of Cincinnati from which he graduated with a bachelor's degree in architecture. A year later, Graves graduated again with a master's degree in architecture, but now from Harvard University. Graves was exposed to much of designing work by a designer known as George Nelson who was also a creative director of a furniture-manufacturing company called Herman Miller. The exposure to the works of other designers and architects contributed to Graves winning the American Academy in an event in Rome known as Prix de Rome. The prize was given as recognition of a few distinguished scholars and artists annually. The award gave Graves another opportunity to advance his training in Rome at the American Academy after which got an opportunity to study the area's ancient buildings and designs. After becoming a professor in 1962 at the School of Architecture in Princeton University, Graves' architectural didn't stop as he was determined to engrave a mark in the field of architecture and design. After almost forty years of classroom and outdoor pedagogical and research activities, Graves became a modernist architect. For ten years until the late 1970s, Graves became a postmodernist architect as he regarded the movement a step above modernism. The new movement represented architecture as a fascinating and an approachable form of art (Kelley 21-22).

The Portland Building is one of Graves' works or designs as a postmodernist architect. The building was officially opened in 1982, at a time when postmodernism in architecture gained ground in the United States. The 15-story building houses offices for Portland's numerous public agencies and has additional office spaces on the upper floors which can be rented. The base of the structure also has a food court. The green roof covering the top of the building made up of a stonecrop flower species called Sedum spathulifolium and helps in regulating the building's temperatures. It is located opposite the Portland city hall.

The visual characteristics of the Portland Building exhibit a blocky edifice with highly abstracted classical elements incorporating pediments, columns and a decorative pattern, all of which are decked in small square windows. The entrance contains a teal-colored podium while a classic ancient sculpture resembling a woman rests above its doors. While most iconic postmodernist structures in the earlier years were primarily designed for private clients, the Portland Building was designed by Graves to fit the everyday needs of public workers. The design was structured that way to make a monumental and cheerful tribute to the ordinary day to day operations of the city government of Oregon. That explains why it is also called the Portland Municipal Services building (Brake).

The stylistic influences of the Portland building can be derived from Graves' appreciation of, and interest in the simple and ordinary rituals of life. Graves held a belief that life should be enjoyed with its simple pleasures despite the speed at which technology was taking up various aspects of human life. He designed this building in a classical and playful so that it would remain a legible and important part of daily human life. The design indicates a postmodernist's conception of passion and personal expression that is unique. The influence was that identity of the structure should not be lost; it represented an embodiment of what exists, into something unknown but still recognizable. Unfortunately, to some degree, the reception of the building's design was not friendly especially as portrayed in the local media. This distaste for contemporary aesthetics associated with the design is closely related to its ancient demode appeal which people fail to link to the stylistic pastiche of postmodernism. At some point in 2014, Graves was forced to come out and fiercely defend this design after a series of calls for the building to be demolished (Koffman). The building has been praised by some architects who see is as the foundation of better designs while also changing various socio-cultural cultural aspects of those who live in the city. The building hosts numerous departments including but not limited to environmental services, communications, and many other public services, which all contribute to the social lives of all city dwellers.

Another stunning and iconic postmodernist design and that which is not a building is the Piazza d'Italia that was designed by Charles Moore. The Piazza d'Italia, which is both a public space and a memorial, exists in New Orleans and represents Moore's postmodernist concept of design. The design is a manifestation of architectural ideas which Moore regarded as 'inclusive' as everyone can enjoy it, and it can also 'speak' to anyone. The Piazza was completed by Moore in 1978 and was seen not only as a memorial to the past and present Italians in the city, but also a redevelopment project that would contribute to the urban richness and representation of history. The project was to emphasize on the contributions of the Italian-American citizens, which according to the project's leaders, had been overshadowed by the contributions of American citizens with roots from countries like France, Spain, Africa, as well as the Native Americans (Brake).

The urban plaza was designed in a pictorial form showing its visual characteristics. The design shows arches, colonnades and a bell tower which take a curved shape that forms around a fountain. The surfaces of structures used to design the memorial are not only ornamented with classical orders but are also brightly colored. The metallic layers are trimmed in neon colors while the surface of the memorial is textured and embellished. The visitors coming through the piazza can be mesmerized by the shadows and lights that constantly play across the structure (Brake). The numerous openings through which the fountain can be viewed can from mental and complex spatial experiences coupled with the neon and uplighting accents that create a lively and beautiful animation at night.

The stylistic influence of the plaza is inherent in its design and the very reason why Moore erected it. As a postmodern architect, Moore wanted to visualize the very foundations that make the Italian heritage and history beautiful and memorable. The shape of the fountain resembles the Italian peninsula with its surroundings made up of a clock tower, hemicyclical colonnades, the Roman temple and a campanile. The final two, the Campanile and the Roman temple, are expressed in space frame fashion, abstraction and minimalism. The fountain colonnades playfully with its surroundings showing orders and classical forms executed in modern materials such as neon and stainless steel.

The Piazza d'Italia plays a meaningful role as far as the history and culture of Italy is concerned. Moore's creation, as colorful and cartoonish as it was, represented a joyful tribute aimed at emphasizing the achievements of Italians, not only Italian Americans but also those who come as tourists. In the same aspect, it remains directly central to Italian culture representing the country's geography, architecture as well as urbanism and tourism (Lange).

Charles Moore was born on 31st October 1925 in Benton Harbor and died on 16th December 1993. Moore obtained his bachelor's degree in architecture in 1947 from the University of Michigan. He later joined Princeton University where he obtained both his master's degree and Ph.D. in 1957. In addition to teaching architecture at in various universities including Yale University and the University of California, he also took part in other personal projects in California such as Sea Ranch condominium project in which he gained acclaim(Lange). Apart from the Piazza d'Italia, Moore also designed the University of California' Alumni Center, among others as well as writing a few architecture books.

Apart from architectural designs dealing with buildings, postmodernism was also embraced by artists whose concepts revolted against the established notions of what made art. Various postmodern artists have brought new concepts related to painting, animation, graphics, printing and even filmmaking. One of these artists is Jasper Johns, whose numerous works have exhibited postmodern depictions of various forms of art, some of which are spread across multiple museums across the United States. One, in particular, is John's painting of the three flags (1958) which shows an embodiment of his dream, a mental picture of what America flag would look like. John's painting was regarded as Neo-Dadaist influence rather than pop art despite showcasing objects and images from popular culture. The flag was one of John's signature emblems in creation (Bernstein). What draws attention are the visual characteristics of the three flags, especially how the flag is painted. John used encaustic style in which he created a pigment and suspended it in warm wax which coagulates when the paintings are being done. The result of this kind of painting is a mass or accumulation of marks that harden creating a sensuous and near sculptural surface. The structural arrangement of the flag visual layers creates a complexity which adds to the awe. Another standout feature of this flag is the diminishing aspect in the layers, which minimize by a scale of about 25%, but the o...