What does “Global Contemporary” really mean?
Global contemporary art is characterized by a transcendence of traditional conceptions of art. Global Contemporary art attempts to reach beyond the known, for art that elevates, transcending knowledge and experiences that escape our vocabulary and traditional senses. It is supported by technological developments and global awareness. Digital technology in particular provides increased access to imagery and contextual information about diverse artists and artworks throughout history and across the globe. In the scholarly realm as well as mainstream media, contemporary art is now a major phenomenon experienced and understood in a global context.
Global contemporary art is characterized by a transcendence of traditional conceptions of art. Global Contemporary art attempts to reach beyond the known, for art that elevates, transcending knowledge and experiences that escape our vocabulary and traditional senses. It is supported by technological developments and global awareness. Digital technology in particular provides increased access to imagery and contextual information about diverse artists and artworks throughout history and across the globe. In the scholarly realm as well as mainstream media, contemporary art is now a major phenomenon experienced and understood in a global context.
Context:
Materials, tools, function, artistic training, style, and presentation are challenged. Questions about how art is defined, valued, and presented are provoked by everything from digital works to graffitti to online galleries and the decline in natural materials and traditional skills, and the predominance of disposable material cultures.
Diverse art forms are considered and include existential investigations, sociopolitical critiques, as well as reflections on the natural world, art’s
history, popular and traditional cultures, and technological innovation. Artists use appropriation and “mashups” to devalue or revalue culturally
sacred objects, and to negate or support expectations of artworks based on regional, cultural, and chronological associations. Intended meanings are often open-ended and subject to multiple interpretations. The iconic building becomes a sought-after trademark for cities. Computer-aided design impacts the diversity of innovative architectural forms. Art history surveys have traditionally offered less attention to art made from 1980 to the present. While such surveys often presented contemporary art as largely a European and American phenomenon, contemporary art produced by artists of Africa, Asia, Oceania, and the First Nations are receiving the same attention than work produced in Europe and the Americas. The waning of colonialism, started by independence movements, shifts in the balance of power with the collapse of Communism in Eastern Europe and the rise of China, and the development of widespread communication networks such as the Internet have all contributed to representations of the world that are global and interconnected rather than Eurocentric. The art world has expanded and become more inclusive since the 1960s. Artists of all nationalities, ethnicities, and sexual preferences, as well as female artists, have challenged the traditional privileged place of white, heterosexu- al men in art history. This activism has been supported by theories (e.g.,
deconstructionist, feminist, poststructuralist, and queer) that critique perspectives on history and culture that claim universality but are in fact exclusionary. The worldwide proliferation of contemporary art museums, galleries, exhibi- tions, and print and digital publications has created diverse venues for the presentation and evaluation of art in today’s world.
Diverse art forms are considered and include existential investigations, sociopolitical critiques, as well as reflections on the natural world, art’s
history, popular and traditional cultures, and technological innovation. Artists use appropriation and “mashups” to devalue or revalue culturally
sacred objects, and to negate or support expectations of artworks based on regional, cultural, and chronological associations. Intended meanings are often open-ended and subject to multiple interpretations. The iconic building becomes a sought-after trademark for cities. Computer-aided design impacts the diversity of innovative architectural forms. Art history surveys have traditionally offered less attention to art made from 1980 to the present. While such surveys often presented contemporary art as largely a European and American phenomenon, contemporary art produced by artists of Africa, Asia, Oceania, and the First Nations are receiving the same attention than work produced in Europe and the Americas. The waning of colonialism, started by independence movements, shifts in the balance of power with the collapse of Communism in Eastern Europe and the rise of China, and the development of widespread communication networks such as the Internet have all contributed to representations of the world that are global and interconnected rather than Eurocentric. The art world has expanded and become more inclusive since the 1960s. Artists of all nationalities, ethnicities, and sexual preferences, as well as female artists, have challenged the traditional privileged place of white, heterosexu- al men in art history. This activism has been supported by theories (e.g.,
deconstructionist, feminist, poststructuralist, and queer) that critique perspectives on history and culture that claim universality but are in fact exclusionary. The worldwide proliferation of contemporary art museums, galleries, exhibi- tions, and print and digital publications has created diverse venues for the presentation and evaluation of art in today’s world.
APAH 250 ARTWORKS
Installation
224. The Gates, Christo and Jeanne-Claude
225. Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Maya Lin
248. Shibboleth, Doris Salcedo
238. Electronic Superhighway, Nam June Paik
Identity
242. Lying with the Wolf, Kiki Smith
243. Darkytown Rebellion, Kara Walker
236. En la Barberia no se Llora (No Crying Allowed in the Barbershop), Pepon Osorio
231. Untitled (#228), from the History Portraits series, Cindy Sherman
232. Dancing at the Louvre, from the series, The French Collection, part 1; #1, Faith Ringgold
Culture
235. Rebellious Silence, from the Women of Allah series, Shirin Neshat (artist); photo by Cynthia Preston
237. Pisupo Lua Afe (Corned Beef 2000), Michel Tuffery
244. The Swing (After Fragonard), Yinka Shonibare
245. Old Man’s Cloth, El Anatsui
233. Trade (Gifts for Trading Land with White People), Jaune Quick-to-See Smith
234. Earth’s Creation, Emily Kame Kngwarreye
229. A Book from the Sky, Xu Bing
250. Kui Hua Zi (Sunflower Seeds), Ai Weiwei
228. Androgyne III, Magdalena Abakanowicz
226. Horn Players, Jean-Michel Basquiat
230. Pink Panther, Jeff Koons
247. Preying Mantra, Wangechi Mutu
246. Stadia II, Julie Mehretu
227. Summer Trees, Song Su-nam
241. Pure Land, Mariko Mori
239. The Crossing, Bill Viola
Architecture
152. House in New Castle County, Robert Ventura, John Rausch and Denise Scott Brown
240. Guggenheim Museum Bilbao, Frank Gehry
249. MAXXI National Museum of XXI Century
224. The Gates, Christo and Jeanne-Claude
225. Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Maya Lin
248. Shibboleth, Doris Salcedo
238. Electronic Superhighway, Nam June Paik
Identity
242. Lying with the Wolf, Kiki Smith
243. Darkytown Rebellion, Kara Walker
236. En la Barberia no se Llora (No Crying Allowed in the Barbershop), Pepon Osorio
231. Untitled (#228), from the History Portraits series, Cindy Sherman
232. Dancing at the Louvre, from the series, The French Collection, part 1; #1, Faith Ringgold
Culture
235. Rebellious Silence, from the Women of Allah series, Shirin Neshat (artist); photo by Cynthia Preston
237. Pisupo Lua Afe (Corned Beef 2000), Michel Tuffery
244. The Swing (After Fragonard), Yinka Shonibare
245. Old Man’s Cloth, El Anatsui
233. Trade (Gifts for Trading Land with White People), Jaune Quick-to-See Smith
234. Earth’s Creation, Emily Kame Kngwarreye
229. A Book from the Sky, Xu Bing
250. Kui Hua Zi (Sunflower Seeds), Ai Weiwei
228. Androgyne III, Magdalena Abakanowicz
226. Horn Players, Jean-Michel Basquiat
230. Pink Panther, Jeff Koons
247. Preying Mantra, Wangechi Mutu
246. Stadia II, Julie Mehretu
227. Summer Trees, Song Su-nam
241. Pure Land, Mariko Mori
239. The Crossing, Bill Viola
Architecture
152. House in New Castle County, Robert Ventura, John Rausch and Denise Scott Brown
240. Guggenheim Museum Bilbao, Frank Gehry
249. MAXXI National Museum of XXI Century