Why No One Understands Abstract Art

Purpose – Stimulators are powerful compositions. They grab us, won’t let go, and have a similar effect as the musical paintings of Kandinsky. They engage us, make us feel alive, and can be admired year after year.

Style – Stimulators are often complex, using different colors, forms, brush strokes, and textures to keep us engaged. They show a mastery of design principles such as contrast, structure, tension, rhythm, and balance. Stimulators can be improvised or planned. Improvised stimulators are jazz bands, with the artist freestyling their brushstrokes – only stopping when it feels complete. Planned stimulators are orchestras, with the elements prearranged to create a powerful composition.

Example – La Fenêtre (The Window). Robert Delaunay, the co-founder of Orphism, believed art should be beautiful and had musical qualities, like Kandinsky. Delaunay’s unique approach used captivating geometric patterns and color as primary tools. He combined the two with his study of color theory and invented the term “simultanism” – the phenomenon that a color’s appearance is altered by the other colors surrounding it. In 1912, Delaunay created La Fenêtre as a part of his Simultaneous Windows Series. Inspired by a mere postcard of the Eiffel Tower, it is one of his earliest works depicting his transition to complete abstraction.

Purpose – Feelers translate intangible human qualities like emotion and presence into works of art. Staring deeply into them stirs feelings from serenity to aggression. They often distill the many emotions of a person onto a single canvas – serving as a self-portrait of the soul.

Style – Feelers have no common set of visual cues. They range in complexity from wild and bright brushstrokes to one-color canvases. They may be carefully planned or improvised.

Example – Number 28, 1950. One of the largest figures in abstract art is America’s Jackson Pollock. In 1947, Pollock painted his first of many “drip” paintings and fathered Abstract Expressionism. His work was pure expression. Instead of the calm and thoughtful approach used by other artists, Pollock freely flung, dripped, and poured paint onto a huge canvas as it lay on the floor beneath him. His paintings exposed the world to a wild and restless man filled with aggression and inner battles.

Purpose – Thinkers subconsciously push the viewer to ponder ideas outside of the painting itself. They may ask us to think about the yin and yang of the universe or the struggles of humanity.

Style – The common thinker is simple and may not be the most exciting to look at. They are carefully planned with features wisely placed throughout the canvas. Essential elements are methodically added while distracting and non-essential elements are removed – resulting in a meticulously crafted appearance. Thinkers are the hardest to identify without prior knowledge to tip us off to the intended idea.

Example – Composition with Red, Yellow, Black, Blue and Grey 1930. Piet Mondrian created a strict geometric style called De Stijl or “The Style.” Inspired by the tragedies of WWI, Mondrian created grids of white, red, yellow, and blue separated by black lines to reflect universal harmony.