Art Eras and Movements

Paleolithic, Egyp, Greece, Rome to Modern and

Contemprorary
Topics: Ancient Civilization of Mesopotamia and the Hebrews
The Beginnings of Culture
Paleolithic Cultures and Their Artifacts
Myth in Prehistoric Cultural Life
Religious and Political Influence on the Arts

In December 1994, Jean-Marie Chauvet and two friends discovered a

group of drawings in a large chamber in one of the caves along the Ardeche
River gorge in Southern France. These drawings were comparable to those
done by contemporary artists unlike the ones discovered earlier in the 27
similar caves found along the 17-miles of the Ardeche gorge. Previously
discovered paintings appeared to modern man as childlike. This discoveries
lead to speculations of other artworks that may have existed but haven’t
survived because they were made of perishable materials like wood. This
further leads to speculations that art may have been made earlier than
30,000 years ago and perhaps man may have inhabited the Near East
90,000-100,000 years ago.
Culture encompasses the values and behaviors shared by a group of
people and developed over time, and passed down from one generation to
the next. The cave paintings discovered by Chauvet suggest that the
Ardeche gorge may have been the center of culture of a group living in which
the values of a community find expression. There were others like it. In
northern Spain, the first decorated cave was discovered in 1879 at Altamira.
In Dordogne, southern France, west of Ardeche, schoolchildren discovered
the Lascaux Cave in 1940 when their dog disappeared down a hole. In 1991,
along the French Mediterranean coast, a diver discovered the entrance to
the Cosquer Cave below the waterline near Marseille.
Scholars are wondering why were these paintings done. Until recently
scholars believe that these paintings were associated with the hunt. Perhaps
during times of scarcity the hunters seeking game hope to conjure it up by
drawing them on the cave walls. Perhaps the drawings were like magic
charms intended to ensure a successful hunt. However, 60 percent of the
animals depicted by the paintings on the walls at Chauvet were never or
rarely hunted –there were lions, rhinoceros, bears, panthers, and mammoths.
 Paleolithic Era (Old Stone Age)
People in the paleolithic era lived on hunting and gathering wild plants.
There were small groups scattered and living a nomadic life. As the ice
receded, agriculture replaced hunting and gathering and people started a
more sedentary way of life. These is the beginning of the Neolithic Era (New
Stone Age). During this period people began creating pottery which they
used as containers or vessels for water and food.
Civilization started in the great river valleys of Middle East and Asia.
Civilization refers to the social, economic, and political entity distinguished
by the ability to express itself through images and written language.
Civilization develops when the environment of a region can support a large
and productive population.

When we say civilization started in the great river valleys of the Middle East
and Asia, we are referring to specific regions where some of the earliest
complex societies emerged, thanks to the availability of water, fertile soil,
and conducive conditions for agriculture and settlement. In the Middle East,
this specifically refers to:

Mesopotamia (modern-day Iraq, parts of Syria, and Turkey)

 Rivers: Tigris and Euphrates

 Key Cities and Civilizations:
o Sumerians in cities like Uruk, Ur, and Eridu
o Akkadians, Babylonians, and Assyrians
 Mesopotamia is often called the "Cradle of Civilization" because it saw
the development of writing (cuneiform), large urban centers, and
complex governance systems.

Egypt (Northeast Africa, closely tied to the Middle East)

 River: Nile
 Key Developments:
o Ancient Egyptian civilization flourished along the fertile Nile
Valley, leading to monumental architecture like pyramids and
advancements in mathematics, medicine, and writing
(hieroglyphs).

These river valleys were crucial because they provided:

 Water for irrigation and drinking.

 Floodplains for fertile soil, replenished annually by flooding.
  Transportation routes that facilitated trade and communication.
 Fish and other resources for sustenance.

In Asia, this concept extends to:

 The Indus River Valley (modern-day Pakistan and northwest India) for
the Harappan Civilization.
 The Yellow River Valley (Huang He) in China for the early Chinese
civilizations.

Each of these regions contributed significantly to the foundations of modern

civilization.

One of the major ways that societies acquire the goods they want is by
means of war.
Evidence of civilizations dating back more than 25,000 years have survived
in the form of cave paintings and small sculptures. Before the invention of
writing these cultures created myths and legends that explained their origin
and relation to the world. At Chauvet, colors suggest symbolic/sacred
function. At the entrance red from ores rich in iron oxide while deeper in
areas that are difficult to reach, black pigments from ores rich in manganese
dioxide seem intentional. One of the few cave paintings depicting human
figures is found at Lascaux in Dordogne southern France. With the discovery
of the cave paintings it is observed that there is progression from awkward
to more sophisticated representations which should not be attributed to lack
of skill but rather to cultural influences.

Paleolithic Cultures and its Artifacts

Evidence of the existence of humans 5.7 million years ago was found
in the forest of Ethiopia in 2001. Further excavations yield evidence that
around 2.5 or 2.6 million years ago hominids or the earliest upright humans
have already begun to make stone tools although long before, between 14
million to 19 million years ago, Kenyapithecus (“Kenyan Ape”) made stone
tools in east Central Africa. A 2009 study of genetic diversity among Africans
found the people of Zimbabwe to be the most diverse, that they are the most
likely origin of modern humans from which others gradually spread out of
Africa across Asia, into Europe, and finally to Australia and the Americas.
In the Paleolithic period, people began to carve stone tools and
weapons to help them survive in their harsh environment. They have also
carved small sculptural objects along with the “cave paintings”. The most
famous of the artifacts of female figures found in Europe is the limestone
statuette woman found at Willendorf, Austria dating 25,000-20,000 BCE and
sometimes called Venus of Willendorf. Most of these sculptures are 4-5
inches high and fit neatly into a person’s hand. The details include
exaggerated breasts and bellies and their clearly delineated genitals
associated with fertility and child-bearing. The presence of more female
figurines than males suggests that women played a central role in Paleolithic
culture.

The Venus of Willendorf is an 11.1-centimetre-tall (4.4 in) Venus figurine

estimated to have been made c. 30,000 years ago. It was recovered on 7
August 1908 from an archaeological dig conducted by Josef Szombathy,
Hugo Obermaier, and Josef Bayer at a Paleolithic site near Willendorf, a
village in Lower Austria.

Neolithic Pottery and Cultures

The transition from hunting and fishing led to the use of pottery
vessels which were used to carry water and store food. Popular decorative
features from pottery in Iran depict the ibex which is a symbol of plenty.
A kind of monumental stone architecture in what is now Britain and
France are the megaliths or big stones. Menhirs or posts of upright stones
stuck into the ground come from the Celtic words “men” and “hir” long. In
Carnac, Brittany 3,000 menhirs arranged east to west in 13 straight rows
called alignments are found in 2 miles stretch of plain. The stones stand
about 3 feet tall at the east and gradually get larger until at the west they
reach the height of 13 feet. Cromlech, the best-known type of megalithic
structure from the Celtic crom (wall) and lech (place) is known as the
Stonehenge on Salisbury Plain 100 miles west of London. Why it was
constructed remains a mystery. Another discovery at Durrington Walls 2
miles northeast of the Stonehenge itself suggests that the Stonehenge was a
burial ground at the center of a village of 300 houses.

Mesopotamia: Power and Social Order in the Early Middle East

In the winter of 1927, British Archaeologist C. Leonard Wooley,
unearthed a series of tombs in the City of Ur. Many bodies and spectacular
objects, vessels, crowns, necklaces, statues, weapons, jewelry, and lyres
made of electrum and deep blue lapiz lazuli were found.
A giant stele – an upright stone slab carved with commemorative
design or inscription-the so-called Law Code of Hammurabi was found in
Babylon.
Sumerian Literature survives on nearly 100,000 clay tablets and
fragments containing religious themes in the form of poems, blessings, and
incantations to the gods. A surviving manuscript, the Epic of Gilgamesh,
preserves the historical lineage of all Mesopotamian kings-Sumerian,
Akkadian, Assyrian, and Babylonian.

cuneiform writing
Sumerian Tablet

Hebrews (Habiris- outcast or nomad) are people who were forced out
of their homeland in the Mesopotamian Basin in about 2800 BCE. In their
tradition Adam and Eve were in the Garden of Eden in the Tigris and
Euphrates Rivers. It was there that Noah survived the great flood that
Utrapishtim survived in the epic of Gilgamesh. It was there that Abraham led
his people into Canaan to escape the Akkadians and the powerful
Babylonians.

Moses and the Ten Commandments

In 1600 BCE the Hebrew people have to leave Canaan for Egypt where
they prospered until the Egyptians enslaved them in 1300BCE. Moses led his
people out of Egypt across the Red Sea (which parted) to facilitate the
escape into the desert of the Sinai Peninsula. Their story became the basis
for the Book of Exodus.
The Hebrew culture had a profound impact on Western Civilization
providing the moral and ethical foundation for religion including Christianity
and Islam. The stories recorded in the Torah inspired the works of art,
music, and literature. Hebrews introduced the concept of monotheism or
belief in a single God.
In 520 BCE Persian invaders freed the Jews from captivity of the
Babylonians. The Jews returned to Judah and found that the Ark of the
Covenant was missing from the Temple of Jerusalem. Some of the scattered
Jews settled elsewhere and they are known as the Jews of the Diaspora or
‘dispersion’.

The Persian Empire

In 520 BCE, the nomadic tribe occupying the Iranian Plateau defeated
the Babylonians and freed the Jews. By the time of Cyrus’ death (559-
530BCE), the Persians had taken control of the Greek Cities in Ionia. Under
King Darius (522-486 BCE) the empire stretched from Egypt in the south,
around Asia Minor, to the Ukraine in the north. The capital of the empire
which the Greeks called Persepolis or the city of the Persians was located in
Zogros now called Iran. Their relief sculptures reflected the diversity of the
cultures further reflecting that all people of the other regions owed the
Persian King allegiance. Rulers are depicted larger than the other people
with their subjects bringing gifts to the palace. Xerxes, Darius’ son is
depicted behind him as if waiting to take his place as the Persian ruler.

The Stability of Ancient Egypt: Flood and Sun

The civilizations of both Mesopotamia and Egypt have so much in
common-formed around river systems: Tigris and Euphrates in Mesopotamia
and the Nile in Egypt. Since their life depended on agriculture, both learned
to control the flow of the river by constructing dams and irrigation canals.
Both Egyptians and Mesopotamians built massive agricultural structures
dedicated to their Gods –ziggurats in Mesopotamia and Pyramids in Egypt.
Ziggurats appear to be dedicated to water and pyramids to the sun. Both
unite earth and sky in a single architectural form.

Pictorial Formulas in Egyptian Art

In Egyptian paintings, the subjects are arranged in such a way that
provide a ground line for the figures to stand facing right, although in some
cases there is balance between left and right. The arms, face, legs, and feet
are in profile with the left foot advanced in front of the right. Eyes and
shoulders are in front view. Mouth, navel, and hips are in three-quarter view.
Each person is in a composite view, the integration of multiple perspectives
in a unified image. Not only the figures, but also the scenes unite
contradictory points of view into a single image. Toward the end of the
eighteenth dynasty, Egypt experienced one of the few real crises of its entire
history when Amenhotep IV (1353-1337 BCE) assumed the throne of his
father Amenhotep III (1391- 1353 BCE). Amenhotep abolished the pantheon
of Egyptian Gods and established a monotheistic religion in which the sun
disk Aten was worshipped exclusively. Amenhotep was so dedicated to Aten
that he changed his name to Akhenaten (The Shining Spirit of Aten) and
moved the capital of Egypt from Thebes to a site many miles north
(Akhenaten) modern Tell el-Amarna. The political, cultural, and religious
changes affected the visual arts. Now, the perfection of the Gods was in
question- principles of art were re-examined. A new art replaced the old
canon of proportion. Kings and queens posed with realism and intimacy with
the king, skinny and sitting slump and his belly protruding from his skirt
contrasting the idealized depiction of the pharaohs in earlier periods. Upon
the death of Akhenaten, Tutankhaten (1336-1337) changed his name to
Tutankhamun (indicating the return to traditional Gods, in this case, Amun).
He left Tell el-Amarna and moved to Memphis and re-affirmed Thebes as the
nation’s religious center. Tutankhamun’s the only royal tomb discovered still
intact under the tomb of the Twentieth Dynasty King Ramses VII in the Valley
of the Kings near Deir el-Bahri. There were three coffins one placed inside
the other, encased in quartzite sarcophagus, rectangular stone coffin
encased in four gilded boxlike wooden shrines placed one inside the other,
depicting the king back to the traditional Egyptian art of the Middle Kingdom.
This stage is characterized by stone tools shaped by polishing or grinding,
dependence on domesticated plants or animals, settlement in permanent
villages. in this stage, humans were no longer dependent on hunting, fishing,
and gathering wild plants.
The decorated cave of Pont d'Arc, known as Grotte Chauvet-Pont d'Arc is
located in a limestone plateau of the meandering Ardèche River in southern
France, and extends to an area of approximately 8,500 square meters.
The bison depiction in the Altamira Cave, discovered in the late 19th century,
are some of the of the most iconic examples of Paleolithic art, dating back
approximately 36,000 to 14,000 years ago.
Neolithic Pottery
Neolithic Pottery
Modern Art

Autumn Rhythm, Jackson Pollock, 1950

 Year Range: Late 19th Century – 1970s

 Characteristics: Experimentation with form and technique, abstraction,
rejection of traditional perspectives and subjects, emphasis on the
individual’s interpretation of reality.
 Popular Artists: Pablo Picasso, Salvador Dalí, Henri Matisse, Jackson
Pollock.
 Notable Artwork: Picasso’s “Les Demoiselles d’Avignon,” Dalí’s “The
Persistence of Memory,” Matisse’s “Dance,” Pollock’s “Autumn
Rhythm.”
Modern Art encompasses a wide range of art movements and styles that
emerged from the late 19th century through the 1970s, characterized by a
deliberate departure from tradition and a search for new forms of
expression. This period marked a shift towards experimentation and a
questioning of the conventions of representation, seen in movements such
as Impressionism, Cubism, Surrealism, and Abstract Expressionism. Artists
sought to express their individual perspective and to reflect the rapid
changes in society, technology, and philosophy of their time.

Notable figures include Pablo Picasso, whose pioneering Cubist works

challenged traditional forms of perspective; Salvador Dalí, known for his
striking and bizarre Surrealist imagery; Henri Matisse, who was celebrated
for his vibrant use of color and fluid draughtsmanship; and Jackson Pollock,
whose Abstract Expressionist techniques revolutionized the concept of
painting. These artists, among others, pushed the boundaries of what art
could be, leading to a diverse and dynamic legacy that continues to influence
contemporary art.
Neo-expressionism

Untitled (Skull) – Basquait, Jean-Michel – 1981

  Year Range: Late 1970s – 1980s
 Characteristics: Intense subjectivity and raw emotionality, often with
aggressive, dynamic brushwork and vivid colors; revival of painting
with a focus on figurative work; reaction against conceptual and
minimalist art.
 Popular Artists: Jean-Michel Basquiat, Anselm Kiefer, Julian Schnabel,
Georg Baselitz.
 Notable Artwork: Basquiat’s “Untitled (Skull),” Kiefer’s “Margarethe,”
Schnabel’s “The Walk Home,” Baselitz’s “The Brücke Chorus.”

Neo-expressionism emerged as a significant art movement in the late

1970s and 1980s, characterized by a return to the powerful expression of
emotion and personal feeling in painting, as a response to the perceived
intellectual dryness and detachment of Minimalism and Conceptual art.
Artists in this movement favored large canvases, dramatic colors, and loose,
expressive brushwork that often conveyed a sense of urgency or intensity.
The subject matter was frequently figurative, exploring themes of history,
mythology, and contemporary culture, including the human condition and
personal identity. Neo-expressionism was particularly prominent in Germany,
Italy, and the United States.

Jean-Michel Basquiat’s “Untitled (Skull)” exemplifies the movement’s

characteristic raw, emotive style and its engagement with personal and
social commentary. Anselm Kiefer’s textured, often somber works, such as
“Margarethe,” confront the dark chapters of German history. Julian
Schnabel’s “The Walk Home” and Georg Baselitz’s “The Brücke Chorus”
demonstrate the revival of interest in painterly, narrative, and expressive
qualities in art. Neo-expressionism marked a pivotal moment in late 20th-
century art, reinvigorating painting with a sense of passion and drama that
had been largely absent in the preceding decades.
Street Art

Crack is Wack,
Keith Haring, 1986

 Year Range: 1970s – Present

 Characteristics: Public spaces as the canvas, often unsanctioned,
includes graffiti, stencil graffiti, sticker art, street installation, and
murals; vibrant graphics, social and political messages, and an
underground or counter-culture ethos.
 Popular Artists: Banksy, Shepard Fairey, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Keith
Haring.
 Notable Artwork: Banksy’s “Balloon Girl,” Fairey’s “Hope” poster,
Basquiat’s SAMO© tags, Haring’s “Crack is Wack” mural.

Street art is an explosive, contemporary art movement that started in the

1970s and continues to evolve. It encompasses a wide range of visual art
forms created in public locations, typically outside of the traditional art
venues. Street art often conveys a powerful social or political message and is
usually executed without official permission. It has grown from its graffiti
heritage into a rich and complex form of expression that includes stencil
graffiti, sticker art, wheatpasting, and large-scale murals.

Notable artists like Banksy have gained international recognition for their
thought-provoking stencil work, such as “Balloon Girl,” which combines dark
humor with a graffiti execution style. Shepard Fairey’s “Hope” poster
became an iconic image during Barack Obama’s presidential campaign,
illustrating how street art can influence the political landscape. Jean-Michel
Basquiat began his career as a graffiti artist under the tag SAMO© before
transitioning to galleries, blending poetry, drawing, and painting. Keith
Haring gained attention with his public works in subways and later, with his
“Crack is Wack” mural, which became a symbol of social activism.

Street art has transformed the way art is created and consumed, often
reflecting the voice of the urban environment and its inhabitants, and has
firmly established itself as a significant art movement of our time.

Land Art

 Year Range: Late 1960s – 1970s

 Characteristics: Use of natural landscapes to create site-specific
structures, forms, and patterns; integration of art and the natural
environment; often large-scale and outdoor; impermanence and the
passage of time.
 Popular Artists: Robert Smithson, Michael Heizer, Nancy Holt, James
Turrell.
 Notable Artwork: Smithson’s “Spiral Jetty,” Heizer’s “Double Negative,”
Holt’s “Sun Tunnels,” Turrell’s “Roden Crater.”
Land art, also known as Earth art, emerged in the late 1960s and early
1970s, primarily in the United States, as part of the wider conceptual art
movement. This movement sought to move art outside the confines of the
gallery, using the earth itself as the medium. Artists engaged with the
landscape to create large-scale interventions that transformed natural
spaces into artworks. These works often emphasized the transient nature of
art and its interplay with the environment, highlighting ecological concerns
and the passage of time.

Robert Smithson’s “Spiral Jetty,” a coil of rocks and earth extending into the
Great Salt Lake in Utah, is one of the most iconic works of the movement,
embodying the synthesis of human creativity and natural forces. Michael
Heizer’s “Double Negative,” a massive intervention in the Nevada desert,
involves two large trenches cut into the mesa, playing with notions of
presence and absence. Nancy Holt’s “Sun Tunnels” consists of large concrete
cylinders in the Utah desert that align with the sun during solstices, blending
art with astronomical phenomena. James Turrell’s ongoing “Roden Crater”
project transforms a volcanic crater into a monumental work of art that
focuses on light and perception.
Postmodern Art

The Physical Impossibility of Death in the Mind of Someone Living, Damien

Hirst, 1991

 Year Range: 1970s – Present

 Characteristics: Eclecticism, skepticism towards grand narratives,
blending of high and low culture, use of pastiche, irony, and paradox,
questioning of artistic authority and conventions.
 Popular Artists: Jeff Koons, Cindy Sherman, Jean-Michel Basquiat,
Damien Hirst.
 Notable Artwork: Koons’s “Balloon Dog,” Sherman’s “Untitled Film
Stills,” Basquiat’s “Untitled (Skull),” Hirst’s “The Physical Impossibility
of Death in the Mind of Someone Living.”
Postmodern art emerged in the 1970s as a reaction against the perceived
elitism and rules of modernism, challenging the previously dominant
narratives and conventions of art history and criticism. It is characterized by
a diverse range of styles and attitudes, often incorporating elements from
popular culture, history, and other art movements in a pastiche that
questions the role and definition of art. Postmodern artists employ irony,
paradox, and playfulness to critique societal norms and the art world itself,
blurring the boundaries between high art and popular culture.

Jeff Koons’s work, such as “Balloon Dog,” exemplifies the postmodern

fascination with consumer goods and kitsch, transforming them into high art.
Cindy Sherman’s “Untitled Film Stills” challenge traditional roles and
representations of women in media by placing herself in various cinematic
guises. Jean-Michel Basquiat’s raw, expressive works blend graffiti with
elements of Neo-Expressionism, addressing themes of race, identity, and
social tensions. Damien Hirst’s exploration of death and decay, as seen in
“The Physical Impossibility of Death in the Mind of Someone Living,”
questions the nature of art and its relationship with contemporary life.
Postmodern art’s legacy lies in its ongoing influence on contemporary art,
continually challenging and expanding the boundaries of what art can be.

Contemporary Art

 Year Range: 1970s – Present

 Characteristics: Diversity of subjects and techniques, digital technology
use, conceptual art, interactive installations, a global perspective, and
social and political commentary.
 Popular Artists: Ai Weiwei, Jeff Koons, Damien Hirst, Cindy Sherman.
 Notable Artwork: Ai Weiwei’s “Sunflower Seeds,” Jeff Koons’s “Balloon
Dog,” Damien Hirst’s “The Physical Impossibility of Death in the Mind
of Someone Living,” Cindy Sherman’s “Untitled Film Stills.”
Contemporary art encompasses the works of art produced from the 1970s to
the present day, characterized by a wide-ranging global diversity in terms of
style, medium, and content. This period reflects a departure from the
conventions of traditional art forms, embracing instead a myriad of practices
including digital art, installation art, performance art, video art, and
conceptual art. Artists of this era are known for their innovative use of
materials and technology, as well as for engaging with social, political, and
cultural issues. The movement is marked by its global perspective, with
significant contributions from artists around the world.

Notable artists include Ai Weiwei, known for his politically charged

installations; Jeff Koons, who explores consumerism and pop culture; Damien
Hirst, who challenges notions of beauty, decay, and mortality; and Cindy
Sherman, renowned for her conceptual portraits challenging female
stereotypes. Contemporary art venues like the Museum of Modern Art in New
York, the Tate Modern in London, and the Centre Pompidou in Paris are key
locations where this diverse and evolving art form is displayed, reflecting the
complex and interconnected world of today.