Art and Non-Art in Popular Culture

"I think a lot of graffiti is art but not all of it. Not every piece of canvas with paint on it is art either." (Student response to a query about street art) When discussing art in popular culture there are very few boundaries to adhere to. Almost any form of media can be considered as art. But not all works are good examples of art and there are several determining factors that help to decide on the artistic quality of a piece. This essay will discuss in response to the above quote the...

There have been different art forms that have come and gone over the course of time. Some of the most intriguing art forms in my mind come from the 20th century. Out of all of these 20th century art forms, geometric abstract art and pop art are my favorite. These two art movements came close to each other in reference to time period. Geometric abstract art originated in the 7th century but became a dominant movement in 1937. Pop art emerged in the 1950s. These two art forms were similar in ways, but they had different moods of expression. We will take a closer look at each one of these forms of art. Geometric abstraction form uses lines, squares, triangles and circles painted with primary or secondary colors or are sculpted in steel or aluminum. As mentioned, the focus of geometric abstraction began in New York after the outbreak of World War II where the tradition was continued by