Pattern and Decoration: An Ideal Vision in American Art

Excerpt from the "Bright and glossy wall zoom minimalist wall" of "Holland Cotter" of the New York Times on January 8, 2008

Yonkers pattern and decoration: The ideal image of American art at the Hudson River Museum from 1975 to 1985 recorded the last real art movement in the 20th century, the first and only art of postmodern era. Exercise may prove to be the last art movement so far

We are no longer doing art sports. We do branding (Neo-Geo), do promotion (paintings came back!), See the industry trend (art fair, MF A. A student at Chelsea Gallery, etc.). However, the market is now too large, its mechanism is becoming industrialized too much, the reliance on instant star and products is too strong to support collective thinking and continuous applied thinking, and defines such movement . The pattern and decoration known as P & D are genuine. Artists are friends, friends of friends, or students of friends. Most are painters and have a unique style, but their interests and experiences are similar. Everyone is touching, unless you are immersed in liberation politics, especially feminism, from the 1960s to the early 1970s. Everyone is marginalized in leadership like minimalism.

They are also deeply aware of the cultural world that goes beyond the horizon of Europe and America and the other models they are offering for art. Various arts from Asia, Africa, the Middle East, and the folklore tradition of the West blur the distinction between art and design, high and low, objects and ideas. They use an abstract design as their main form and use the decoration itself as a goal. Whatever it means, they put beauty as given

P & D artists are geographically dispersed. Robert Kushner, Kim MacConnel, and part of Miriam Schapiro are in California. Other Cynthia Carlson, Brad Davis, Valerie Jaudon, Jane Kaufman, Joyce Kozlov, Tony Robin, Ned Smith, Robert Zakanich are all in New York. As a group, they found a liberal advocate for historian Amy Goldin, a critic who was immersed in research on Islamic art. They have early commercial outlets at Soho's Holy Solomon Gallary.

They all raised the same basic problem. We are facing a huge, blank, unobtrusive minimalist wall with sufficient height, width and strength to bypass or divert. They replied: You paint it with a bright pattern, hang a beautiful picture, or cover it with a shiny shiny cloth. The walls may eventually collapse under the cumulative decorative weight. But at least it looks awesome

In 2008, the Hudson River Museum in Yonkers, New York hosted a large-scale exhibition called "Patterns and Decoration: The Ideal Perspective of American Art, 1975 - 1985" and reputation as a serious sport I built it. Curator Anne Swartz argues that the audience is concerned about this undeniable sex. "Until recently some sort of Puritanism has become sexually exciting and provocative, as it is centered on feminist art, so P & D art is a feminist art mechanism (provocation, happiness, softness ), We challenged the most important intellectual system considered to be the mind of the audience.The revival of criticism.

The emergence of romanticism in contemporary art stimulated the resurgence once used to be called design and decoration. In short, P & D is in essence an art movement that began in the mid 1970s, decorating the key to artistic creation. Cynthia Carlson wallpaper, Jane Kaufman's feathers and beads, fascinating grid of Valerie Jaudon, dependence on Tony Robbin's kimono pattern, embroidered handkerchief of Miriam Schapiro, etc are classified as decorative impulsive weathering. This work usually consists of swirly patterns and gorgeous decorations (and thus codes for women) and is relieved from the coolness of conceptual art. Now, once again - sometimes against arts and injustice decisions and the news of the time - art decided to be happy and beautiful again