Art in America: comparing the 1890s and 1990s

Art Nouveau Movement in America

One of the most important breakthroughs in architecture was the Art Nouveau movement, present in Europe and across the world starting with 1890 and making its impact on art and culture until the first decade of the 20th century. The importance of the Art Nouveau current made it significant not only in architecture, but in connected areas such as interior design, furniture etc.

According to different sources, the origins of the Art Nouveau current date back to William Morris and his resistance to the Victorian currents and tendencies that did not allow the artist to freely express himself and kept him within certain strict norms. Floral and vegetal patterns, as well as a strong influence from Japanese artists of the 18th century, renowned for their woodwork, were the first tendencies in the Art Nouveau movement.

Probably the central motive of the Art Nouveau current, as encompassed by the influences previously mentioned, was the curve, in all its different forms and expressions. The idea of the curve was that it could properly give a flowing perspective to the idea expressed and work with the flowing line in all possible ways. The curve became parabolas or hyperbolas in architecture and various flowing patterns in painting and drawing. It very much contributed to a limitless circular expression of the artistic individual.

At the same time, the Art Nouveau movement was a total breakaway from classical rules and impositions, which meant that, usually, Art Nouveau became a way of life as well as an artistic expression. It was not only a new art, but also a new way of living and a new perspective of life, encouraging freedom of expression and of the individual.

Art in the 1990s is probably heavily influences by the Internet and information technology that has taken over society. It is much less an expression of breaking away with the past and norms and rules, like the Art Nouveau current was. This is mainly due to the fact that contemporary art has been an expression of the individual freedoms throughout the 20th century and the numerous experimentations during this period produced no limits to the artistic capacity of individuals. The art of the 1990s continues the anxiety expressed in art through the 20th century and adds to it elements characteristic of this decade.

More and more, the 1990s formed what is known as the Internet art, along with related segments such as information art. Internet art prefers to use the internet as the main environment of expression. From this perspective, it is less a differentiation in the notion or concept of the artistic expression and more of a different way of presenting the material and ensuring that it reaches the final consumer. The website on which Internet art is usually integrated is available and accessible to virtually any viewer, increasing its widespread reach.