Red Grooms and the development of Pop art

Red Grooms

the context of Pop art

The movement in modern art towards Pop art, environmental and action art and other forms of expression was in many regards a natural evolution of modernist art forms. By its very nature, art is always striving forwards to innovations and experiments in an attempt to break the moulds and the perceived restrictions of the past. This paper will explore the work of Red Grooms in relation to the context of the development and acceptance of Pop art.

Pop art is a term that refers to 'popular art'. This term was first used in an article by Lawrence Alloway, "The Arts and the Mass Media," which was published in the February 1958 issue of Architectural Design. (Steinbeck Center Past Art and Cultural Events) the exhibitions that was to bring Pop art to the attention of the American public was the New Realists, held at New York's Sidney Janis Gallery in November 1962. (Steinbeck Center Past Art and Cultural Events) a common definition of Pop art is as follows;

the first post-war art movement to embrace mass-media photographic imagery. Popular culture, consumer products, and photos of media stars provided the subject matter and the materials for artists who, no longer satisfied with abstract painting, were looking for a more playful and ironic strategy than the modernist insistence on heroic stances and deep spiritual references.

Pop Art)

There are many causative factors that are given for the rise and popularly of this form of art. One reason is that it was in essence a reaction and intimately related to the increase in capitalist consumerism, particularly in countries like America during the 1950s and 1960. Another causative aspect is that Pop art was also a reaction to the artistic norms that dominated the art scene at the time, such as Abstract Expressionism, which many young artists during this period felt were out of step with the modern world and the representation of that world. They also reacted against the spiritual and existential search for meaning of modernist high art. "Rejecting the Abstract Expressionist artist's heroic personal stance and the spiritual or psychological content of his work, Pop artists took a more playful and ironic approach to art and life, often drawing on advertising and the media for subjects" (Steinbeck Center Past Art and Cultural Events)

Pop art was therefore characterized by dissatisfaction with many of the artistic norms of the time and many artists felt that the way that art was created and presented, as well as its subject mater, was out of date. These artists made use of the elements of the commercial, industrial and technological world in which they lived; which included aspects of the media, such as advertising. A famous example of this artistic attitude was Andy Warhol's works, such as Green Coca Cola Bottles and Campbell's Soup Cans. It is important to note that Pop art was "... both a product and critique of the social milieu "(the Andy Warhol Pop Art Legacy).

Pop artists also questioned the formal aspects of art creation and presentation and refused to be confined by any conventional restrictions. For example, the presentation of art in the formal confines of a gallery was not seen by these artists to be a necessary or essential aspect of art. This view relates to art events and 'happenings" that took place outside the gallery and in fact in any place or venue.

The primacy and values of "high art" were also denied by this movement and this was emphasized by the inclusion of ordinary, mundane aspects from the industrial and commercial world. In essence, this form of art was determined to explore the possibilities that were available in the media and the ordinary world in the pursuit of more open, playful and interactive art forms. This trend was also evident in the popularity of 'happenings'. A happening is usually defined as an "....unstructured live theatrical performance that incorporated painting, sculpture and drama" (RED GROOMS - an ARTIST for ALL REASONS).

The extent to which Pop art became a part of the art world and the way that it went on to change the perception of what art is or should be, is expressed by one critic as follows, "... fine art has become thoroughly entangled in popular culture, and from that observation it sometimes follows... that it is old-fashioned or misguided to engage in special pleading for 'high' art" (Contemporary art, uncovered: a survey of major newspapers and weekly magazines suggests...)

RED GROOMS - an ARTIST for ALL REASONS)

There are many critiques and evaluations of the work of Red Grooms. While his work varies extensively in terms of medium and size, his most popular and well-known weeks are the hallmark three-dimensional creations that have a "... high-spirited animated quality (RED GROOMS - an ARTIST for ALL REASONS) the following description of his work for the Christian Science Monitor sums up much of the popular response to these works. "Grooms creates fun-house microworlds that combine benign, keenly observed social satire with the old-fashioned entertainment of a circus midway, puppet theatre and penny arcade. His constructions burst with the energy and magic of city life (RED GROOMS - an ARTIST for ALL REASONS).

However, one also has to take into account the other aspects of his creative output. This includes his works on paper and printmaking. He is widely recognized as being a very competent draftsman. Grooms experimented and with a wide range of printmaking techniques. These ranged from softground etchings to eight-foot-high woodblock prints, and 3'D graphic versions of his sculpto-pictoramas. He has also experimented with various techniques and has created unique woodblock prints and spray-painted stencils.

The body of work created by Red Groom is significant in terms of the rise and development of Pop art. His energetic and vibrant works and his awareness value of media and presentation in the modern work of art were instrumental in promoting and stimulating new forms of artistic expression.

Works Cited www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=104400293

Alloway, Lawrence. Topics in American Art since 1945. New York W.W. Norton, 1975. Questia. 16 Mar. 2008 http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=104400295.

A www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=5000178349

Cole, Elizabeth. "What's All the Ruckus, Red Grooms?." School Arts Jan. 1994: 23+. Questia. 16 Mar. 2008 http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=5000178349.

Contemporary art, uncovered: a survey of major newspapers and weekly magazines suggests that visual art is steadily losing ground in the popular press, even as its audience -- and market -- grows exponentially. March 11, 2008. http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1248/is_2_95/ai_n17216563/pg_9 www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=5000251104

Drucker, Johanna. "Collaboration without Object(s) in the 'Early Happenings." Art Journal 52.4 (1993): 51+. Questia. 16 Mar. 2008 http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=5000251104.

Pop Art. March 11, 2008. http://www.answers.com/topic/pop- art?cat=entertainment>

RED GROOMS - an ARTIST for ALL REASONS. March 11, 2008. www.valwrites4u.com/worddocs/Red%2520Grooms.doc+Red+Grooms+work&l=en&t=clnk&d=10&l=za

Sandford, Mariellen R., ed. Happenings and Other Acts. New York: Routledge, 1995. Questia. 16 Mar. 2008 http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=110778915.

Steinbeck Center Past Art and Cultural Events. March 11, 2008. http://www.steinbeck.org/PastArt.html

The Andy Warhol Pop Art Legacy. March 11, 2008. http://searchwarp.com/swa40946.htm