The contemporary artist operates in a culturally diverse, globally influenced, as well as technologically advancing world. Their works of art are a vibrant amalgamation of subjects, concepts, methods, and materials that carry on challenging the boundaries that was already well happening in the 20th century.
Varied and
assorted, contemporary art as a whole is differentiated by the lack of
ideology, organizing principle, and uniformity. Also, contemporary art is part
of a cultural discussion that concerns larger related frames such as individual
and cultural identity, nationality, community, and family. This paper outlines
an overview of the history and theory of contemporary art, design, and craft
practice culture over the past two decades.
Discussion
Referring to contemporary art to imply "the art of today," in broad includes the work of art produced during the late twentieth and twenty-first centuries. Nevertheless, modern works of art are not just art produced in a specific period. Some individuals have argued that the primary goal and approach of contemporary art is to challenge the natural history of the artwork itself. Modern art can also make viewers query what defines art (Smith 2011, pp. 34).
Thus, this type of
art is not predominantly uniform, and it may pose a huge challenge to
accurately describe it as compared to other genres. Besides, there are various
reasons as to why contemporary art is significant to society. For example, it
is a way of expressing oneself, because it helps in providing social and
cultural commentary.
In the decolonizing of art, contemporary artists continue to utilize diverse expressions of abstract as well as representational forms to pass across their ideas. It should be noted that the present-day art did not develop from a vacuum; it mirrors the political and social concerns of its cultural framework (Greru 2018, pp. 92).
The changing approaches to engage viewers demonstrate how the significance of
contemporary art exists beyond the object itself (Greru 2018, pp. 94). The
meaning stems from cultural talk, interpretation and a variety of individual
understanding, as well as conceptual and formal problems that initially
inspired the artist. Thus, contemporary art may function as a mechanism for an
on-going process of intellectual inquiry and open debate about the world
today.
Visual culture is another development in the history and theory of contemporary art, design, and craft practice culture. For the past 20 years, visual culture has developed as a renowned interdisciplinary area of study, and this has enabled artworks to communicate and contribute to the construction of identity, power relations, class, gender, as well as other political and social values and meanings (Smith 2011, pp. 146).
Scholars majoring in visual culture analyze fashion design, graphic novels, television, film, as well as other forms of popular culture, and established art media like a painting to draw upon various theories and methodologies. These theories and methodologies include the concept of the gaze, feminism, reception theory, psychoanalysis, semiotics, and so on. The majority of contemporary artists do not strongly differentiate between popular culture and high art (Smith 2011, pp. 152).
For
example, a number of them utilize conventional techniques of fiber art but
utilize them to address current political and social issues or develop
unorthodox images. Also, most of the 21st-century artists are intensely
influenced by their submersion in global visual culture, now made vibrantly
present on the online platforms.
Another significant decolonizing aspect of the theory of contemporary art, design, and craft practice culture is public participation. The public art genre emerged in the 20th century, attracting both conventional and new practitioners (Robertson 2007, pp. 64). However, during the 21st century, public art has expanded more as an area of art activity where creativity can be investigated.
Contemporary artists
attracted by the connectivity and immediacy of globally networked media
normally develop online projects that attract social interactions (Robertson
2007, pp. 89). The 21st century is just commencing therefore ideas and issues
are evolving fast and new contemporary artists are continuously gaining
attention and influence.
Artists
The initial sculptures were often simple, curved, and often geometric dyed with powder stain, demonstrating the high profile and experience of Kapoor. His most prominent works include Marsyas sculpture, Cloud Gate, and The Memory Steel Monument. In the early 1980s, Kapoor gained international recognition as an artist representing a new, unusual style.
Although he lived in and worked in London and admits that his
artworks were a mixture of both Eastern and Western cultures. Most of Kapoor's
work and style were influenced by both Indian and British sculptors, and this
is the primary reason why he is important in contemporary art culture and
society. Also, Kapoor manages to capture the modern social and political
issues.
Anish Kapoor’s sculpture for the Turbine Hall, Marsyas, is a form of contemporary modern art that illustrates new forms of practice and design in art. Marsyas uses three steel rings that are joined together using a single span of a plastic membrane.
One ring suspends parallel within the bridge and two of the rings are directly opposite at either end of the space. The ring in the middle of the bridge is smaller than the two at the extreme ends and this makes the sculpture to be narrow at the centre than on its ends. The plastic membrane is red and has a fleshy quality, which makes it look like flayed skin.
Kapoor aimed at creating s sculpture that depicted the
earthly body of Marsyas, who is a creature in ancient Greek mythology
that was skinned alive. The sculpture hangs between two bridges that are on two
opposite ends of the Turbine Hall, and this allows the Marsyas to run
across the length of the hall and immersing a viewer to its monochromatic red
colour (Tate, n.d.).
Another of contemporary art by Anish Kapoor is the Dirty Corner. The Dirty Corner is a temporary public artwork that is in the gardens of Versailles, and it was installed in 2015. The Dirty Corner is a funnel-shaped sculpture that is made of steel. It is about 200 feet long and 33 feet high. It is surrounded by large blocks of stone that weigh up to 25 tons each. Some of the blocks are painted in blood-red.
The structure is a somewhat abstract representation of a woman’s vagina and vulva. Therefore, Kapoor has received some criticism for installing the structure in a public space by some conservatists. The sculpture is based on the stories of Queen Marie Antoinette, who was accused of promiscuity during her time in Versailles.
The sculpture is large enough for spectators to enter. No sooner had the artist finished putting the sculpture than French nationals started calling the piece ‘The Queen’s Vagina’ (Shapiro, 2018). Compared to sculptures in the 19th century, Kapoor’s artwork appears gross and overly sexual.
Overall, Kapoor's artwork
exemplifies decolonizing in contemporary art by illustrating
Greek mythology in a creative and modern way in Marsyas; in Dirty
Corner, Kapoor challenges social norms by exposing promiscuity in the past
French leadership.
El Anatsui is a contemporary artist from Ghana who specializes mostly in sculpting and is known for his large-scale installations. He is significant as a contemporary artist because of the message he sends through his work, and how he creates it.
He uses his art to create a connection between his continent, consumption, waste and the environment by using simple materials like liquor bottle caps, clay, metal, wood, and cassava graters. Anatsui decided to introduce new materials into creating his artwork when he began his cloth design (Binder 36, 2008, pp. 26).
As a person that grew up in West Africa during the Independence Art Movements of the 1960 and 1970s (Binder 2008, pp. 27), he wants to make a connection with where he is from by using simple everyday objects in his art. We would consider his work to be political because the art represents the social currency and cultural power of his birthplace.
Social currency is the resources created through the presence of networks and communities, while cultural power is the ability to influence the preferences of others through appeal and attraction. El Anatusi's unique art designs do not exactly embrace every consumer's culture, but deeply embrace his culture, and focus on environmental issues at the same time (Binder 2008, 36). He creates art that offers cultural affirmation.
His work calls for change when referring to
helping better the environment by finding ways to reuse recyclable items
(Binder 2008, pp. 34). It also provokes mostly anxiety so that the consumer
anticipates what else he can create using bottle caps.
El Anatsui, In the World But Don't Know the World (2009),
is an exceptional artwork that was first exhibited at the 2010 Dubai Art Fari.
This piece is created on a cloth material using various recycled aluminium and
copper bottle tops. The found metal used in his art creates a shimmering mix of
culture that make his piece unique. The uniqueness of this piece is further
emphasized by the fact that it does not have a single standard form. The artwork
can be mounted in different manners to change its overall appearance (“Art of
the Week,” 2013).
Another unique artwork by Ale Anastui is Versatility (2006). This artwork uses aluminium and copper wire, and it is displayed in the Fowler Museum at UCLA. This artwork shows the essence of bottled alcoholic drinks that Europeans brought to Africa. Anatsui uses labels from local Nigerian brands of beers, whiskey, rum, vodka, brandy, and other alcoholic beverages.
The attire
uses a pattern that is common in both adinkra and kente cloths. Kente is a
strip woven cloth made by the Asante community from Ghana and adinkra is a
two-dimensional design when made on dyed clothes and as a three-dimensional
design when made on curved objects. Anatsui regards this artwork to be
versatile because it represents the turns and twists that people experience in
their daily walks of life (“Artworks,” n.d.). Therefore, El Anastui’s artwork
exemplifies decolonizing in contemporary art by draws using a broad range of
indigenous African art and challenging the erosion of African art by external
forces.
Conclusion
Contemporary art, craft, and design are the present-day art produced in the 2nd half of the 20th century or the 21st century. This type of artwork has its specific style or approach that differentiates them from others. Anish Kapoor, who is a British Indian-born artist, and El Anatsui, who is a Ghanaian artist have created unique pieces of artwork, and this demonstrates that there are no geographic boundaries to art. Kapoor’s piece challenges the public view on identity and human dignity. Although the artwork represents a flayed body, which in reality would not be an attractive scene, the image appears rather attractive.
Therefore, the Marsyas artwork shows
that even gross events can be used to pass an important message to society. El
Anatsui’s artworks, In the World But Don't Know the World (2009), and Versatility
(2006) challenge the erosion of traditional art and culture by external
forces. Largely, they illustrate self-pride in indigenous lifestyle, art, and
culture. The artworks also demonstrate that life is fluid and bound to change
with time. Since the artworks are a reflection of the changes that El Anatsui’s
society has experienced over the years, they act as a constant reminder to their
viewers that change is an inevitable part of life.
