The term has been applied to works that are not particularly abstract or expressionist.

Practically speaking, the term has been applied to many different artists with distinct styles. On top of this, Abstract Expressionism has a reputation for being rebellious and idiosyncratic. The movement adopts its emotional intensity from the Expressionists and its non-depictive nature from the abstract schools. Firstly, the German expressionist school of filmmakers and, secondly, the abstract artistic schools of various European regions such as Bauhaus, Futurism, and Cubism. The name of the movement is derived from two European schools of art. Abstract Expressionist work tends to provide the impression of spontaneity while simultaneously being planned in a meticulous manner. The similarities also extend to other, more intangible, characteristics like spontaneity, vibrancy, and energy. An obvious similarity among the many disparate styles of the movement is abstract works focussing on depicting the expression of something rather than a likeness of something. The style can be categorized by the manner in which the artists choose to express their ideas through their work. Their manner of constructing abstract ideas differs vastly - from Jackson Pollock’s technique of dripping paint onto a canvas on the floor to Mark Rothko and his style of imposing, bold, geometric shapes. It is impossible to say that the painters focus on depicting nature, people, or civilization as they instead depict emotional states, ideas, and feelings. The style of Abstract Expressionism is hard to pin down with traditional stylistic traits. Looking at a work of Abstract Expressionism and thinking, “What is it?” should be replaced by the question, “What does this evoke?” or, “How does this make me feel?” What is the Style of Abstract Expressionism? Viewers would be forced to confront his paintings using a new interpretative toolkit, focusing on expression, emotion, and evocation. He instead numbered his artworks so that viewers would not bring an idea of traditional interpretation to his works. Jackson Pollock stopped naming his artworks for this very reason. Trying to interpret a work of Abstract Expressionism for how it makes you feel or what emotions it evokes should be favored over trying to interpret it for what it represents.

They depict the expression of an emotion - a feeling - or an idea rather than an object, character, or landscape. The term was later used in the United States by Alfred Barr to describe the paintings of Wassily Kandinsky in 1929, and by art critic Robert Coates in 1946 to describe American art.Ībstract Expressionist paintings require a different interpretive framework than more traditional schools of painting. The term Abstract Expressionism was first used in Germany in 1919 to describe German expressionist cinema in the magazine Der Sturm.

It put New York at the center of the world of Western art, usurping Paris – the former capital of contemporary art.

Abstract Expressionism was the first American art movement that managed to achieve influence at an international scale. To answer the question, “What is Abstract Expressionism?” we need to begin in New York City in the mid-to-late 1940s.

Lyrical abstraction movement