-
38,921 BCE
The Paleolithic Era
Founding of painting and drawing of human activity from the Paleolithic Era under rocks and in caves.
These rock paintings are in Mada Gueli Cave in the Ennedi Mountains, Chad, Central Africa. -
Period: 1000 to 1300
Romanesque Art
Sharing Information Through Art
Romanesque art developed during the rise of Christianity ca. 1000 AD.
Serves the purpose of spreading the word of the bible and Christianity. As the Christian purpose, they are mostly symbolic. The importance of the figures is shown by size; The most important figures appear to be much larger. These types of paintings often include mythological creatures like dragons and angels, and almost always appear in church. -
Period: 1140 to
Gothic Art
Gothic is from Medieval times. I twas nestled between the preceding Romanesque period and the Early Renaissance period. As many people know, Gothic was anything but the color of “black.” It originated in France, during the 12th century and was developed throughout Europe. It was referred to as Opus Francigenum, “French Work,” and was pioneered by Abbot Suger. -
Period: 1495 to 1527
Renaissance
Is a French word, deriving its origins from the Italian word rinascita, meaning “rebirth.” This was a period of rebirth throughout Europe. Had a starting point in Florence, Italy soon after the Medieval period in Europe.
Leonardo da Vinci was the most influential figure not only of the Renaissance but of art history itself. -
Period: to
Romanticism
The spread of Romanticism throughout Europe and even the United States was rapid towards the late 18th century. It was challenged by artists of the Enlightenment. Romantic artists believed that emotions and senses were equally as important as order and reason to understand the world. -
Period: to
Realism
Realism, sometimes referred to as Naturalism appeared in France after the 1848 Revolution. It was an art that resulted from the great social changes of the Industrial Revolution. Today, Realism describes works that are painted so realistically that they mimic a photograph. -
Period: to
Impressionism
Is one of the most significant of the 19th century, it saw a revolution in the style, technique, and intention of painting. These artists, Claude Monet, Mary Cassatt, and Edgar Degas, tried to capture the rawness of the world around them. This style has loose brushwork, a lack of transition colors, and a sense of impermanence. -
Period: to
Symbolism
Symbolism is the focus on feelings, sentiments, concepts, and individuality rather than reality is what links the numerous painters and forms connected with the Symbolist movement. Many contain personal information and communicate their philosophies.
The Symbolism movement served as a bridge between the early 19th-century and 20th-century Romanticism. It developed at a time of turmoil in unethical, societal, theological, and academic views. -
Period: to
Cubism
An art movement that emerged out of a collaboration between Pablo Picasso and Georges Braque in France. It broke many of the rules of traditional western art styles. Remains incredibly influential today, boasting more books on its subject than any other art movement. -
Period: to
Abstract Expressionism
It’s an art that arose in America after the end of WWII. Said to be the first explicitly American Art movement in existence, achieving worldwide prominence and replacing Paris as the focus of the Western art World. Abstract Expressionism merely shared the same common interests that were affiliated with the style. -
Period: to
Pop-Art/Op Art
Began to grow in popularity. This new art took inspiration from the often mundane, consumerist, slightly kitschy, and mass-produced parts of popular culture. Andy Warhol, Richard Hamilton, and Roy Lichtenstein were artists who shifted our conception of high and low art forms. They drew attention to growing consumerism in the markets and our art consumption. -
Period: to
Minimalism
Visual art and design focus on the primary elements of an artwork. Focuses on the occupation of space around the art and how it interacts with the viewer and vice versa.Started most notably in New York in the early 1960s, a post-WWII movement. A famous saying that “less is more” describes Minimalism art. -
Period: to
Photorealism
The quality of art, with the exactness of a photograph. Emerged in the late 1960s, building on Pop art and minimalist movements that precede it. An American art movement taking photography as its inspiration. Creating highly illusionistic images that are referred to as reproduced images.
Grew out of the Pop and Minimalism movements that preceded it. Like a Pop artists, they were interested in breaking down hierarchies. -
Period: to
Lowbrow Pop Surrealism
Lowbrow Pop Surrealism was a style of art that was heavily inspired by the popular culture of the 1960s and 1970s. Referred to as “retro” style. The end of the Baby Boomer generation will recognize this style of art. -
Period: to
Contemporary
Contemporary art is made today, the term is marked by a change in the way that artists look at their art-making. It’s not merely about the aesthetic pleasure of looking at an artwork but is more focused on sharing ideas. There are no real defining characteristics of it. Some artists work in groups but there are no large movements like there were in the modern art era.