Abstract And Contemporary Artwork- What\’s The Distinction?

December 3, 2012
by Jim Weldon

The art scene is perhaps more lively today than ever. There is a diversity of unique art forms being practiced throughout the world and this variety is becoming more and more apparent with every generation. Nevertheless, this diversity has also cause numerous difficulties. Today\’s art scene is a lot more chaotic and confusing than it has ever been in the past. This can be especially troublesome for individuals who are not particularly well-versed in modern art, but are looking to purchase high quality art pieces.

Even the classification of art forms can be a surprisingly complicated matter. As an example, the terms abstract and contemporary are commonly utilized interchangeably, even though they have very different meanings. This article will certainly help to clarify some of the distinctions between these two categories of art.

The term abstract art usually refers to a style of painting which demonstrates a marked departure from realism. Although it is rather hard to identify exactly when this style started to become prominent, it is generally accepted that abstract paintings first appeared in Europe throughout the very early part of the twentieth century.

Abstract art took its inspiration from expressionism, cubism and surrealism. Such styles were popularized by painters like Pablo Picasso and Jackson Pollock. Since abstract art refers to a style of painting and not to an artistic period, it remains popular to this day. There are still lots of artists whose paintings are great examples of the abstract style.

Contemporary art, on the other hand, describes a certain artistic period rather than a particular style of art. The term contemporary can be used to describe any type of art that has been produced during our life-times. Given that it is exceptionally tough for everybody to agree on the definition of contemporary, all the works of art developed since the 1970\’s are typically considered contemporary. It is important to note that the term contemporary art describes all the art work produced during the last 4 decades.

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