Culture and art of the first half of the 20th century briefly

It is possible to better understand the historical processes of the first half of the 20th century by looking at the paintings of artists of that time and reading the most interesting literary works of their contemporaries. Let's go on a short excursion.

Culture and art of the first half of the 20th century: a summary

At the turn of the century, decadence reigned in European culture - there were a huge number of different contradictory currents that did not have common features. The culture and art of the first half of the 20th century has two main directions:

• Art Nouveau (French - Art Nouveau, German - Art Nouveau).
• Modernism.

The first was born in the last decade of the 19th century and gradually ended with the beginning of the First World War (in 1914).

Modernism is an interesting direction of the late 19th - first half of the 20th century. So rich in masterpieces of painting and graphics that it is divided into separate streams according to characteristic features.

The culture and art of the first half of the 20th century is the topic of more than one lecture, the work of some impressionist artists can be studied all my life. We will nevertheless make an attempt to briefly describe this interesting phenomenon. First, we give a description of two important areas: modernity and modernism. Without them, culture and art of the first half of the 20th century are unthinkable. Next, we turn to literature and cinema.

Modern: nature is the source of inexhaustible inspiration

The name of the direction comes from the French word "moderne", which means "modern." This trend in American, European and Russian art at the turn of the 19-20 centuries. Modernity is often confused with modernism, although these are fundamentally different things that have little in common with each other. We list the distinguishing features of this direction in art:

• search for inspiration in nature and in the surrounding world;
• rejection of sharp lines;
• faded, muted tones;
• decorativeness, airiness;
• the presence in the paintings of elements of nature: trees, grasses, shrubs.

It is easiest to understand what modern is, contemplating the architecture of European cities in this style. Namely - the buildings and cathedrals of Gaudi in Barcelona. The capital of Catalonia attracts such a number of tourists precisely due to its unique architecture. The decor of the buildings is distinguished by elevation, asymmetry and airiness. Sagrada Familia ( Sagrada Familia) is the most striking project of the great Antonio Gaudi.

Next, consider the work of European artists who created their paintings in the Art Nouveau style. To simplify the perception of the material, we give a small table.

Modernism

Why was this direction able to emerge, win the love of the audience and give a start to the development of such interesting trends as surrealism and futurism?

Because modernism was a revolution in art. It arose as a protest against the outdated traditions of realism.

Creative people were looking for new ways to express themselves and reflect reality. Modernism has its own characteristic features peculiar only to it:

• the high role of the inner world of man;
• search for new original ideas;
• great importance is given to creative intuition;
• literature contributes to the spiritualization of man;
• the appearance of myth-making.

Culture and art of the first half of the 20th century: we will study the pictures of various artists in the next two sections.

Interesting currents of modernism

What are they like? Amazing: you can reflect on them and constantly discover something new for yourself. The culture and art of the first half of the 20th century will be briefly described below.

We will not torment and submit the information in the most concise form - in the form of a table. On the left will be the name of the artistic movement, on the right - its characteristic.

Culture and art of the first half of the 20th century: table

Culture and art of the first half of the 20th century (table, grade 9) reflects basic knowledge on the topic.

Let us consider in more detail impressionism and surrealism as currents that have brought fundamentally new ideas to art.

Surrealism: the work of the mentally ill or geniuses?

It was one of the trends of modernism, originated in 1920 in France.

Studying the work of the surrealists, an ordinary person often wonders about their mental health. Most of the artists in this direction were quite adequate people.

Then how did they manage to draw such unusual paintings? It is all about youth and the desire to change standard thinking. For surrealists, art was a way of breaking free from generally accepted rules. Surrealistic paintings combined dream with reality. Artists were guided by three rules:

1. relaxation of consciousness;
2. the adoption of images from the subconscious;
3. if the first two points were completed, they took up the brush.

To understand how they painted such ambiguous paintings is quite difficult. One of the assumptions suggests that the surrealists were carried away by Freud's ideas about dreams. The second is about the use of certain substances that change consciousness. Where the truth is here is unclear. Let's just enjoy the art, no matter the circumstances. Below is a picture of the “Clock” of the legendary Salvador Dali.

Impressionism in painting

Impressionism is another direction of modernism, the homeland is France ...

Pictures of this style are distinguished by highlights, play of light and bright colors. Artists sought to capture the real world on canvas in its variability and mobility. From the paintings of impressionists, an ordinary person improves their mood, so they are bright and vital.

Artists of this direction did not raise any philosophical problems - they simply painted what they saw. At the same time, they did it masterfully, using various techniques and a bright palette of colors.

Literature: from classicism to existentialism

Culture and art of the first half of the 20th century are new directions in literature that have changed the minds of people. The situation is similar to painting: classicism is a thing of the past, giving way to the new trends of modernism.

He contributed to such interesting “discoveries” in the literature as:

• internal monologue;
• mindflow;
• distant associations;
• the ability of the author to look at himself from the side (the ability to talk about himself in the third person);
• irrealism.

The Irish writer James Joyce was the first to use such literary devices as an internal monologue and parodies.

Franz Kafka is an outstanding Austrian writer, the founder of the movement of existentialism in literature. Despite the fact that during his lifetime his works did not cause enthusiastic readers, he was recognized as one of the best prose writers of the 20th century.

His work was influenced by the tragic events of the First World War. He wrote very deep and difficult works, showing the powerlessness of a person in a collision with the absurdity of the surrounding reality. At the same time, the author is not deprived of a sense of humor, however, he has a very specific and black one.

We warn that meaningful reading of Kafka can help reduce mood. It is best to read the author in a good mood and abstracting a little from his gloomy thoughts. In the end, he describes only his vision of reality. Kafka's most famous work is The Process.

Cinema

Funny silent films are also the culture and art of the first half of the 20th century, read on about them.

There is no other type of art that is developing as rapidly as cinema. The technology for making films appeared at the end of the 19th century: in just 50 years, it was able to change dramatically and win the hearts of millions of people.

The first films were created in advanced countries, including Russia.

Initially, the movie was black and white and without sound. The meaning of silent cinema was to transmit information through the movement and facial expressions of actors.

For the first time, a movie with talking actors appears in 1927. The American company Warner Brothers decides to release the film "Jazz Singer", and this is a full-fledged film with sound.

In Russia, cinema also did not stand still. The first successful project was the film "Don Cossacks." True, censorship in Russian films also had a place to be: the shooting of church rites and members of the royal family was prohibited.

A special stage in the development of domestic cinema began after the Bolsheviks came to power. These comrades quickly realized that cinema can be not just entertainment, but also a serious weapon of propaganda.

The most famous Soviet director of the 30s was Sergey Eisenstein. Works such as Battleship Potemkin and Alexander Nevsky have long been classics. Kiev director Alexander Dovzhenko has also reached heights in cinema. The most striking work is the film "Earth".

An interesting topic for conversation among adults is the culture and art of the first half of the 20th century. Grade 9 gives truncated information that quickly erodes from the head. This gap can be filled with constant self-education.