POST #10 – LECTURE – INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION THROUGH ABSTRACT ART

Summary

The Industrial Revolution transformed society and directly reshaped the course of art. As factories, machines, photography, and expanding cities changed everyday life, artists broke away from the rules of the Renaissance and no longer relied on the church or wealthy patrons to dictate what they painted. This shift sparked Modernism, a movement focused on experimentation, personal expression, and new ways of seeing the world. Impressionism captured little moments of life with short brush strokes, while Post-Impressionists like Cézanne, Van Gogh, Gauguin, and Seurat expanded color, emotion, geometry, and symbolism. Symbolism pushed art deeper into dreams, visions, and psychological meaning, rejecting realistic depiction. Fauvism embraced wild, unnatural color and expressive brushwork, and Cubism, created by Picasso and Braque, used multiple geometric planes to show different perspectives at once. These movements ultimately led to Surrealism, where artists like Dalí explored the subconcious and dreams.

Reflection 

I think it’s interesting how the Industrial Revolution not only changed work and technology but also completely changed how artists thought about creativity, expression, and reality. As society modernized, painters no longer felt that traditional realism could capture the complexity of the new world. Instead, they began exploring emotion, perspective, dreams, and personal identity, turning art into something far more experimental and introspective. I was especially interested by how the various movements connect, Cézanne’s geometric forms leading to Cubism, Gauguin’s symbolism inspiring Picasso, and Freud’s ideas shaping Surrealism. It highlights how each artistic era responds to the needs and anxieties of its time. What stands out most is that art became less about copying the visible world and more about understanding the invisible world within people. This shift makes me appreciate how modern and contemporary art pushes these boundaries, proving that creativity evolves alongside society and reflects how humans adapt to change.