3-Quotes and Citations
By its very name, modernism was foremost a rejection of the old. One previously
held doctrine to be scrapped was strict verisimilitude in image-making which resulted
in a kind of flatness despite proportional perfection. (Heller.S & Chwast.S, 2008; De
Botton, 2002) Modernists knew that ‘we can never neatly separate what we see from
what we know’ (E.H Gombrich, 2006 p.433) and in accordance with that, modernist
art strives to capture wholeness in a scene rather than perfectly reproduce it.
There is an element of religiosity in modern art, as fans and intellectuals
obsessively gather various modern relics, capturing beauty in a single frame. (De
Botton, 2002) Galleries have become as respected as temples, even attracting pilgrims
(Perry, 2011) Perhaps the purpose of this religiosity is to fill the void left by the
‘death’ of god, (Nietzsche, 2007) in a time when mankind needed direction due to the
crisis following WW1, which not only desecrated the Western world but also caused a
morbid uncertainty regarding the future, which had previously seemed more concrete
than past civilisations such as Babylon or Rome. (Valéry in Kreis, 2000) This was
reflected in the arts, as old bourgeois fancies were stripped away and the raw truth
suddenly acquired a new importance.
Gombrich concisely puts it ‘…if something is only designed to fit its purpose we
can let beauty look after itself.’ (Gombrich E.H, 2006, p.431) This is especially
evident in architecture and graphic design. In illustration the search for truth became
a depiction of truth. The work of expressionist illustrators such as Franz Masereel,
who even extended his principles to film, shows how closely the movement was tied
with reality. ‘…The Expressionists felt so strongly about human suffering…that they
were inclined to think that the insistence on harmony and beauty in art was born out
of a refusal to be honest.’ (Gombrich E.H, 2006, p.437) As a result, Expressionist
work contrasts most vividly with previous artforms such as Art Nouveau, avoiding
irrelevant decoration and prettiness. (Gombrich, 2006) Describing society in an
attempt to change it was a far superior goal. Artists became as religious leaders,
showing the populace what was true and most profound, through their ‘faith in the
eye-opening power of art’. (De Botton, 2006, p.189) Illustrators became the new
evangelisers, bringing these elite ideas to the people. (Heller.S & Chwast.S, 2008)
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