How did early twentieth century artists systematically undermine the traditional rules of western art?

Answer 1

The early 20th century saw a systematic undermining of the traditional rules of Western art, as artists overthrew long held conventions in a series of movements that flowered before 1920: Fauvists and Expressionists attacked traditional notions of pictorial representation through color and brushwork, culminating in completely abstract paintings by 1910. Cubists created influential new methods of composition in both painting and sculpture. Futurists embodied "the beauty of speed" in new ways, and Suprematists combined Cubist picture space with complete abstraction. During WWI, Dada asked the most radical questions about the nature of art itself. As part of a program of challenging the norms, many Modern artists looked to non-Western cultures for stylistic cues. Modern architecture also took definite form in buildings that used only the modern materials of concrete, glass, and steel, without decoration or reference to any past style.

Modern art arrived somewhat later to the Americas, but artists on those continents also pursued Modernist techniques.

Constructivists in Russia after the Communist Revolution united Modern styles with practical needs. Social Realists and Mexican muralists retreated from the more radical innovations of Modernism in order to communicate with the masses, often through art in public places. Bauhaus artists turned modern mass production toward a harmonious and beautiful home environment for consumers. Harlem Renaissance artists raised awareness of African American culture, some using Modernist techniques, and some looking past them back to African tribal arts.

Answer 2

The early 20th century saw a systematic undermining of the traditional rules of Western art, as artists overthrew long held conventions in a series of movements that flowered before 1920: Fauvists and Expressionists attacked traditional notions of pictorial representation through color and brushwork, culminating in completely abstract paintings by 1910. Cubists created influential new methods of composition in both painting and sculpture. Futurists embodied "the beauty of speed" in new ways, and Suprematists combined Cubist picture space with complete abstraction. During WWI, Dada asked the most radical questions about the nature of art itself. As part of a program of challenging the norms, many Modern artists looked to non-Western cultures for stylistic cues. Modern architecture also took definite form in buildings that used only the modern materials of concrete, glass, and steel, without decoration or reference to any past style.

Modern art arrived somewhat later to the Americas, but artists on those continents also pursued Modernist techniques.

Constructivists in Russia after the Communist Revolution united Modern styles with practical needs. Social Realists and Mexican muralists retreated from the more radical innovations of Modernism in order to communicate with the masses, often through art in public places. Bauhaus artists turned modern mass production toward a harmonious and beautiful home environment for consumers. Harlem Renaissance artists raised awareness of African American culture, some using Modernist techniques, and some looking past them back to African tribal arts.