art sections 2 and 3 pt 3

Charles Demuth – Biography

American modernist born 1883 in Lancaster Pennsylvania; trained at Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts and later studied in Paris

Charles Demuth – Subjects

Best known for watercolors, still lifes of flowers and vegetables, and industrial scenes of Lancaster

Charles Demuth – Marsden Hartley

Connection to fellow gay American painter who introduced him to Alfred Stieglitz

Charles Demuth – Alfred Stieglitz

Stieglitz gave Demuth a solo exhibition in 1926

Charles Demuth – Poster Portrait

A symbolic portrait using numbers, words, and imagery instead of physical likeness

Charles Demuth – I Saw the Figure 5 in Gold

Poster portrait of poet William Carlos Williams

Charles Demuth – Geometric Abstraction

Uses straight lines and rigid shapes to flatten 3D space into 2D form

Charles Demuth – Repeated Number 5

Three overlapping 5s suggest motion, sound, and poetic rhythm

Charles Demuth – Color Scheme

Red, gold, and gray with thin brushstrokes and sharp edges

Charles Demuth – BILL and CARLO

Text referencing William Carlos Williams styled like electric city signs

William Carlos Williams – Poet

Demuth’s close friend; modernist poet and Imagist

William Carlos Williams – Imagism

Poetry movement focused on clear, direct imagery

William Carlos Williams – Poetic Theory

A poem is an object whose meaning comes from its form

Georgia O’Keeffe – Biography

Born 1887 in Wisconsin; youngest member of the Stieglitz circle

Georgia O’Keeffe – Education

Studied at School of the Art Institute of Chicago and later in New York

Georgia O’Keeffe – William Merritt Chase

Teacher who trained her in traditional painting

Georgia O’Keeffe – Arthur Wesley Dow

Taught Asian-inspired composition and harmony across the arts

Georgia O’Keeffe – Kandinsky Influence

Believed abstract forms expressed spiritual emotion

Georgia O’Keeffe – Biomorphic Abstraction

Used organic shapes inspired by plants, bodies, and landscapes

Georgia O’Keeffe – Blue and Green Music

Painting inspired by sound rather than recognizable objects

Georgia O’Keeffe – Stieglitz Relationship

Stieglitz promoted her but tried to control her public image

Georgia O’Keeffe – New Mexico

Moved there later and painted deserts, skulls, and crosses

Georgia O’Keeffe – Taos Colony

Linked to artists inspired by Native American culture

Man Ray – Biography

American photographer and Surrealist based in Paris

Man Ray – Rayograph

Photogram made by placing objects directly on light-sensitive paper

Man Ray – Surrealism

Movement using dreams, chance, and the unconscious

Man Ray – Solarization

Technique reversing light and dark by exposing film to light

Man Ray – Automatism

Creating without planning to access the subconscious

Man Ray – Marcel Duchamp

Frequent collaborator and close friend

William Van Alen – Biography

New York architect trained at Pratt Institute and École des Beaux-Arts

William Van Alen – Chrysler Building

Built 1928–1930; tallest building in the world for 11 months

William Van Alen – Art Deco Style

Emphasized geometry, luxury, and modern technology

William Van Alen – Chrysler Gargoyles

Chrome eagle heads inspired by car hood ornaments

William Van Alen – Chrysler Crown

Seven-arched stainless steel crown symbolizing modern ambition

Imogen Cunningham – Biography

Born 1883 in Portland; grew up in Seattle; scientific approach to photography

Imogen Cunningham – Scientific Photography

Wrote thesis on chemistry and photography

Imogen Cunningham – Edward Curtis

Worked for ethnographic photographer

Imogen Cunningham – Pictorialism

Early soft-focus style she later rejected

Imogen Cunningham – New Objectivity

Movement focused on sharp, objective photographic clarity

Imogen Cunningham – Leaf Pattern

Photogram accepted into Film und Foto exhibition in 1929

Florine Stettheimer – Biography

Wealthy New York painter with little formal training

Florine Stettheimer – Spring Sale at Bendel’s

Satirical painting of department store shopping

Florine Stettheimer – Henri Bendel

Upscale New York department store shown in painting

Florine Stettheimer – Camp Style

Over-the-top, theatrical, decorative aesthetic

Florine Stettheimer – Consumer Culture

Critiqued modern fashion and shopping obsession

James Van Der Zee – Biography

Harlem photographer portraying Black middle-class pride

James Van Der Zee – The Couple Harlem

Portrait of confident Black couple with luxury Cadillac

James Van Der Zee – Jim Crow Context

Racial segregation limited Black opportunity

James Van Der Zee – New Negro Movement

Celebrated Black achievement and modern identity

James Van Der Zee – Sprezzatura

Effortless elegance shown by the couple

James Van Der Zee – Cadillac V-16

Rare luxury car symbolizing success

Archibald Motley Jr – Biography

Chicago painter of Black nightlife and identity

Archibald Motley Jr – Saturday Night

Scene of jazz-era Black social life

Archibald Motley Jr – Colorism

Preference for lighter skin within Black communities

Archibald Motley Jr – Guggenheim Fellowship

Funded his travel to Paris

Archibald Motley Jr – Harlem Renaissance

Linked to Black modern culture

Thomas Hart Benton – Biography

American Regionalist mural painter

Thomas Hart Benton – City Activities with Dance Hall

Depiction of Prohibition-era city entertainment

Thomas Hart Benton – Prohibition

Context of illegal nightlife and clubs

Thomas Hart Benton – America Today Mural

New School commission showing American life

Thomas Hart Benton – Flappers

Modern women shown in mural

Gerald Murphy – Biography

American modernist linked to the Lost Generation

Gerald Murphy – Purism

Clean, simple, machine-like visual style

Gerald Murphy – Watch

Painting celebrating machine age and time

Gerald Murphy – Machine Age

Culture of technology, efficiency, and speed

Meta Warrick Fuller – Biography

African American sculptor trained by Rodin

Meta Warrick Fuller – Ethiopia Awakening

Sculpture symbolizing Black history and rebirth

Meta Warrick Fuller – Pan-Africanism

Movement connecting African-descended people worldwide

Meta Warrick Fuller – Egyptian Symbolism

Egypt and Ethiopia represent Black power

Meta Warrick Fuller – NAACP Commission

Commissioned by James Weldon Johnson

Yasuo Kuniyoshi – Biography

Japanese-American modernist affected by U.S. nativism

Yasuo Kuniyoshi – Boy Stealing Fruit

Painting about memory, culture, and identity

Yasuo Kuniyoshi – Momotaro

Japanese folk tale referenced by peach

Yasuo Kuniyoshi – Anti-Japanese Laws

Banned him from U.S. citizenship

Tina Modotti – Biography

Communist photographer of Mexican workers

Tina Modotti – Hands Resting on a Tool

Image of campesino labor and dignity

Tina Modotti – Mexican Revolution

Context of worker rights and land reform

Tina Modotti – Indigenismo

Movement celebrating Indigenous Mexican culture

Maria Martinez – Biography

Pueblo potter who shaped vessels

Julian Martinez – Biography

Painted Pueblo pottery designs

Maria & Julian Martinez – Black-on-Black Pottery

Matte and polished black slip fired in low oxygen

Maria & Julian Martinez – San Ildefonso Pueblo

New Mexico pottery tradition

Maria & Julian Martinez – Indian Craze

1920s demand for Native American art

Maria & Julian Martinez – Exposition of Indian Tribal Arts

Show that recognized Native art as fine art