The Spiritual Dynamic in Modern Art : Art History Reconsidered, 1800 to the Present

Further Illustrations: The illustrations in this book can be supplemented by entering the name of any artist and the word images into the search box on the website of an Internet search engine. Scores of colored representations of works by the artist will come up for your viewing. ## Index Note: Locators followed by the letter "n" refer to Notes. This book demonstrates that numerous prominent artists in every period of the modern era were expressing spiritual interests when they created celebrated works of art. This magisterial overview insightfully reveals the centrality of an often denied and misunderstood element in the cultural history of modern art. The history of modern art has generally been understood as a grand leap away from tradition, religion, and conventional norms, yielding decidedly secular art. Yet a majority of the prominent modern artists in every period had strong interests in the spiritual dimension of life, which they expressed in the new art forms they created. The Spiritual Dynamic in Modern Art draws on direct statements by scores of leading artists - cited from little known historical documentation as well as contemporary interviews - to demonstrate that spirituality, far from being inconsequential in the terrain of modern art, is generative. This magisterial overview insightfully presents, for the first time, a chronological survey of the major art movements that weaves together spiritual profiles of numerous leading artists and situates their stories within the cultural context of each period. The result is a significantly expanded understanding of the cultural history of modern art "The history of modern art has generally been understood as a grand leap away from tradition, religion, and conventional norms, yielding decidedly secular art. Yet a majority of the prominent modern artists in every period had strong interests in the spiritual dimension of life, which they expressed in the new art forms they created. The Spiritual Dynamic in Modern Art draws on direct statements by scores of leading artists - cited from little known historical documentation as well as contemporary interviews - to demonstrate that spirituality, far from being inconsequential in the terrain of modern art, in generative. This magisterial overview insightfully presents, for the first time, a chronological survey of the major art movements that weaves together spiritual profiles of numerous leading artists and situates their stories within the cultural context of each period. The result is a significantly expanded understanding of the cultural history of modern art." --back cover The 19th Century: Expressing Christian Themes In A Newly Secular World -- Mid-1880s Through 1918: The Quest To Save Civilization From 'materialism' Through A New Art Informed By Esoteric Spirituality -- 1919-1939: The Reaction Against Prewar Esoteric Spirituality -- 1945 To The Present: Allusive Spirituality -- 1945 To The Present: Spirituality Of Immanence -- 1945 To The Present: Rocked In The Bosom Of Abraham. Charlene Spretnak. Includes Bibliographical References And Index. Front Matter....Pages i-vii Introduction....Pages 1-15 The Nineteenth Century....Pages 17-51 Mid-1880s to 1918....Pages 53-91 1919–1939....Pages 93-124 1945 to the Present....Pages 125-149 1945 to the Present....Pages 151-172 1945 to the Present....Pages 173-199 Afterword....Pages 201-208 Back Matter....Pages 209-251