Lesson 9

LESSON 9.
ARTS IN THE 21ST CENTURY
Art in the 21st Century

Jean Robertson, Chancellor’s Professor of Art History, Herron School of Art and Design,
Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis
Introduction
21st-century art is a burgeoning field of practice, research, and publication,
making it an incredibly dynamic field of study. Many important topics have been
resonating in the new century and inspiring new thinking and scholarly debate, such
as the surge of bio art in response to scientific research in the life sciences, and the
critical theory known as relational aesthetics that developed in response to an
increase in art that invites viewers’ participation and interaction. Other topics that
were much-discussed in the late 20th century remain vital for the analysis of 21st-
century art and visual culture, including semiotics, post-modernism, and feminism.
Art of the 21st century emerges from a vast variety of materials and means.
These include the latest electronic technologies, such as digital imaging and the
internet (see, for example, New media art in India); familiar genres with a long history
that continue to be practiced with great vigor, such as painting (see, for
example, Julie Mehretu and Shahzia Sikander); and materials and processes once
associated primarily with handicrafts, re-envisioned to express new concepts
(see Craft and contemporary art). Many artists regularly and freely mix media and
forms, making the choices that best serve their concepts and purposes. Activities
vary from spectacular projects accomplished with huge budgets and extraordinary
production values to modest endeavors that emphasize process, ephemeral
experiences, and a do-it-yourself approach. The notion of influences has also shifted
with changes in communications and technology; every location around the world
has artists who respond to local geographies and histories as well as the sway of
global visual culture.
Nick Cave: Relic Installation; image: James Prinz Photography, Chicago/courtesy of Nick Cave and the
Jack Shainman Gallery, New York
A key feature of the art scene in the 21st century (and of many sectors of 21st-
century life) is the impact of globalization – the accelerating interconnectivity of
human activity and information across time and space. Aided by the internet and
mass media, awareness of the vitality of contemporary art in localities around the
globe has grown exponentially. Anyone with access to the internet can follow
developments in Shanghai, Sydney, São Paulo, or Nairobi. Simultaneously the
increased movement of artists across borders and oceans has added to the
intermixing of influences and artistic vocabularies. For example, Wangechi Mutu,
originally from Kenya, pursued further education in South Wales and then in the
United States. Her collaged images of women are informed by African tribal arts,
20th-century European and American collage artists, and the latest illustrations
from fashion, pornography, and medical sources.
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The meaning and consequences of globalization are much debated by
scholars. Economically and politically, is globalization a force for growth and freedom
in societies everywhere, or does it contribute to further exploitation of developing
regions by the wealthy? Does globalization work in different ways in different
localities?
Regarding globalization and art, do practices in Asia, Africa, the Middle East,
and elsewhere challenge the traditional assumptions and value judgments that are
the basis of the Western canon? Are Western institutions rethinking that canon or
simply adding art from other places to their rosters in a token and uncritical gesture
of inclusivity? How do curated exhibitions that address themes of globalization
represent artists from various parts of the world? The expanding art market and the
proliferation of biennials and art fairs helped a select group of artists from every
continent to gain an international presence; but have the underlying structure and
values of the art market changed otherwise?
Visual culture
In the 21st century visual culture has grown as a recognized interdisciplinary
field of study, taking a multi-faceted approach to understanding how images of all
types communicate and participate in the construction of identity, gender, class,
power relationships, and other social and political meanings and values. Medicine,
science, politics, consumer culture, and religion and spirituality are some of the
arenas that visual culture studies examine along with art. Visual culture scholars
analyze film, television, graphic novels, fashion design, and other forms of popular
culture in addition to established fine art media such as painting, and they draw
upon many methodologies and theories, including semiotics, sociology,
psychoanalysis, reception theory, feminism, and the concept of the gaze, to name a
few.
Just as visual culture scholars are examining images and media of all types
so, too, are 21st-century artists drawing inspiration, imagery, materials, and
concepts from diverse areas of culture, moving well beyond influences from the
history of fine art and design. The world of professional sports and fanatic fans has
been a topic for Paul Pfeiffer, while the commercial television industry has informed
various video installations by Christian Jankowski.
Most contemporary artists do not draw rigid distinctions between high art and
popular culture. For instance, a number of contemporary artists embrace traditional
techniques of fiber art but use them to create unorthodox forms or address current
social and political issues. Along these lines, Ghada Amer has used thread to
embroider on canvas repeated motifs of nude women engaged in sexual acts, then
partially obscured the embroidered images with gestural painted brushstrokes. Her
themes include the expression and repression of female sexuality and eroticism in
both Western and Islamic societies. Another example of intermixing visual cultures
is the complex array of interactions between science and contemporary art, with
many artists engaging with scientific imagery and ideas in their practice. For
example, Wim Delvoye’s ongoing series called Cloaca imagines humans as cyborgs,
representing the human digestive system as a kind of biomechanical contraption.
Finally, many 21st-century artists are deeply affected by their immersion in global
visual culture, which is now made vividly present through online networks. Many
artists maintain a personal website, and some create art expressly for dissemination
through social media. As always, new technologies provide new opportunities and
challenges.

Allora & Calzadilla: Body in Flight (Delta), 2011 (U.S. Pavilion, 54th International Art Exhibition,
presented by the Indianapolis Museum of Art); photo © Andrew Bordwin/courtesy of the artists and the
Indianapolis Museum of Art
Public and Participatory Art

Public art was a well-established genre by the late 20th century, attracting
both traditional and experimental practitioners. Public art in the 21st century has
expanded even more as a field of activity in which creative investigation can take
place. In addition to continuing familiar forms such as site-specific monuments,
murals, graffiti, and collaborations between artists, engineers, and architects, public
art encompasses new purposes, forms, and locations, including pop-up art shops,
street parades, and online projects. Public artists in the 21st century might use
established approaches such as installation and performance but introduce new
variations. For instance, it is now common for artists to hire other people, sometimes
with special skills, to undertake performances on their behalf. In this vein, Vanessa
Beecroft hired fashion models for performances, and the collaborative artists Allora
& Caldazilla directed professional athletes as performers in some of their
installations.
A pronounced tendency in the 21st century has been art that is participatory,
in which the social interactions prompted by a work become its content. Often called
relational art, the work literally engages the public in some way. For
instance, Carsten Höller has installed giant slides in museums for visitors to slide
down, and Rirkrit Tiravanija has prepared Thai food and served it to gallery goers.
Artists attracted by the immediacy and connectivity of globally networked media
often create online projects that invite social interaction. Relational aesthetics has
developed (and been contested) as a critical theory for analyzing and evaluating such
undertakings. Key questions in these debates include: Does it matter if the social
interactions prompted by such works promote a better world or are conviviality and
entertainment sufficient goals? To what extent should the physical products of
relational art (such as Höller’s slides) be evaluated aesthetically as well as for their
social effects?
The 21st century is just beginning – issues and ideas are evolving rapidly and
new artists are constantly gaining attention and influence. This guide will be updated
periodically as new and revised thematic articles and biographical entries are added
that provide critical context for the art of the present century.
Reference: https://www.oxfordartonline.com/page/art-in-the-21st-century

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LESSON 9.

ARTS IN THE 21ST CENTURY

Art in the 21st Century

EED 11: TEACHING ARTS IN THE ELEMENTARY GRADES Page 35 of 98

EED 11: TEACHING ARTS IN THE ELEMENTARY GRADES Page 36 of 98

Public and Participatory Art

EED 11: TEACHING ARTS IN THE ELEMENTARY GRADES Page 37 of 98

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