Postmodernism

Postmodern art, the term used to describe an art movement. It is thought to be a reaction or rejection to modernism. It attacks the use of stereotyping and class, directing itself at subjects such as men vs. women. Or straight vs. gay. Post modern is the term commonly used to describe most artwork produced since the 1950s and it is argued that post modern is just a subsector of the contempary movement. Postmodernism flows throughtout all possible art forms, with a wide range of examples.
Conceptual art and multimedia are both examples of postmodern art.
When researching Postmodern art i found a couple of artists whose work is described as being postmodern.
The first being Sigmar Polke. He was a german photographer/painter. His artwork shows how vivid his imagination was buh also demonstrates the political situation at the time.

First example of one of Poles sketches. The image in general is very intriguing, i am not sure what the story is behind it. An interesting mix of techniques and textures have been used which make the image much more interesting to look at. The use of black and white aswell as colour is also effective, the colour possibly representing a brighter, happier time.

This image could very easily be a photograph however it is actually a drawing. Again a very unusual story behind it. The composition is interesting because of the one man lying on his own on the side nearest the viewer whereas the rest of the public is opposite. The subject, being a bear fight, itself is unusal and so the audience wants to study it further to find out why two bears would be fighting. In this image it appears to be for entertainment purposes.

I am not really sure what this image is meant to represent hwever i like the different textures that Polke has used. I also like how the only detail displayed had been created using a series of dots. It is an unusual way to creat an image. I like tha lack of detail, it leaves more to the imagination.

A second artist i found was Ed Kienholz, an American Sculpturist whose work criticised the modern times. 

This first sculpture is very realistic looking. It appears it has been made using pieces of metal all layered over the top of each other. The detail within the model is very precise and i love the texture given off. The different colours aswell make it unique, as it has not been made to look pretty and be perfect.

This scultpure has been photographed on a stand and is more of a display item. It shows what appears to be a miniature of home set-up, with a light and a chair Again a wide range in materials has been used and it has a good sense of texture to it. I don't think the photograph is very generous to it and believe it would look better if seen in real life.

This final sculpture is very different again to those seen previously. I am not sure whether it is an actual car body that has been used or whether Kienholz has made it using a range of materials. The scene created here is very lifelike and believable. The textures are a lot smoother than they have been in the previous two images i have looked at, but this one is my favourite image as to me, it stands out the most and is more interesting. It intrigues the audience as to what is in the car, why it is there,and why the supposed car has no wheels etc.