The invention of the camera and the “art” of photography appeared in the early 19th century and as agreed upon by some, could not have appeared at a more perfect time. Why one might ask? Simply, because it unveiled invaluable opportunities for the appearance of visual art and their talented creators while forever changing the face of art as it was previously known. The most apparent change in visual arts that was brought about with the widespread use of the camera and photography relates to theme and subject matter, form (or type) and expressiveness.
Prior to the creation of the camera the appearance and content of visual art as was generally stipulated by four common themes or purposes: religion, classical, portraitures, and commemoration. Artists lacked individuality and expressive liberty and thus all their creations were traditional and reflective of the ideas and themes of times past. In expansion, artists were limited to the creation of paintings and sculptures representative of religious themes of which they were commissioned by religious organizations and churches. As well, art depicting classical themes, portraitures of the wealthy and upper-class aristocrats, and the commemoration of historical or important events were expected, common and accurately portrayed the face of visual art.
With the creation of the camera, several benefits were reaped. First, the camera allowed for the creation of optically convincing representations of people and objects without the use of the design techniques of perspective and chiaroscuro, which previously were the only methods available to artists through painting (Getlein, 210). Its ability to create permanent images that reflected light was especially important as it impacted artistic movements later in the century. Secondly, with advancements in technology the camera became portable and able to create instant, real-time, clear, accurate, multiple, and cost-effective depictions of people and events as they occurred. Thus, the products of photography also became portable, available for mass and immediate distribution, and representative of anything. “Almost anywhere a person could go, a camera could now go; almost anything a person could see, a camera could record (215). Nature, daily life, “regular people” and politics and social order with its consequences of war and turmoil quickly became popular and regular subjects. Photography was made available to the general public and was easily accessible in journals, newspapers and the media. As the expressive liberties of the camera and photography became widespread so did those of painters, sculptures and other types of artists and the walls and constraints of the common artistic themes and purposes that previously restrained them began to crumble. These liberties were expounded with the formation of several artistic movements that occurred along with the Industrial Revolution in the 19th century period known as Modernism.
Impressionism was the first artistic movement during this Modernistic Era. The movement is defined by subject matter and technique and represents art work painted outdoors that portrayed daily life (in opposition to the time’s academic art) and the rebuffing of traditional painting with its preliminary sketch of one of the four typical themes and its indoor completion with smooth, soft and hidden brushstrokes (584). In Impressionism the technique involved quick, deliberate, broken and visible brushstrokes. Embracing this new movement with its bold concepts and techniques and along with his desire to create design harmonies of light, color and shape as it visibly appeared to him labeled Claude Monet as the most exemplar Impressionist painter (514). As a pioneer in Impressionism, Monet’s work inspired others such as Henry O. Tanner (“The Banjo Lesson) and James McNeill Whistler (“Nocturne in Blue and Gold”) to also create exemplar Impressionist works.
As with all movements and eras past, the Impressionist movement died and several artistic movements rose and also fell in its footsteps. These include Post-Impressionism, Abstract Expressionism, Cubism, and Dadaism. Many of the art work of these movements projected the theme of politics and social order and following the footsteps of photography explored the potential of abstraction and non-representation. As photography proved to bear witness to and document events so were the themes, forms, and expressions of Dadaistic art. Described as provocative and absurd, Dadaism was formed in 1916 as a reaction to the gruesome fatalities of World War I and was more reflective of an attitude than a movement (222). As an anti-war movement, Dada protested everything: the complacent and conformist society that instigated war and the social and economic consequences it presented (528). It detested commonality, stillness, labeling and structures of all form. In addition, Dada embraced and encouraged creativity, life, spontaneity, ambiguity with all types of expressive unconventional art and artists. Expectantly, a defining theme of Dada would include photographs and collages of wars, leaders, poverty and destruction. Collages are from real source materials such as fabric, newspapers, and magazines—all are cut and arranged methodically onto a surface. Using this unique and expressive art form especially in making political statement, Hannah Hoch became one of Dada’s most prolific artists.
Throughout the 19th century the invention of the camera and its widespread use in photography has forever impacted the appearance of visual arts and their creators in theme and subject, form and expressiveness.
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