Jump to content

Talk:Figurative art

Page contents not supported in other languages.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by 72.179.63.75 (talk) at 19:04, 5 April 2012 (→‎Conflicting definitions). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

WikiProject iconVisual arts Start‑class
WikiProject iconThis article is within the scope of WikiProject Visual arts, a collaborative effort to improve the coverage of visual arts on Wikipedia. If you would like to participate, please visit the project page, where you can join the discussion and see a list of open tasks.
StartThis article has been rated as Start-class on Wikipedia's content assessment scale.

Conflicting definitions

The Bullfinch Guide to Art describes figurative art as representational. I'll research and get back to this article. Sparkit 07:27, 6 January 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Figurative art is by definition representational. They are synonyms. Tyrenius 05:39, 7 May 2006 (UTC)[reply]

The proper word is "figural", of course, but "figurative" (which means to express one thing in the form of another or in terms of another) has been misused in this sense for about 40 years. People who buy "figurative" art must beware that they not may be getting figural art, but a metaphor expressed in the media instead. 72.179.63.75 (talk) 19:04, 5 April 2012 (UTC) Eric[reply]

Pablo Picasso

The inclusion of Picasso was disputed on the basis that he was not a figurative artist. However the definition quoted from the Tate Gallery states:

Since the arrival of abstract art the term figurative has been used to refer to any form of modern art that retains strong references to the real world. "Glossary: Figurative"

Quite clearly his work does retain such strong references and therefore makes him a figurative artist. He is also shown on the Tate page as an example of a figurative artist. This is a verifiable source.

I dispute the inclusion of Odd Nerdrum in this list as he does not have a worldwide reputation of equal standing to the other artists and seems an anomaly.

Tyrenius 23:02, 28 May 2006 (UTC)[reply]


Slowly becoming accepted?

. . . —Preceding unsigned comment added by 81.106.37.166 (talk) 19:22, 13 August 2008 (UTC) How many decades have to go by before we admit that figurative art is completely accepted in the contemporary art world? When I started art school 15 years ago they were talking about the "return" of figuration. At that point Francesco Clemente had already been an art world darling for 10 years, and 10 years before him there were the "new image" artists like Susan Rothenberg and Donald Sultan. Throw in Lucien Freud, Richard Diebenkorn, Francis Bacon (painter), and the pop artists and you have to wonder when figurative art wasn't accepted. In the 1940s? --emw 02:57, 3 May 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Reconfiguration

The article is at a good point now, scaled back to its essence. I would like to take a shot at expansion, sans naming specific artists, if possible, but might not get to it for a while--there is little solid online reference, and I am inclined to dig up my Kenneth Clark books, when time permits. JNW 22:03, 6 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]

It seems that part of the problem is the interpretation of the term, and the subsequent open door to POV as to which artist or school best represents figurative art. In all, a challenge to write with minimal POV. JNW 22:26, 6 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]

I think material needs to be properly sourced. A bog standard text like Gombrich might be useful, or, as you say, Clark. Tyrenius 23:42, 6 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]
I've made incremental additions, on idealism and realism, and formal elements. Please proof read and make necessary edits. JNW 01:52, 12 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Contemporary Figurative Art

As this page appears to be a historical view of figurative art, and the page on contemporary art is pretty non-specific - given the pluralistic nature of the art world today- there should be a page on contemporary figurative art, which is undeniably substantial and growing more-so every year.

So long as the information is properly sourced, so as to not become, essentially, an exercise in promotion or advertisement for a particular school, gallery, or group of artists--see WP:NPOV, WP:V, and WP:RS. Please remember to sign your posts. JNW 16:03, 12 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Suggested internal link for this article

I have created a Wikipedia page entitled List of artists focused on the female form (The title was not mine but one modified by an unknown party). It has become a 'redirect' from the search term Women in Art which was my original title. I feel that adding the "Women in Art" link to the links list of THIS article would help those seeking art of the female form using the search term Figurative Art and reaching this "Figuative Art" item, which, though both interesting and educational in itself, does not satisfy all those searching using this heading, making the article worthy of expansion to this end. Point taken on the broader meaning of the term, but the generally accepted narrower understandings should, I feel, perhaps also be included satisfying the reader's current need with the benefit of a wider education to go. The link would need to be Women in Art to reach this list of artists which will grow with time I'm sure. Hope this helps.
--Jdm art (talk) 09:52, 5 March 2008 (UTC)[reply]

File:Kenyon Cox nude study2.jpg to appear as POTD soon

Hello! This is a note to let the editors of this article know that File:Kenyon Cox nude study2.jpg will be appearing as picture of the day on June 20, 2011. You can view and edit the POTD blurb at Template:POTD/2011-06-20. If this article needs any attention or maintenance, it would be preferable if that could be done before its appearance on the Main Page so Wikipedia doesn't look bad. :) Thanks! howcheng {chat} 19:21, 17 June 2011 (UTC)[reply]

Kenyon Cox nude study
This study drawing by Kenyon Cox shows the allegorical figure of Romance nude, bending her head to read a book on her lap. Romance is one figure in a painting, The Arts, in the north-end lunette of the Southwest Gallery in the Library of Congress' Jefferson Building. Cox was an advocate of figurative art—art that is clearly sourced from real objects—and is therefore by definition representational rather than abstract art.Restoration: Lise Broer