2. Basics of Minimalists:
• Tried to eliminate composition from their work
• Were focused on creating a purely visual piece, not
concerned with hidden or deeper meanings
• Were primarily a reaction against abstract
expressionism
3. Basics of Minimalists (cont.):
• Believed that 2-D art had a limited number of
possible different works
• Objectified their pieces/ wanted people to see the
piece for what it is, not what it represents
• Spawned Post-Painterly Abstraction- a movement
that was less energetic and more colorful than
previous movements, still nonrepresentational
6. What does that mean?
• It means that they didn’t want their work to look
assembled out of parts/elements
• They completely did away with symbols and
characters in their works
• They blurred the line between 2-D and 3-D with
shaped canvasses
• Often, works were completely 3-D
• Pieces were meant to be seen as literally what they
are, not as metaphors
7. Who Inspired Them?
• Minimalism was primarily a reaction against the
individualism/ individual worship of abstract
expressionism
• The drew on the techniques of earlier artists and
movements like the Constructivist movement, Ad
Reinhardt, and Barnett Newman
8. What are their works known for?
• Works are very ordered
• No thought is given as to symmetry, but works are
often symmetrical due to the artists’ drive for order
• Works are often sculptures or at least semi 3-D
• Finally, works are very simplistic in nature
10. Who was Frank Stella?
• Took art courses at Princeton,
where he was exposed to the
avant garde art of the time.
• Kind of a player, liked to bet on
horse races and owned a race car.
• Didn’t call himself a minimalist,
that was thrust on him by others
20. Sol LeWitt's Life
●Was drafted in the Korean War in 1959
●Took a job at the Museum of Modern Art in 1960
●Influenced by the work of Frank Stella
●Developed interest in Russian Constructivism
●Later Life
22. Sol LeWitt's Style
● The initial idea for the work is crucial
● Creation of the works-Sol LeWitt designed them, and
had others build/execute the work
● Sol LeWitt's Influences
● Wall drawings and installations
● The importance of color and shape
23. Buried Cube Containing an Object
of Importance but Little Value
● 1968
● Series of Photographs
● Focuses on the idea
of the object being
buried rather than a
final product
24. Incomplete Open Cube
● 1974
● Painted Aluminum
● 122 Unique
variations from 3-
sided to 11-sided
39. Donald Judd – As a person
•Was a Philosophy Major at Columbia, so very
intelligent.
•Is a self proclaimed Empiricist. (Philosophical
standing)
•Very Anti-war. (Vietnam and gulf war) And is a firm
believer in preserving the environment.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t0stpkzsNDU
40. Judd’s Reliefs and Works
• Key Works Include: ‘Stacks’, ‘Boxes’, and
‘Progressions.
• Works are Symmetrical and made of Industrial
Materials.
• Wants his works to be permanently installed. He
states that are is ‘fragile’.
46. Dan Flavin – As a person
• Had a religious catholic upbringing, Served in
Military
• Attended Columbia University and studied painting
and drawing
• Worked in Museums such as the Guggenheim and
Museum of Modern Art before pursuing work.
47. Flavin’s Works
• “It is was it is and it ain’t nothin’ else” – Dan Flavin
• Key characteristic: Used Fluorescent Lights, called his works
“Propositions”, liked Corners and Diagonals
• All the lights used in his work were mass produced
• He often ‘dedicates’ his art work to other people.
• What is unique about his art from other minimalists is that
the fluorescent lights only stay lit for a short while, making
his art perishable.
