As one envisions a bustling street in a city, a swarming mass of people is most likely one of the first images or concepts that comes to mind. What makes something lively is usually thought of as having beings or things that are alive, or moving. Envisioning a cityscape without any evidence of a living thing may seem like a peaceful or monotonous scene. Yet multiple artists from the 1900’s chose to depict busy city settings without a single living thing as proof of the liveliness. Instead, these painters used their abstract styles and abilities to create city scenes with the use of jumbled lines and geometry depicting architecture, and an abundance of scattered colors or shades. The works are commonly inspired by, though not limited to, Manhattan, New York. Each of these artists portray city life in their own uniquely abstracted way. Since all of these works of art are represented in an abstract and expressionist way, it invokes emotion. The emotion, whether negative or positive is relative, is presented in a hectic way. The busyness of the eccentric and erratic lines make all the scenes frenzied and active. Although each artists style differs slightly, they each abstractly depict city life to conjure up liveliness without the use of actual living creatures.
John Marin, Saint Paul's, Manhattan, 1914
Watercolor and charcoal on paper, MET, 49.70.110
John Marin is considered to be one of America’s greatest, or at least most iconic, painters. Though he is most well known for his watercolors, his oil paintings are also well respected. As Marin studied in New York, he has a variety of abstract depictions of the scenery he observed. In this depiction of Manhattan, Marin uses a blue monochromatic scene. Although he only uses one color, the varied intensities of it give it a vibrant atmosphere. The brushstrokes by both thickness and pattern are also wide-ranging. Although there are no palpable clues to show people are inhabiting the city, the buildings themselves come alive.
Ida York Abelman, Greetings From a Manhattan Artist, 1935-43
Color Lithograph, MET, 43.33.842
This is another depiction from the city of Manhattan, yet takes on a completely different feel from Marin’s portrayal of the same city. Abelman uses an emphasis on lines and shapes to create a variety of different city features. Throughout the picture are different buildings scattered about. Towards the center is a sign simply labeled “EATS”, which well encompasses a city full of people. The way Abelman organizes and places his lines and objects throughout the picture seem random, yet because they are scattered about make the scene come alive. The jutting lines, angles, and shapes help create a busy city feel. Even though the colors used are somewhat dull, there are a variety of complementary colors which make the objects protrude. The use of side by side red and greens, and blues and oranges make the buildings and objects alive and active.
Basil Beattie City 1986
WikiPaintings
As the most abstract of them all, Beattie expresses the idea and essence of a city. The rapid and erratic brushstrokes creates overwhelming energy. The brushstrokes are also multicolored, with vivid blues, bright reds, and splashes of all other hues in between. There is a slightly recognizable shape towards the top left. This distorted sort of rectangle with a few blotches is the closest thing to resembling a building.Though the other things are unrecognizable, there are some rectangular and circular shapes. The overlapping shapes, lines, strokes, and colors evokes an overwhelmingly busy scene which embodies an eccentric city. Beattie creates this lively scene, once again, without hint of a living thing.
Kurt Ferdinand Roesch, Midtown Manhattan, 1939
Oil and chalk on canvas, MET, 42.168
Roesch’s take on a dynamic cityscape does not use color to display the hecticness of a city, but rather lines and shapes. Though Roesch has a very recognizable city scene, the shapes are jutting out of many angles. Upon further inspection, the buildings we seem to be viewing don’t have the characteristics of realistic buildings, but rather use the ideas of buildings to create the architecture. The elongated geometric shapes draw our eyes up, down, and in every other direction. The stark black and white contrast create a vivid landscape. Although we expect buildings and people to portray the scene of a busy city, Roesch uses the idea of buildings with protruding building-like shapes.
Aleksandra Ekster, City, 1913
WikiPaintings
Ekster’s cubo-futurism depiction of a city includes a variety of geometric shapes using essentially primary colors. There are mainly flat rectangular shapes that shoot up from around the whole scene. Red and blue fill these shapes, with slight hints of oranges in some areas as well. These rectangular shapes seem to represent buildings. On the sides, there are actual recognizable buildings that take form of houses. The chimneys are a giveaway. Though there aren’t clues of them being inhabited, our idea of cities lead us to assume they are. The primary colors stand out stark against each other, bringing the city as a whole to life. There are some hints of vivid oranges and greens that also help portray the hecticness of life in a city.
Friedensreich Hundertwasser, City View, 1994
Mixed Media, WikiPaintings
Windows commonly cover the surface of city buildings. Hunderwasser encompasses this sight in his abstract “city view”. The background, which is black, is covered in a variety of different colored and sized windows. Yellow shines through them, which reveals life within. There are other windows that are less average, and take on more of a stained glass image with its triangular shape and blue and green hues. Although yellow light doesn’t shine through, it is still clearly lit up. Because the background is black and clearly nighttime, and the windows are all vividly colored, light must come from behind for the colors to shine. There is a variety of other shapes that are very dramatically rich in color. The abundance of bright color and lit up windows portray a lively night scene. Again without images of actual living beings, this scene hints at life from behind walls and windows.
Friedensreich Hundertwasser, City View, 1994
Mixed Media, WikiPaintings
Windows commonly cover the surface of city buildings. Hunderwasser encompasses this sight in his abstract “city view”. The background, which is black, is covered in a variety of different colored and sized windows. Yellow shines through them, which reveals life within. There are other windows that are less average, and take on more of a stained glass image with its triangular shape and blue and green hues. Although yellow light doesn’t shine through, it is still clearly lit up. Because the background is black and clearly nighttime, and the windows are all vividly colored, light must come from behind for the colors to shine. There is a variety of other shapes that are very dramatically rich in color. The abundance of bright color and lit up windows portray a lively night scene. Again without images of actual living beings, this scene hints at life from behind walls and windows.
Windows commonly cover the surface of city buildings. Hunderwasser encompasses this sight in his abstract “city view”. The background, which is black, is covered in a variety of different colored and sized windows. Yellow shines through them, which reveals life within. There are other windows that are less average, and take on more of a stained glass image with its triangular shape and blue and green hues. Although yellow light doesn’t shine through, it is still clearly lit up. Because the background is black and clearly nighttime, and the windows are all vividly colored, light must come from behind for the colors to shine. There is a variety of other shapes that are very dramatically rich in color. The abundance of bright color and lit up windows portray a lively night scene. Again without images of actual living beings, this scene hints at life from behind walls and windows.
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