Author(s): Peter R. Kalb

Art and Design

Art Since 1980 holds up a mirror to our society while charting the story of art in contemporary global culture. With over 300 pictures of painting, photography, sculpture, installation, performance and video art, we are led on a fascinating journey via the individuals and communities who have shaped world art. The political and cultural transformations of the early 1980s developed a new era of compatibility between communist states and western-style economics. The art world then expanded to include Russia and China, feminism and racial equality came to the fore, and the World Wide Web was born, changing forever the availability and distribution of visual material. Today we see record-breaking sales of contemporary art and a dramatic rise in the number of students taking courses in the visual and performing arts. Kalb approaches art from various angles, such as artistic production, display, critical reception and its relationship to society. Alongside his analysis of specific works of art, he also builds a framework for students to acquire the more general skills of research, and abstract and theoretical thinking.