Assignment

Watch: Emilio de Antonio and Mary Lampson, Painters Painting (1973)

Assignment:

In Painters Painting, Barnett Newman says, "The problem of subject became very clear to me as the crucial thing in painting. Not the technique, not the plasticity, not the look, not the surface.

The best distinction was made by Professor Meyer Schapiro, who was talking about subject in painting. He made the distinction between the subject of a work and the objects in a work."

In an interview with William Wright,Jackson Pollock states: "The thing that interests me is that today painters do not have to go to a subject matter outside of themselves. Most modern painters work from a different source. They work from within."

In "The American Action Painters", Harold Rosenberg writes, "...the canvas began to appear to one American painter after another as an arena in which to act - rather than as a space in which to reproduce... an object, actual or imagined. What was to go on the canvas was not a picture but an event."

And finally, in "American Type Painting," Clement Greenberg argues that "It seems to be a law of modernism... that the conventions not essential to the viability of a medium be discarded as soon as they are recognized."

Each of these ideas represents a vastly different approach to thinking about both the act and discipline of painting itself.

Choose one of the artists portrayed in Painters Painting. In 300-400 words, discuss two of the above approachesin relation to your chosen artist's work and their statements in the film.

You do not have to refer to any sources other than those listed above, but if you choose to use additional sources, be sure to properly cite them according to the MLA or Chicago Manual of Style.

Tips:Make sure your paper has a clear thesis that is supported with evidence.

Are there any counter-arguments to your ideas that you can anticipate in advance? If so, try to refute them.

The first time you mention an artist (or any other person), always use the full name; afterwards use last name only. Italicize or underline image titles and give the date after the title, in parentheses, unless otherwise integrating that information into your text.

How do you plan to organize your essay? You can start with your overall impression and then draw out key details and quotes that support it or, conversely, you may wish to work more deductively, that is, to carefully observe and describe an image and then build your overall analysis or argument from that.

Think about what facts or information your reader needs in order to follow what you are saying.

Focus: you do not have space to provide too many details. This is a very short essay, so you do not need more than a sentence of introductionnor should youneed to restate anything.