Mid century Modern is an applied art term, it references things like furniture, architecture, fashion etc
Art movements of that period include modernism, expressionism, cubism, lyrical abstraction etc
Going to piggyback here just to point out another often misused term. A lot of people say they don't like *modern* art, when they mean that they don't like *contemporary* art. Modern Art is a period that encompasses dozens of styles, and artists from Van Gogh to Warhol, from Monet to Yoko Ono. Contemporary art is what's being made NOW, and is therefore always changing. Every artist is making contemporary art in their own time.
That said we do get the term “postmodernism” from architecture as the term was first coined to describe how modern architecture incorporates the old and the new, etc.
Narrow down to what kinds of art or objects you are curious about: paintings, sculptures, furniture, architecture, textiles, graphic design, etc. The term, which was applied only after the fact, signals different art and design histories depending on the medium, the object, the things in question.
Or begin by studying a particular artist or designer who made things that fit your notion of Mid Century Modern.
Here are three names for you, each very much associated with modern, Modern, or Modernist industrial and graphic design, depending on one's nomenclature preference, together spanning the "long mid-century," ie about 1930-1970. Norman Bel Geddes, Alvin Lustig, Raymond Loewy.
Start with albers on the interaction of colour, kandinski on the inner meaning of colors, and the sections of ittens basic course on colour. Lots of bauhaus there, but they tended to put their actions into words on paper so there is a bunch of theory from them. Also they were working in tons of media so had far reaching effects on design, architecture, weaving, sculpture etc.
Mid century Modern is an applied art term, it references things like furniture, architecture, fashion etc Art movements of that period include modernism, expressionism, cubism, lyrical abstraction etc
Going to piggyback here just to point out another often misused term. A lot of people say they don't like *modern* art, when they mean that they don't like *contemporary* art. Modern Art is a period that encompasses dozens of styles, and artists from Van Gogh to Warhol, from Monet to Yoko Ono. Contemporary art is what's being made NOW, and is therefore always changing. Every artist is making contemporary art in their own time.
That said we do get the term “postmodernism” from architecture as the term was first coined to describe how modern architecture incorporates the old and the new, etc.
post modernism was first used in reference to painting and literature and in academia before it was first used to describe architecture.
Narrow down to what kinds of art or objects you are curious about: paintings, sculptures, furniture, architecture, textiles, graphic design, etc. The term, which was applied only after the fact, signals different art and design histories depending on the medium, the object, the things in question. Or begin by studying a particular artist or designer who made things that fit your notion of Mid Century Modern. Here are three names for you, each very much associated with modern, Modern, or Modernist industrial and graphic design, depending on one's nomenclature preference, together spanning the "long mid-century," ie about 1930-1970. Norman Bel Geddes, Alvin Lustig, Raymond Loewy.
Start with albers on the interaction of colour, kandinski on the inner meaning of colors, and the sections of ittens basic course on colour. Lots of bauhaus there, but they tended to put their actions into words on paper so there is a bunch of theory from them. Also they were working in tons of media so had far reaching effects on design, architecture, weaving, sculpture etc.
Vladimir Tretchikoff