After Ways of Seeing, watch Robert Hughes' Shock of the New

Andrea James 3:59 am Mon Jan 9, 2017

In the Ways of Seeing post, commenter Frederick_Hagemeiste suggested the 1980 series Shock of the New. The first episode makes a compelling case that engineering had a vast influence on 20th century art.

From the producer's commentary:

The first episode shows how the development of technology influenced art between 1880 and end of WWI. Hughes discusses Cubism, a movement started by Pablo Picasso and developed by Georges Braque, in which multiple viewpoints of a subject were compressed into a single view. Hughes details how African carvings and Spanish culture had a key influence on works such as Picasso's Demoiselles D'Avignon.

Also available in book form:

Here's the playlist.

• Mechanical Paradise (YouTube / WantedRobot)

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