Mainstreams of Modern Art
Encyclopedia
Mainstreams of Modern Art: David to Picasso (1959) is a reference book by John Canaday
. It comprehensively covers modern art
from the start of Romanticism
in the 18th century to Cubism
and Abstract art
in the early 20th century. Mainstreams enjoyed wide commercial and critical success, and was awarded the 1959 Athenaeum Literary Award
.
It also contains a ten page appendix "Notes on Modern Architecture", the final five pages of which are devoted to criticism of Frank Lloyd Wright
, whose design Canaday states "have failed disastrously." But in the same sentence, he also praised Wright's buildings as "some of the most beautiful structures of the century bearing his name." This, combined with Canaday's other outspoken views, led a group of artists, collectors, and academics to write a letter to the New York Times in protest.
A revised edition was published shortly before Canaday's death in 1985, and is still required reading at the university level in the United States and worldwide.
John Canaday
John Edwin Canaday was a leading American art critic, author and art historian.-Early life:...
. It comprehensively covers modern art
Modern art
Modern art includes artistic works produced during the period extending roughly from the 1860s to the 1970s, and denotes the style and philosophy of the art produced during that era. The term is usually associated with art in which the traditions of the past have been thrown aside in a spirit of...
from the start of Romanticism
Romanticism
Romanticism was an artistic, literary and intellectual movement that originated in the second half of the 18th century in Europe, and gained strength in reaction to the Industrial Revolution...
in the 18th century to Cubism
Cubism
Cubism was a 20th century avant-garde art movement, pioneered by Pablo Picasso and Georges Braque, that revolutionized European painting and sculpture, and inspired related movements in music, literature and architecture...
and Abstract art
Abstract art
Abstract art uses a visual language of form, color and line to create a composition which may exist with a degree of independence from visual references in the world. Western art had been, from the Renaissance up to the middle of the 19th century, underpinned by the logic of perspective and an...
in the early 20th century. Mainstreams enjoyed wide commercial and critical success, and was awarded the 1959 Athenaeum Literary Award
Athenaeum Literary Award
Athenaeum Literary Award is an American literary award hosted by the Athenaeum of Philadelphia, a special collections library. It is award to authors who are "bona fide residents of Philadelphia or Pennsylvania living within a radius of 30 miles of City Hall". Eligible works are of general fiction...
.
It also contains a ten page appendix "Notes on Modern Architecture", the final five pages of which are devoted to criticism of Frank Lloyd Wright
Frank Lloyd Wright
Frank Lloyd Wright was an American architect, interior designer, writer and educator, who designed more than 1,000 structures and completed 500 works. Wright believed in designing structures which were in harmony with humanity and its environment, a philosophy he called organic architecture...
, whose design Canaday states "have failed disastrously." But in the same sentence, he also praised Wright's buildings as "some of the most beautiful structures of the century bearing his name." This, combined with Canaday's other outspoken views, led a group of artists, collectors, and academics to write a letter to the New York Times in protest.
A revised edition was published shortly before Canaday's death in 1985, and is still required reading at the university level in the United States and worldwide.
Editions
- Canaday, John. Mainstreams of Modern Art. Wadsworth Publishing; 2nd Edition, 1981. ISBN 0-03-057638-5