Abstract
This essay examines ideas expressed in "An Essay Concerning Human Understanding" by John Locke, specifically his theories on abstract ideas. The essay explores the explicit language of Locke to discover the deeper, more significant meanings. The essay also describes Locke's main theory as stating that all ideas form a greater, more complex abstract idea and that this theory stems from the basic principle that it takes words to form an idea, and multiple ideas to form an abstract idea.

From the Paper
"To begin with, Locke is making the finite assumption that "general natures are nothing but abstract ideas." With this statement he is clearly defining his proposal for ideas overall. His wording is complex but his issue is that of simplicity, really. Locke is saying that all ideas are simply part of a greater, more grander idea, that is yet to be expounded upon. He is truly citing the chicken and the egg theory, here."

Tags:philosophy, philosophy of abstract ideas, complex abstract idea, critical philosophy

Abstract
The paper relates that abstract art can trace its origin to the later part of the 19th century when artists began to move away from simply imitating the physical world and they began to use only color, shape and form to explore new artistic expressions. Hence, the paper notes that modern abstract art can be called non-representational and non-objective. The paper looks at one of the most important movements of modern abstract art which was the De Stijl group in the Netherlands, which began in 1917.

From the Paper
"Abstract art can trace its origin to the later part of the 19th century when artists began to move away from simply imitating the physical world. Cubist and futurist paintings for example "represent highly abstracted interpretations of the material world" (Arnason, 217). The abstract painters began to use only color, shape and form to explore new artistic expressions. Hence, modern abstract art can be called non-representational and non-objective. One of the most important movements in the development of modern abstract art was the De Stijl group in the Netherlands, which began in 1917. The group wanted to create "the art `for clarity, for..."

Tags:abstract art, art, mondrian

Abstract
This paper discusses two of the leading abstract artists in America in the Twentieth Century, Georgia O'Keeffe and Ronnie Landfield. This paper takes into consideration their subjects, styles, and how they differ, with O'Keeffe beginning work as a more realistic painter until various influences pushed her more toward abstract art, though even then she tended to mix her styles and to paint her abstractions in a concrete and rather realistic manner, and with the leading figure in what is known as Lyrical Abstraction.

From the Paper
"His compositions, executed in the gentle vibrancy of stain painting, are stylization of landscapes. Yet, in no real sense is there a dependence on observation from nature. His landscapes present no identifying details, they are not individualized by topographical details and cannot be located in the world . They are generically landscapes, landscapes only by principles of composition and according to the interpretive reflex by which we necessarily read any horizontal division as a horizon line (Cohen para. 7)."

Tags:abstract, o'keeffe, landfield

Abstract
This paper discusses the life of Jackson Pollock, (1912-1956) who is one of the central figures in the development of the strictly American art movement called Abstract Expressionism. Included are biographical information, description of major works, quotes from Pollock and his critics describing his innovative drip painting style, a brief description of the major motion picture made of his life, and an "art inventory," or comprehensive analysis of the 1953 painting called "Easter and the Totem".

From the Paper
"American painter, Jackson Pollock, born in Cody, Wyoming in 1912, was a troubled genius who became known as a quintessential abstract expressionist in the art world of the twentieth century. Pollock, a freedom seeking rebel, was instrumental is the development of the distinctly American abstract expressionist movement in the United States. He became notorious for his drip painting methods and his huge canvases layered with paint and embedded objects. Pollock, known for his emotional volatility and heavy drinking, seen as a phony by some, and a hero by others, used his innovative, individualistic and uninhibited style to birth a new artistic genre in post World War II America."

Tags:abstract, art, easter, expressionsim, totem

Abstract
The paper attempts to illustrate how ideas and conceptions of abstract art have changed and developed since the early years of the twentieth century. The paper compares two modern abstract artists, Frank Stella and Robert Pepperell, with more traditional views of abstract art, such as those of Wassily Kandinsky. The paper shows how contemporary abstract artists still adhere to the formal and stylistic tenets of early abstraction but without the idealism that had initiated the abstract art movement.

Outline:
Introduction
Brief Overview of Abstract Art
Modern Abstract Artists: Frank Stella and Robert Pepperell
Conclusion

From the Paper
"Abstract art is commonly defined as, "art that does not depict objects in the natural world, but instead uses color and form in a non representational way." (NationMaster Encyclopedia: Abstract art). This definition does not deal with all the issues surrounding the meaning and understanding of abstract art and there is a great deal of dissension and argument among critics and art theorists about the nature and meaning of the term 'abstract'. However, the general view is that abstract art is essentially non-representational and non-objective. It is also seen from an artistic viewpoint as an attempt to provide an understanding of the world and reality that cannot be obtained by the methods and techniques of representation."

Tags:style, technique, idealism, expressionism, perception

Abstract
A look at the impact of world wars on abstract expressionism, a genre of art. The author examines what paintings under this genre represent and how they come to play significant roles in the expression of historical events.
Table of Contents

I. Introduction

A. Brief definition of abstract expressionism

B. Examples of other relationships between artistic movements and political happenings

1. Romantic movement

2. Vietnam

C. Brief description of the effects of World War

1. effects on the U.S. economy/politics

2. effects on the people

D. Thesis as to the relationship of World War II and the rise of Abstract Expressionism

1. Three major influences

a. immigration of European artists, writers, intellectuals, scientists

b. the Surrealist movement

c. ancient influences (art)

II. Body

A. Before World War II

1. Depression

2. Thirty Years War

3. World War I

B. Historical Roots

1. the 1930s

a. political happenings/economy

b. art & the relationship between the two

2. late 1930s early 1940s

a. political happenings/economy

b. art & the relationship between the two

C. Intellectual Roots

1. Themes of Abstract Expressionism

a. the return to origins

b. the human continuum

c. conflict and the dualistic pattern of human life

d. opportunities/new beginnings

2. Heritage (Ancient influences)

3. Nature

4. the subconscious

D. Artists

1. Gesture

a. style

b. specific artists

2. Color Field

a. style

b. specific artists

3. In-between

a. style

b. specific artists

III. Conclusion

A. The evolution of art starting from the period of the 1930s (WWI, Depression, etc.) to

after World War II

1. Content

2. Purpose

3. Style

B. How World War II molded Abstract Expressionism and how the artists drew from World War II

1. the people's responses to the war

2. united aspects of the art that showed a general feeling towards WWII

C. How, by the rising of Abstract Expressionism, modern art was affected, and how it

changed the way that people expressed their sentiments

From the Paper
"At first, there was an initial resistance to Abstract Expressionism, but by the 1950s it was recognized as the dominant force in American painting, encouraged by the government while being considered a symbol of American cultural freedom.For the first time ever, American art received widespread and serious attention in Europe. Abstract Expressionism can hardly be characterized as a single movement due to the diversity of the art it encompasses. Despite this variety, Abstract Expressionist paintings share several broad characteristics they are basically abstract, emphasizing free, spontaneous, and personal emotional expression, and they exercise considerable freedom of technique in order to attain this goal. The artists of this period manipulate the physical variables of the paint in order to convey expressive qualities, often on large canvases to give the visual effects an engrossing power. Abstract Expressionist artists can be divided into three categories based on style - gesture painting, such as done by Jackson Pollock, color field painting as done by Mark Rothko, or an in-between style as done by Robert Motherwell."

Tags:art, history, movements, paper, term

Abstract
The paper describes the works and life of Piet Mondrian, the Dutch abstract painter. The paper traces the development of Mandarin's style from the beginning of the 20th century until the 1940s. The paper also shows how Mondrian was one of the pioneers of geometric abstract art.

From the Paper
"Abstract art can trace its origin to the later part of the 19th century when artists began to move away from simply imitating the physical world. Cubist and futurist paintings for example "represent highly abstracted interpretations of the material world" (Arnason, 217). The abstract painters began to use only color, shape and form to explore new artistic expressions. Hence modern abstract art can be called non-representational and non-objective. One of the most important movements in the development of modern abstract art was the De Stijl group in the Netherlands, which began in 1917. The group wanted to create "the art 'for clarity, for certainty, and for order" (Arnason, 231)."

Tags:color, shape, painting, representation, Cubism

Abstract
The paper explains how abstract expressionism emphasized the basic character of a person or object while having little visual reference to the real world or to nature. The paper discusses some of the artists associated with abstract expressionism that include Jackson Pollack, Willem de Kooning, Franz Kline and Mark Rothko.

From the Paper
"According to Paul Stella of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, abstract expressionism was created in the early 1940's in New York City by a small group of artists who devised "a stylistically diverse body of work that introduced radical new directions in art. Some of the artists associated with abstract expressionism include Jackson Pollack (1912-1956), Willem de Kooning (1904-1997), Franz Kline (1910-1962) and Mark Rothko (1903-1970), all of whom advanced "audacious formal inventions in a search for content" via new techniques and subject matter. Overall, the works of art that currently define abstract expressionism stand as reflections of these artist's individual psyches and their attempts to "tap into universal inner sources," meaning that abstract expressionists relied heavily on the collective unconscious in the form of archetypes that express man's most primitive and at times violent emotions ("Abstract Expressionism," Internet)."

Tags:human, figure, reality, modern, paintings, materials, canvas

Abstract
This paper examines how Plato's "Theory of Forms" and the "Allegory of the Cave" describe how abstract knowledge is achieved and to some extent clarify its nature. It also looks at how the Philosopher King or Guardian as the ruler of the state is considered to be able to act justly in possessing this knowledge. The limitations of both the concept of the philosopher king and the broader idea of abstract knowledge as a mechanism for justice are evaluated and conclusions are drawn.

From the Paper
"In the republic, the divided line shows the relation between opinion and knowledge. Knowledge and opinion are the difference between the two forms of reality that Plato asserts exist. Opinion will be either perception/belief or conjecture/imagining and knowledge will be reason or understanding . Plato asserts that the two 'higher' forms of reason and understanding are supreme over everything in the intelligible world and the visible world. What humans see (in the intelligible and visible world) is their interpretation of a 'higher' form which is the essence of the object or concept under consideration. So what humans see are therefore merely shadows, images and reflections of this."

Tags:allegory, cave, guardian, theory, forms

Abstract
This paper explains that Jack Turner?s ?The Abstract Wild?, eight provocatively written essays, reviews the ways in which the wilderness has been interceded, micromanaged and, in effect, nearly taken out of existence. The author points out that Turner feels humans need to spend time with the wilderness because the actual time they have spent with this very wilderness is rare; therefore, they do not know how to preserve the wilderness. This paper relates that Jack Turner, in ?The Abstract Wild?, defines wild as being natural; anything and everything, which stands in its natural form and away from development, is wild.

From the Paper
"This throwing of the spotlight on the wild and his related experience sieved out the special emotions he had once felt being created within him. It is here that Jack Turner has made his point, which deals with the effect of publicity on wilderness. From this story, one conclusion regarding his theory can be drawn. Had he not been involved in revealing his bond and connection either through pictures or through conversations, he would have encountered the equally intense or similar emotions inside him on his second visit."

Tags:publicity, essay, micromanage, natural, experience