Broken Myths: Charles Sheeler's Industrial Landscapes

by Andrea Diederichs

Overview

Precisionism is generally regarded as an artistic style that does not indulge in social or political themes, being committed instead to aestheticism. Addressing the role of human beings under increased automation and mechanization, Andrea Diederichs includes the social dimension of the machine age in her investigations. In this way, she undertakes a fundamental revision of the prevailing, one-dimensional reading of Precisionism. It becomes clear that Charles Sheeler’s, George Ault’s or Niles Spencer’s industrial subjects are characterized by ambivalence and ideology-critical tendencies relating to the new conditions of labor under the dictates of the machine, and document the resultant physical and psychological consequences.

• Re-evaluation of the work of Charles Sheeler and his contemporaries
• First investigation into the industrial depictions of Precisionism in an industrialpsychological context

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9783110769456
Publisher:	De Gruyter
Publication date:	01/11/2023
Series:	ISSN
Pages:	328
Product dimensions:	6.69(w) x 9.45(h) x (d)
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

Andrea Diederichs forscht zu amerikanischer Kunst und Kunsttheorie seit 1800 sowie zur Bild- und Wissensgeschichte der Ökologie.

Andrea Diederichs researches on American art and art theory since 1800, as well as the ecological history of images and science

Editorial Reviews

"[...] Diederichs [...] proposes in this compelling exegesis that these artworks "bear witness to [both] the achievements and ambiguities of progress"." (Dr. Leslie Jones in: http://www.quarterly-review.org/broken-myths-broken-landscapes/, 14.02.2023)

From the Publisher