The art movement that contributed more to abstract art was Expressionism. Although the term Abstract Expressionism was used during the 1920s, it wasn’t until the 1940s and 1950s that it truly matured into a robust art movement. There were many artist that made their mark in the movement, such greats as: Willem de Kooning; Arshile Gorky; William Baziotes; Adolph Gotlieb; Phillip Guson; Mark Rothco and more, and, of course, Jackson Pollock.

Expressionism, as a movement, featured strong color, abstraction, and distortion. Wassily Kandinsky was credited for painting the first pure abstract painting. The movement had its highpoint from 1905 to 1920. Others in the movement, to mention a few, were Franz Mark, Max Beckman, George Gros, and Otto Muller.

The study of the Expressionists and Abstract Expressionists and their works have become very important for all artists. Many artists use the technique and styles of the great artists when painting realistic as well as abstract art. When I first saw my brothers painting, Parrots (right), I first thought it was an abstract work until I took a second look. Oddly, the great painter, Andrew Wyeth, mentioned in one of his books that he considered himself an Abstract artist, not a realist.

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