What is the Contemporary?

There are many official definitions for the word “contemporary”—the Oxford English Dictionary lists four in total. In the context of the art world, “contemporary art” is the art of today. That is, contemporary art implies the “presence of the present.”1 That is, art that is being made, displayed, and interpreted in the time that we currently live in. This also implies the presence of change, of moving and looking forward as we go through “today”. Artists, art, and the society they live in continuously shifts. Most art historians agree that the classification of contemporary art falls within the period after the global events of 1989 and on—after major world events like the reunification of Germany and the fall of the Soviet Union after the Cold War.2 As history has shown, major moments of change can become major pillars in the art world in the immediately following years, like the massively influential art that came out of the post-World War II world. Contemporary art museums and galleries have been and continue to be a vital conduit for art and artists to grow and for them to convey their messages about the society we live in today from multiple perspectives. These institutions not only display and promote art that is happening in the presence of the present, but also remind us of the artists that started the movements that are so influential to us today. This essay analyzes two famously contemporary art museums and how they not only promote the artists and societal values of today, but also continue to celebrate artists who paved the way.

It is also important to note the difference between contemporary art and modern art. Contemporary art breaks away from the notions of modern art in several ways. One is chronological; modern art is generally agreed to be art created from the end of the nineteenth century until shortly after WWII.3 Furthermore, modern art illustrated the artists need to explore more of themselves through the creation of new art forms and movements. In contrast, contemporary art has an inclination towards subjects that derive from societal issues, as mentioned previously. This includes, and is not limited to, themes of social justice, decolonization, the rights of minority groups (BLM, feminism, LGBTQ+ rights) and so on. Additionally, some artists prefer to experiment with techniques and mediums that are outside the norm and break the mold for traditional modes of art like painting and sculpture. This can be seen through the use of dance performance, spoken word, and craftwork.

Currently, the Guggenheim Museum in New York City is hosting a retrospective exhibition of revered American artist Alex Katz titled “Alex Katz: Gathering”, covering his impressively expansive eight-decade long career.4 The exhibition takes up the forward-facing rotunda of the museum and shows the evolution of Katz’s artistry over the years. His subjects vary from portraitures to landscape, and is most recognizable through his bold use of bright colors, distinct lines and shapes, and the characterizations of the many people he depicts. The exhibit is set up in a way where the bottom of the rotunda displays some of his earliest works, and as visitors make their way up the rotunda, they are able to see the ways in which Katz was inspired to morph his techniques and subject matter. Katz continues to paint to this day, and some of his most recent work made this year shows his mastery of painting and manipulation of color.

The Guggenheim is a staple in the contemporary art community. Its foundation came the collections of socialite couple Solomon and Peggy Guggenheim, whose interest in the exploding abstract expressionism movement at the time helped bring to light some trailblazing names in modern art like Jackson Pollack, Wassily Kandinsky, and Mark Rothko.5 The museum has hosted a great variety of exhibitions, from retrospectives to their permanent collections that features the likes of Picasso, Manet, and Rodin, to more modern artists and their various mediums. The building itself has this everlasting feeling of modernity, with its white slated walls, spiraling rotunda, and bright open center space, and the oculus providing natural light to the open area. Besides its outward appearance, the museum has time and again been a host to not only artists defying expectations but also to social justice movements and protests. Just recently in early fall of 2022, there an anonymous group protested to call attention to the violence against women in Iran6.

In hosting this retrospective of Alex Katz, the Guggenheim reminds us of how artists continue to mold themselves and the art they produce depending on the society they live in. Katz’s subject matter is the same for the most part (some would say, even to a fault) but one can see how he conveys the most complex emotions through sometimes the simplest contrast of color. In his paintings from the last five or so years, Katz has made a shift more into the abstract, keeping true to some of his earliest inspirations like light and shadow.

Another prolific museum of contemporary art is The Whitney Museum of American Art, located on the opposite side of Manhattan from the Guggenheim. Like the Guggenheim, the Whitney is no stranger to contemporary notions of art and artists, and though they draw much criticism through some of their questionable decisions, they still manage to spark important discourse and grow from their missteps. Recently relocated and renovated in the last five or so years, the Whitney is another space that gives off the feel of modernity; laced with eco-friendly windows, greenhouse-topped roofs and open balconies, along with so many other modern eco-friendly furnishings that they were granted a LEED Gold certification from the US Green Building Council7.

Presently, the Whitney is hosting a retrospective for another prolific artist from New York, Edward Hopper titled “Edward Hopper’s New York.” Having a vast number of Hopper’s work already in their collection (the museum took possession of Hopper’s studio after his death), the museum presents over two hundred pieces of Hopper’s works against their typical cubic white walls that line high exposed ceilings.8 The exhibition takes up an entire floor and includes not only his paintings but some of his sketches as well, revealing a more intimate look at the artists’ thought process and inner workings. Despite the plain backdrop, the paintings on display seem to be lively still. Like Katz, Hopper found his niche while he explored his love for New York City, and it becomes even more obvious when moving throughout the sprawling exhibition. The New York that Hopper explores is not the typical portrait of the Empire State Building and Statue of Liberty; there are no quickly recognizable landmarks that point out his setting as exclusively New York. Instead, there are corner stores, diners, empty streets, rooftops, people simply living in the time that he lived in that express the true grit of the city that is often overlooked. It’s almost as if Hopper has stripped away his surroundings down to the very essence of the New York he saw.

Hopper’s work is presented as being in his time; that is, the society he lived in, the New York of the early and mid-20th century. There is a blurred line between the private and public space that makes one feel as if they are witnessing the spaces in the moment. In many cases, his paintings are so geometric and simple that it seems almost arbitrary. What makes him such a great artist is the lack of space; there’s much room for the viewer to insert themselves or others into how they view his work. In presenting his work, with the floor to ceiling windows surrounding many of the displayed work, the Whitney presents a contrast between the past and the present, showing us how much and yet how little has changed.

Both the Guggenheim and the Whitney do a great job of presenting two fantastic and important artists, their methodology, messages, and muses. It is important to also note that both museums very recently held other exhibitions that put the meaning of “contemporary” art to use; the Whitney is still hosting their Biennial until the beginning of next year that includes, which includes a plethora of artists from different backgrounds and different parts of the world. Prior to the Alex Katz exhibition, the Guggenheim had several other retrospective exhibitions from artists like Eva Hesse, Gillian Weaving, Etel Adan, and Vasily Kandinsky. Both museums also offer comprehensive lectures and classes about their current exhibitions as well as about issues in the art history and the art world today. Notably, the Guggenheim does charge a fee for most classes, almost every class hosted by the Whitney is open to the public for free. All in all, viewers of both exhibits are still presented with the presence of right now; whether it be by direct observation in Katz’s current work, or by direct comparison in Hopper’s work.