Abstract

The emergence of Abstract Expressionism as a predominant artistic style in the early 1950s was accompanied by a new critical image of the artist as a heroic individualist. This myth, according to which the artist created great works primarily by looking into the profound depths of his own soul rather than by responding to the world and society around him, has become the standard description of the Abstract-Expressionist artistic process. By such an account, the Abstract-Expressionist artist was an apolitical being, unconcerned with the conflicts in society due to his overriding concern with the explorations of the self.

This treatment of Abstract Expressionism began with the writing of two critics, Clement Greenberg and Harold Rosenberg.