Primitivism and Modern Art

A fascination with the "primitive" lies at the heart of some of the most influential developments in Western art produced between 1890 and 1950 - a time that witnessed both the "heroic" period of modern art and the apogee and decline of the West's colonial power. Many groups have a times been labeled as primitive, including the so-called tribal peoples from Africa, Oceania and North America, but also prehistoric cultures, European peasants, the insane and children. Through the lens of their own society, many modern artists looked both to the art and to the world-view of the primitive as a means of challenging established beliefs, but the primitive to which they turned was as varied as the movements in modern art of which they were a part. Colin Rhodes breaks new ground, drawing on a wide and diverse range of material, from high art to popular entertainment, from Darwin to Freud; the critical overview he presents supersedes all previous studies on the subject. 179 illus., 28 in color.

Colin Rhodes is a writer, artist, and educator. He has written and lectured widely on modern and contemporary art, and is a specialist on expressionism, primitivism, and outsider art. He is the author of Primitivism and Modern Art, Outsider Art: Spontaneous Alternatives, and The World According to Roger Ballen, all published by Thames & Hudson. He has worked in universities in the UK and Australia and is currently distinguished professor, Xiaoxiang Scholar, and Yangtze River Scholar in the Fine Arts Academy, Hunan Normal University, China.