American Arts & Music
A short analysis of the arts and music of the United States.
The arts of the United States are as diverse as its people. Changing technologies and a cultural emphasis on individual expression have encouraged the birth of new art forms and ideas. American art has both influenced and been influenced by a variety of global cultures. Its immigrant history and mass media have allowed the spread, adoption, and modification of local customs into shared, broader art forms.
Indigenous Arts of the United States
The region now known as the United States is home to a much older collection of artistic traditions formed by its indigenous people. Their styles, purpose, and materials all vary, reflecting the hundreds of cultures that once thrived in North America. Most works, but not all, served either a practical or spiritual purpose. Their baskets, blankets, jewelry, pottery, musical instruments, clothing, petroglyphs, woodcarvings, beadwork, and metalwork frequently displayed geometric patterns or natural symbols.
Attitudes toward the indigenous arts of the Americas have changed significantly over time. In many early cases, examples of Native American artwork were collected by anthropological or natural history museums rather than art galleries. This attitude began to change in the 20th century, when regional tribal art styles came to be seen as part of a wider American culture. This has led to a greater market for modern indigenous artists as well as issues of cultural appropriation and misrepresentation. Native American art continues to grow and evolve through new generations of artists.
Visual Arts of the United States
The United States developed its own artistic traditions during the 19th century. Westward expansion and the vast landscapes of North America inspired artists to develop new schools and, with them, a visual national identity. Painters like Thomas Cole, George Inness, Frederic Remington, Winslow Homer, and Thomas Eakins depicted the nation both as it was and as it hoped to be. Meanwhile, sculptors filled public spaces with images of American heroes, often on horseback.
By the 20th century, realist painting had been largely overtaken by the invention of photography. Painters responded by moving into more abstract work, emphasizing symbolism, shape, and color. New York City grew into a global art hub, a center for museums, art galleries, and auction houses. Painters and artists such as Georgia O’Keefe, Norman Rockwell, Andy Warhol, Jackson Pollock, and Mark Rothko, explored many different subjects and styles at this time.
The invention of film and television opened up further avenues for artists of the United States. The film industry in particular proved massively successful, soon spreading to global audiences. The first animated cartoon was completed in France, but the medium reached its golden age in America through animators like Walt Disney. Television, a later invention, made it possible to distribute news, advertisements, and episodic shows into every American home. It has since developed into its own art form, both in cartoon and live-action formats. Video games grew popular in the 1970s with the rise of computers and are now another billion-dollar industry.
Literature of the United States
The United States is also home to a strong literary tradition. Its early writers were primarily occupied with the founding of a nation, including Thomas Jefferson and Thomas Paine. By the 19th century, however, authors began turning to fiction and poetry. Their works tended to focus on the American experience, highlighting regional cultures and the conflicts within them. Herman Melville, Edgar Allan Poe, Washington Irving, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Henry Thoreau, Walt Whitman, Emily Dickinson, and Mark Twain are all still widely read today. The 20th century, particularly after the World Wars, brought a new generation of writers like John Steinbeck, Kurt Vonnegut, Ernest Hemingway, William Faulkner, Ralph Ellison, and Edith Wharton.
Besides its poetry and literary fiction, the United States has also produced literature with themes of fantasy and futurism. Science fiction, a product of the 20th century, expressed both the hopes and anxieties of a society propelled by technology. Comic books evolved from newspaper strips into their own art-form, which has in turn led to multimedia franchises across film and television. Popular fiction now mostly fall into the genres of science fiction, fantasy, and romance.
Music and Dance in the United States
The musical history of the United States is no less notable. Its immigrant populations brought music with them from around the world. In their new neighborhoods, their songs shifted, combined, and split into new traditions. The nation saw the growth of musical genres like the blues, jazz, country, rock, hip hop, metal, pop, punk, and electronica. In the 20th century, the growth of record labels, radio, and television spurred a sudden outpouring of American bands and music. Radio allowed music to be distributed quickly and widely, without needing to purchase a record. It led to an insatiable demand for fresh music. Popular musicians rose to global fame, and the industry remains both lucrative and highly competitive.
Modern Arts of the United States
Today, the United States is home to artists across all media. Some work in professional industries such as advertising, television, music, video games, and graphic design. Others pursue art for its own sake and may or may not profit from their work. Digital arts are perhaps the most common form of expression today. The ability to distribute a finished product to an audience of millions has allowed more people to pursue art, though it has also limited the influence of any one person’s talent. This is less true for industries with a high barrier to entry like film and music.
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References
Fischer, Claude S. Made in America: A Social History of American Culture and Character. University of Chicago Press. 2010.
Grant, Susan-Mary. A Concise History of the United States of America. Cambridge University Press. 2012.
Gray, Richard. A History of American Literature. John Wiley & Sons. 2011.
Koskoff, Ellen. Music Cultures in the United States: An Introduction. Routledge. 2005.
Lampert, Nicolas. A People’s Art History of the United States: 250 Years of Activist Art and Artists Working in Social Justice Movements. The New Press. 2013.
Nies, Judith. Native American History: A Chronology of a Culture's Vast Achievements and Their Links to World Events. Random House Publishing Group. 2012.
Remini, Robert. A Short History of the United States: From the Arrival of Native American Tribes to the Obama Presidency. Harper Collins. 2009.
“The World Factbook: United States.” Central Intelligence Agency, Central Intelligence Agency, 5 Sept. 2018, www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/us.html.
Zinn, Howard. A People's History of the United States: 1492-Present. Routledge. 2015.
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