Summary
80 years after independence, America was gripped by Civil War between the South where African slaves were worked in the cotton and tobacco fields and the North who looked to end this slavery. The country was split in two with bloody battles until 700,000 lay dead. The South was destroyed and would take years to rebuild and overcome the resentment that divided the country.
The country turned to the immense lands of the West as settlers formed wagon trails over endless plains and rugged mountains. People were swept up with the beauty of the interior and with the romance of new territories, but lands that had been occupied by millions of native Indians for millenia, but who suffered to the point of extinction.
The bravery of the ‘cowboy’ was to enter the imagination as he overcame the odds and the West was ‘won’.
The world was opening up with influences shared between Europe and America and the new art of Impressionism was brought to America. Women began to gain greater recognition, with female artists achieving success in the capital of art - Paris. But their opportunities were still limited to domestic scenes or portraits of other women.
After the First World War, the economy boomed, but then overheated as consumers and companies over-borrowed and money became tight. A European collapse heaped further pain as consumers reined in their spending, hitting production and jobs. Unemployment soared, farming collapsed, banks collapsed and the stockmarket collapsed. The Great Depression had arrived and people formed bread lines for food, until the ‘New Deal’ brought an injection of government monies to rebuild the infrastructure and the economy.
A new optimism came through in movies and magazines as America struggled to recover and find a sense of unity and national identity. A new picture of America emerged of a strong and vibrant country, encouraging a confidence for consumers and to the rest of the world. A shared culture emerged that would drive America through the Second World War and onwards.
America’s art responded through the media, appealing directly to the people.
America emerged from the Second World War with her industries intact and a post-war boom arrived. With a confidence in the country’s power and moral standing, people relished new expressions and ‘pop-art’ emerged that used everyday products in an art directly recognisable by the people. America was truly a consumer society.
Sources of information
A BBC series ‘Civilisation’, provides a history of art and society from the middle ages to the present day, over 13 episodes