Postmodern Art

Postmodern art describes art that either reacts to or rejects the trends created by modern art. It arose as part of the postmodern movement in the late 20th century. This art movement was one of the first sources of the question: “What constitutes art?”
The “trends” it rejects refer to artistic direction such as purity of form or technique. One of the main goals of postmodern art is to erase the boundaries between art, popular culture, and the media. It also accepts diversity when it comes to art, which greatly expands what was once considered to be the standard definition of art. Postmodernists also reject the idea of high and low art. They also tend to ignore genre boundaries, which encourages a mixing of ideas, medias, and forms. Three common themes of postmodern art are parody, humor, and irony.
How did postmodernism begin? By the mid-1960’s, people had suffered some bad experiences, (such as the Holocaust, the Cuban Missile Crisis, the Vietnam War, etc.) There was a widespread disillusionment with life and values began to change. Things like authority and expertise were being discredited. Some artists began to think that life (and art) had no intrinsic meaning. The new focus of these artists became nonsense and the notion of simply making their art interesting. The emergence of new image-based technologies also affected postmodern artists.
There are many smaller movements of postmodernism. The examples I have posted showcase conceptual art ( Fountain by Duchamp) and installation art (Embankment by Rachel Whitread.)