Pattern and decoration movement: A cultural revolt against the Western hierarchy in art

Abstract

The aesthetics of modern art that came with modernism in Western culture is based on the idea that art should move away from classical measures and traditional concepts. In general, modern art has emphasized that art should be purified from folk, life and functional practices related to life, as well as representation. The idea of purity and universality, which the West nurtured within the scope of modernism, has turned into an imperialist passion over time, and its reflection in art has been a kind of cultural imperialism. Naturally, the separation of art, which is defined through Western aesthetics, from folk, life and craft has also evoked its separation from non-Western aesthetics, non-Western cultures, and traditional and decorative elements specific to these cultures. The distinctions defended by modernism for the sake of the ideals of purity and universality were met with skepticism, especially in the postmodern era. During this period, many approaches emerged that reacted to the taboos and cultural diffusionism of modernism. The Pattern and Decoration movement, which has the characteristic structure of postmodern thought, has been a typical example of revolt against the Western hierarchy. In this research, it is aimed to shed light on the Pattern and Decoration movement, which is perceived as a cultural resistance against the distinctions imposed by the Western hierarchy. As a research method, document analysis was used within the scope of data collection technique and descriptive analysis was used within the scope of data analysis technique. The subject was supported by the artworks of artists representing the Pattern and Decoration movement. In the light of the data obtained in the research, it has been determined that the Pattern and Decoration movement, which focuses on the cultural, racial, social and class distinctions that came with modernism, is an approach to questioning the Western hierarchy. It has been revealed that the artists of the movement resisted the ethnocentric attitudes of the West and Western aesthetics through cultural diversity. At the same time, it was pointed out that the artists sensitively touched on the problem of identity, and concept of the other, which can be read with Western aesthetic hierarchies. It has been determined that the movement, which emphasizes the importance of cultural diversity and social differences in art, and the inseparability of art and life, generally references non-Western cultures and the aesthetics of these cultures. It has been determined that the patterns and decorative elements unique to non Western cultures and the arts of these cultures provided a suitable media for artists to examine all the rejections of the Western aesthetics. Attention was drawn to the difficult nature of the struggle of the Pattern and Decoration movement, which is celebrated as one of the first postmodern examples of resistance to Western aesthetic hierarchies.