Cubism
Cubism emerged in Paris as Pablo Picasso and Georges Braque broke objects and figures into angular planes, compressed space, and shifting viewpoints.
Painting Movement
Precisionism
Precisionism emerged in the United States around 1920, using crisp geometric forms and smooth surfaces to depict factories, buildings, and everyday objects.
Precisionism quick facts
Its artists combined modernist geometry with recognizable American subjects, turning factories, grain elevators, skyscrapers, and rural buildings into ordered compositions.
| Origin | United States |
|---|---|
| Approximate period | Late 1910s–1930s, especially the 1920s |
| Movement structure | A retrospectively recognized American modernist tendency, not a single organized group with a manifesto |
| Alternative labels | Sometimes described as a hard-edged or machine-age style; these descriptions are not separate formal movement names |
| Defining characteristics | Clear edges, simplified volumes, smooth paint handling, strong geometric organization, and limited incidental detail |
| Common subjects | Industrial plants, grain silos, bridges, city architecture, barns, and ordinary domestic objects |
| Representative painters | Charles Sheeler, Charles Demuth, Elsie Driggs, and Ralston Crawford |
| European influences | Adapted aspects of Cubism, Purism, and Futurism to recognizable American subjects |
| Relationship to photography | Photographic cropping, sharply focused images, and unusual viewpoints influenced several artists; Sheeler also worked as a photographer |
| Historical context | American industrial expansion and changing urban landscapes in the decades after World War I |
| Paint medium | Oil paint and watercolor or gouache in individual artists' work |
| Painting surfaces | Canvas, board, and paper, depending on the work |
Sources: The Met: Precisionism, Whitney: Charles Sheeler, and Whitney: Elsie Driggs.
Famous Precisionist painters
Sheeler studied industrial forms and architectural interiors, Demuth gave grain elevators monumental presence, and Driggs painted steel mills in austere geometric shapes.
| Painter | Known for | Representative painting |
|---|---|---|
| Charles Sheeler | Precisely arranged factory buildings, machinery, and American interiors | River Rouge Plant (1932) |
| Charles Demuth | Sharp architectural planes and industrial landmarks | My Egypt (1927) |
| Elsie Driggs | Industrial forms rendered with quiet, sometimes ominous clarity | Pittsburgh (1927) |
Sources: Whitney: Sheeler and River Rouge Plant, Whitney: Demuth's My Egypt, and Whitney: Driggs's Pittsburgh.
Related painting movements
Precisionism borrowed geometry from European modernism while retaining recognizable subjects, particularly the architecture and industry of the United States.
Futurism
Futurism emerged in Italy in 1909, with painters breaking forms into repeated shapes and diagonal lines to convey speed, motion, and modern technology.
Realism
Realism emerged in nineteenth-century France as painters depicted ordinary people, rural labor, and contemporary life without idealization or heroic subjects.