Subject Matter, Motif, & Narrative in Contemporary Art

artwork by Olga S. Ortiz

The old adage of the ‘how’ remains more important than the ‘what’ in fine arts no longer applies. Subject matter remains incredibly important in contemporary art because history remains filled with rehashed ideas and imagery. As art has become more finely tuned with social consciousness and personal as well as collective identity, artists are now turning to alternative forms of visual substance to express notions of contemporary existence. There are several artists who exemplify using specific subject matter to express ironic dichotomies, witty commentary, and metaphorical allegories which include Olga S. Ortiz, Ignas Maldus, Masha Luch, Peter Horvath, and Joas-Sebastian Nebe. 

artwork by Ignas Maldus

An artist such as Olga S. Ortiz takes the old artform of still life and turns the genre into theatrical performances using hand-made objects and hand-acting simply by changing subject matter and motif with photography. Igna Maldus’ photographs destroyed and dilapidated buildings, structures and ‘paints’ them with colored light. His application with long exposure creates optical illusions as if a new life-glow emanates from these neglected sites. Masha Luch uses printmaking techniques to display texts with the lenticular printing technique which reveal concepts which contradict or compliment the previous statement, the words changing as the viewer passes by. She also creates imagery of figures which are displayed in ironic fashion, such as the visual confusion as to whether a woman is swimming or wearing a skirt upside down. Peter Horvath takes vintage prints of culture icons and celebrities from the 1940’s, 50’s, 60’s, and 70’s and gives them a torn subway poster appearance complete with a thoroughly urban aesthetic. 

artwork by Masha Luch

All of these artists convey and construct a new social narrative through irony, unfamiliar visual aesthetics, theatrical presentation, and conceptual approaches. What exactly separates subject matter, motif, and narrative? Subject matter literally relies on what is being shown or revealed to the audience, while motif characterizes a specific object or imagery which has metaphorical meaning to deeper concepts, and narrative means the artist uses their visual substance to tell a story about a person(s), place, or object. 

artwork by Olga S. Ortiz

One example of turning tired old imagery into refreshingly new content would be an installation photograph titled Alison by Olga S. Ortiz (pictured above). The work takes the old artform of still life and literally turns the subjects into installations. Instead of just portraying a still life of a wine glass or architectural elements, Olga combines the two making the vessel appear gigantic, pours hallucinogenic colors to drip from the glass which metaphorically leads to a miniature television melting in globs of pink and purple paint. Complete with a fern and bright pastel colors, the photograph conveys New Wave aesthetics and communicates the notion of relaxing, sipping on a glass of wine inside an open interior while watching the decadent television melt away before our very eyes. The work communicates so much just by altering the relationships of objects between each other. Had she just set up a still life with a wine glass and other similar objects, the piece would have no distinct meaning from centuries of applied still life art. 

artwork by Ignas Maldus

Subject matter remains incredibly important, by changing the relationships between various objects, characters, and places, the artist can convey new concepts and paths into the meaning of contemporary identity. Today’s world reveals numerous topics to discuss than previous eras. In the age of digitization and globalization, artists can either celebrate or criticize the vast emptiness and over-stimulation of dealing with an abundance of information. Joas-Sebastian Nebe directly confronts the overflow of informational content by creating collages out of old Encyclopedia Britannicas and smearing them with paint. Through his art, Joas expresses his interpretation of information as being subjective, a subject which can be manipulated through the altering and destruction of narratives. 

artwork by Joas-Sebastian Nebe

How the artist communicates concepts remains limited to how they choose the relationships between various subject matter and motifs. There remains only so many ways you can express an oceanscape, a still life of food, or a complete non-objective painting. Non-objective art in today’s world needs to resemble some form of conceptual object, place, or person(s), otherwise there remains nothing to talk or write about besides design elements and aesthetics. The best non-objective art tends to be objective in some form of shape, plane, or mannerism. Contemporary art can no longer be entirely free of subject, as our world remains too complex for just displaying expressions of aesthetic purity. 

artwork by Peter Horvath

Some art newspapers and independent collectors have expressed the over-commercilization of the artworld, with an emphasis on aesthetics and design elements over conceptual approach. They point to familiar subject matter and what they dub as using the word ‘design’ to cover up the description of ‘decorative’. Perhaps interior designers are to blame or some commercial galleries are driving such a trend? The reader may note when visiting almost all art fairs, an over-reliance on painting and few instances of installation, video, fiber, or performance art. By revealing unusual subject matter or taking familiar subjects and altering their relationships with one another, the artist can break the cycle of commercialization in the arts.