Hans Hofmann's Art Theory

The topic of my thesis is an analysis of Hans Hofmann's theoretical writings,especially about his attitude toward "nature".Through some significant available material on and by Hans Hofmann,I have endeavored to analyze and rethink his theories which are often quoted but seldom understood.The Introduction describes the purpose of the thesis,states the research status,and makes a brief analysis of the theoretical writings by Hans Hofmann.Chapter One "Nature: a Beginning of the Story" explore the sources of "nature" and investigate the nature-based seeing methods in Hofmann's art theory.The first section,"Sunset" summarizes the rise and fall of reproducibility in the nature-based art since the Renaissance,especially the destructively impact of modern art on the representative art.The second section "Du D?me" examines Hofmann's early years of artistic theory intake experience,including the study experience in his youth,the travel experience in Café du D?me where he got a close contact with modern artists,and early teaching experience which may become the source of his later theory.The next section "reality" explores Hofmann's cognitive style,showing the whole course of seeing from thing-in-itself to appearance to effect to visual perception to artist in Hofmann's theory.Chapter Two "Transformation: a Reentrance of the Nature" explains the role of "Transformation" in Hofmann's theoretical system,combining relevant factors such as experience and emotion.And I hold the view that the final outcome of transformation is a combination interfered simultaneously by "visual factors from nature" and "non-visual experimental factors from nature".The first section "Nature into Artist" discuss the means of turning the nature into artist.The second section "Transformation by Artist" analyzes the definition of transformation in Hofmann's art theory.The next section "the Empirical Sources of Transformation" explores the influence from the non-visual experimental factors on artist itself and the process of the transformation.The last section "the Pathway from Nature toward Media" sums up Hofmann's theory about how nature could be transformed into medium.Chapter Three "Media: a Limitation for the Creativity" examines the history of discussion about whither an art form could be transformed into another,at the same time draws Hofmann's viewpoint: one specific media can only have one specific art form.The first section "Laoco?n" examines the discussion of this topic in Lessing and Goethe's writing.The second section "Wassily Kandinsky" examines Kandinsky's exploration toward the interchangeability between painting and music.The third section “Newer Laoco?n" introduces Clement Greenberg's discussion of media issues in his article "Towards a Newer Laoco?n".The Forth section "the Limitation of two-dimensional media" examines Hofmann's writings on media,clarifies the limitations of media.Chapter Four "Space: an Assumption as the Truth" considers the spatiality of two-dimensional media in Hofmann's writings as a nature-experience-based assumption,under which a very complete theoretical and practical exploration is carried out.The first section "Stealthy Assumption” elaborates on the whole process of Hofmann's unconsciousness in generating the judgment that "Plane has the spatiality",and explores the influence of this hypothesis on the exploration of subsequent theories by Hofmann.Section II "Spatial Cognition" examines Hofmann's spatial cognition and its results,including his understanding of movement,tension and so on.The third section "Dimension Transformation" examines the whole process of Hofmann's seeing and plastic creativity through a viewpoint of the intertransformation from 2D to 3D to 2D on his spatial cognition and expression.The section IV "Push and Pull" examines Hofmann's most important principle of spatial expression "Push and Pull" and analyzes its application in specific works.Chapter Five "Monumentality: a Method toward the Real" investigates the ultimate goal in Hofmann's art,namely the "Real",and examines the effect and limitation of nature factors on searching for this goal.The first section "Real",the second section "Monumentality" and the next section "Plasticity and Pictorial Life" discuss the denotation of these four concepts and the roles they play in Hofmann's searching for the real on visual art,respectively.The forth section “Fisherman at Sunset" summarizes the overall value of the nature factors on the path toward Real and discusses the significance of protecting nature on artistic creation for Hans Hofmann.The Conclusion reviews Hofmann's art theory,discussing the status of nature in Hofmann's art system and the value of Hofmann's art theory in the development of art history.