Appropriation—the strategy of selective borrowing—is a common theme in the history of modern art.
1980–today
Beginner's guide
Many of the artists now known as the “Pictures Generation” were so named mainly because of their inclusion in the 1977 exhibition “Pictures” at Artists Space in New York City.
All content
Yee I-Lann, Picturing Power #6…
Picturing Power #6 is part of a digital photomontage series made with images sourced from a Dutch colonial archive.
Stan Douglas, Every Building on 100 West Hastings
How do we picture a shifting urban landscape constantly on the verge of disappearing?
Sally Mann, Blowing Bubbles
Sally Mann’s iconic series “Immediate Family” features intimate black-and-white photographs of the artist's children, who eat, sleep, and play in an idyllic Southern landscape.
Annie Leibovitz, Queen Elizabeth II
This picture was taken to commemorate Queen Elizabeth II’s official state visit to the United States in 2007.
Will Wilson interview about The Critical Indigenous Photographic Exchange
An interview with Will Wilson about how his photographs engage with the work of Edward Curtis
Barbara Kruger, Untitled (Your gaze hits the side of my face)
Kruger’s art is characterized by a visual wit sharpened in the trenches of the advertising world.
Carrie Mae Weems, Untitled (Woman Feeding Bird), from The Kitchen Table Series
Weems sets her series around the kitchen table, a metaphor for the intimate spaces of home.
The Pictures Generation
Through manipulation of media, these artists questioned the possibility and the significance of “originality.”
The Case for Copying
Artists don’t just imitate the world around them—they copy each other, reworking old images and revising history.
Alfredo Jaar, A Logo for America
Using the language of advertising, Jaar conveys a political message about who “Americans” really are.
Cindy Sherman, Untitled Film Still #21
Sherman creates a series of film stills starring herself—but there is no film.
Jeff Wall, A View from an Apartment
At first glance this may seem to be an uncomposed snapshot of modern life. Think again.
Browse Smarthistory images for teaching & learning!