anti-figurativism
|an-ti-fig-u-ra-tiv-ism|
🇺🇸
/ˌæn.tiˌfɪɡ.jəˈreɪ.tɪ.vɪzəm/
🇬🇧
/ˌæn.tiˌfɪɡəˈreɪ.tɪ.vɪzəm/
opposition to figurative art
Etymology
'anti-figurativism' originates from modern English, combining the prefix 'anti-' (from Greek 'anti' meaning 'against') with 'figurativism' (derived from 'figurative' + '-ism').
'figurative' traces back through Middle English and Old French 'figure' to Latin 'figura' meaning 'form' or 'shape'; 'figurativism' is an English noun formed from 'figurative' + the suffix '-ism', and 'anti-' was prefixed in art-critical usage in the 20th century to create 'anti-figurativism'.
Initially this compound simply signified opposition to figurative art; over time it has been used both descriptively (to label movements) and polemically (to criticize or defend a practice), but its core sense—opposition to figurative representation—has remained.
Meanings by Part of Speech
Noun 1
a stance or tendency in art and criticism that opposes figurativism and favors non-figurative, abstract, or non-representational approaches.
The movement was described as anti-figurativism, prioritizing color fields and form over portraiture and narrative.
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Noun 2
an art-historical label for movements or tendencies (often 20th century onward) that deliberately reject depiction of recognizable subjects in favor of formal, conceptual, or material concerns.
Critics framed several exhibitions in the 1950s as instances of anti-figurativism within postwar modernism.
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Last updated: 2025/11/20 16:58