A weekly excavation by Prismatica
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Week of August 9, 2026 · Engaged Art
Welcome Note
This week's excavation reveals two grossly underrepresented figures in 20th century art, both of whom had direct connections to prominent 20th century avant-gardeists (though to different degrees).
We also look ahead to next Saturday, August 15th, when ENPRI opens its Issue 4 call for submissions! More details on that below.
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Composer of the Week
1970
The Engaged Artist: 1924-1990
Luigi Nono
Nono was well-acquainted with the high modernism of the 20th century, having married the daughter of Arnold Schoenberg. It would be a mistake, however, to reduce Nono to a derivative of serialism. As his style evolved in the latter half of the twentieth century, he became uniquely political and experimental, influenced by but distinct from the semi-political works of Schoenberg from the early twentieth century.
The famous Darmstadt school of the 20th century (the avant-garde collective of Nono, Pierre Boulez, Karlheinz Stockhausen, and more) was coined by Nono in a 1958 lecture, and a year later Nono established himself against the aleatoric and chance-based compositional practices then in vogue (especially in the United States). Nono viewed aleatoric and chance works as neglecting the duties of the time (similar to Sartre's dictum against literature for literature's sake). While the motives of much of this avant garde was not necessarily music for music's sake, its lack of political commitment seemed collaborationist to Nono, who eventually broke even with Stockhausen for what Nono perceived as "fascist tendencies" in Stockhausen's works (Stockhausen's structures appeared to Nono to be oppressive in nature).
Especially in the 1960s, Nono's music exemplified engaged art. He began using emerging technologies to explore new forms of expression, though unlike other modernist composers Nono did so to explore the ways music could respond to issues of the time. This included works like La Fabbrica Illuminata which utilized tape recordings of factories and factory workers (and which was performed in factories) to comment on the plight of mid-century factory workers. His most literal piece, Al Gran Sole Carico D'amore, presents a history of communism and, especially, its failed revolutions and their impact on the future of communism. Further pieces in the 60s and 70s responded to, were dedicated to, or commemorated various left-wing intellectuals and leaders, in ways not dissimilar from Sartre's travels abroad to Cuba and the Soviet Union.
Throughout the last decade of his life, Nono began exploring new ways of presenting music, expanding on the processes first hinted at in some of the late works of Charles Ives. In these late works, the most important of which is Prometeo (1981-1985), Nono imagines music as being dramatic in itself, that is, relaying the action of a typical opera or stage performance through the manipulation of the sounds themselves and the space(s) in which they are heard. Prometeo, for example, required the construction of special structures to alter the sonic dimensions of the performance, alongside typical (for the time) electronic manipulation.
Nono's last few years were dominated by an aphorism he saw on the wall of a Franciscan monastery: "Travelers, there are no trails; you make your own path as you walk." This directly influenced Nono's last composition, derivatively titled "Hay Que Caminar" sonando. That path, for Nono, was one of direct political and social engagement, ever attached to creativity and expression itself. For Nono, art must be engaged, or else it risks abetting the very forces threatening to condemn the artist.
But Nono's legacy poses a greater question, especially important for Prismatica: must art be political in order for it to be engaged? Prismatica attempts to offer an answer, but we by no means believe we have the answer. Many times, in fact, we find ourselves wondering if our work is doing enough, considering the amount and variety of sufferings in the modern world, and the sufferings which have been perpetuated for generations (cf. The Wound That Speaks by Taven Strickert in Volume 1, Issue 3). The perils of the 21st century, however, are different than those of the century before, and many of them involve non-political threats: the threats of restlessness, of apathy, of consumerism, are connected in ways beyond mere political misgivings, and as such require a new type of engagement alongside the traditional forms of political critique. We hope we have, in the very least, made an earnest attempt at addressing these contemporary issues as well. What type of art this requires remains to be seen and remains to be the type of art ENPRI seeks. Whether the aleatoric abstraction of the 20th century can count as engaged remains debatable; what counts as engaged in our time remains for us to realize.
Further Listening
- Intolleranza 1960
- Al gran sole carico d'amore
- Il Canto Sospeso
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Artist of the Week
Circa 1938, Photographer Unknown
From Mrs. Pollock to Miss Krasner: 1908-1984
Mrs. Jackson Pollock
How many artists, thinkers, philosophers, musicians, humans, have been reduced to this single honorific epithet? How many have been shamed further into having their entire name erased (e.g., Mrs. John Smith, where the husband's name is the only name which matters)? This is tragic, certainly; but what is more tragic may be: how many of us notice?
Perhaps it is a testament to progress that most of you reading this cringed at the title: Mrs. Jackson Pollock. We've come a long way since the 1950s when such a demonym existed without a second glance. But this distance is precisely why I chose such a title for this week's artist. It is almost impossible to recognize how normal this was only a few decades ago; the outrage you now feel is only a fraction of the outrage felt by those whose names were erased in favor of their partner's (read: husband's), and that outrage should not be overlooked.
It is one thing to say, "Lee Krasner was unfairly overshadowed by her husband." That might fill us with an intellectual annoyance, or perhaps an ethical frustration. But to read her overshadowing, to feel her minimization, is to experience outrage, not merely to rationalize it. How easy it is for major publications to talk about her mistreatment (even if their own editors would have done the same only 50 years ago); it is much more difficult to force readers to experience the discomfort associated with that mistreatment. If you are outraged now, the title has done its job. Krasner was not unaware of this; in an interview, she said, "The first approval is: 'This is so good you can't tell a woman made it.'" If that isn't an indictment on the state of art in the 20th century, I'm not sure what is.
Of course, we would be doing her a disservice if we reduced Lee Krasner's legacy to misogyny-as-reminder. Her work stands on its own and deserves to be appreciated as such. What is difficult and exciting about such a task is her perpetual evolution; we find in Krasner's work classic portraiture, cubist sketching, abstract expressionism, and, eventually, neo-abstraction in her late works. Even if you dislike Pollock (which, admittedly, I do), Krasner probably has an artwork, or even a period of artworks, which will resonate with you.
Her artistic process is, much to my admiration, quite spontaneous. Not that she waits for inspiration; instead, she allows inspiration to reveal itself even in the ruins of previously discarded work. This is a process which should be familiar with many modernist artists, especially those of the American school who are used to using the discarded remnants of failed projects to create new pieces. She established an oeuvre distinct from Jackson Pollock, and even in her mature works, which reveal an influence from Pollock, her fingerprint remains indelible. Works like Night Creatures from 1965 echo a neo-post-impressionist aesthetic, while Imperative, from 1976, reveals her interest in collage, not dissimilar from the paper-cut works of Matisse. Mysteries, from 1972, is an amalgamation of various 20th century styles, and shows Lee Krasner as an artist capable of creating in a variety of genres and mediums (this particular piece is painted on cotton duck, a thicker form of canvas, showing her ability to work with a variety of materials as well). All of this together discloses an artist comfortable creating art in whatever mode or medium feels right, which is, unfortunately, a potential reason for her obscurity (besides the obvious as mentioned above).
Lee Krasner reminds us that art exists in many forms and can take the mode of whatever is necessary for its expression. Our duty, as artists, is to express what must be expressed, regardless of our proclivities, without fear or shame. Her vigilance of Jackson Pollock's works after his death also reminds us of love in spite of the stereotypes surrounding it. Though others were quick to suspend Mr. Jackson above her, she was not one to allow that to taint her opinion of him (he did enough of that on his own, but that's another story for another week). Instead, she chose to focus on her work, letting it speak for itself, with a voice we are all forced to hear.
What a voice it is.
Further Viewing
- Imperative, 1976
- Night Creatures, 1965
- Mysteries, 1972
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From the Prismatica Desk
We are less than a week away from the opening of our fourth call for submissions! The theme of issue 4 is our most important yet: resistance and rebellion. We want works which inspire, challenge, and imagine otherwise; works which resist structures and ideas, the mundane and the ordinary. Stay tuned for the official launch.
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From the Collective
One of our contributors reached out for help identifying a surrealist photographer whom they recalled after reading about Hannah Hoch. They provided the following details:
- Did a lot of work in old stadiums and amphitheaters
- Worked after the prime of Claude Cahun and Marcel Moore
- Similar in style to Ralph Meatyard
Any suggestions or help would be appreciated!
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Until the Next Excavation
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