PIET MONDRIAN’S NEO-PLASTIC ART IN THE TOUCHSTONE OF ORGANIC THEORY OF ART

Abstract

One of the main objections to Clive Bell’s aesthetic theory of formalism is form-content dichotomy. Commentators of extreme formalism reject this thesis that art status and aesthetic value of works of art merely depends on form and their relations, and that they disregard content. As such, scholars propose neo-formalism as a surrogate theory which is based upon an organic approach to form-content dichotomy. Nevertheless, the authenticity and expediency of organic theory of art and neo-formalism have not yet been satisfyingly demonstrated in relation to Modern art and particularly pure abstract painting. This article examines the validity of this hypothesis that pure abstract paintings, best epitomized in Piet Mondrian’s Neo-Plastic art, could be more genuinely evaluated on the basis of a neo-formalist standpoint which is subservient to the organic theory of art. As such, this article aims to examine the feasibility of organic theory of form and content, for the aesthetic evaluation and appreciation of Mondrian’s Neo-Plastic paintings. At the end of this article, it is realized that by endorsing the organic theory of art and exploiting a neo-formalist approach one is equipped with a more objective criterion for aesthetic appreciation of pure abstract art, especially Mondrian’s Neo-Plastic paintings, compared to the prevailing formalist approach.