Precisionism / Cubist Realism

Charles Sheeler, Steam Turbine, 1939

Precisionism, also known at Cubist Realism, was a style of art that emerged in America in the 20s. Rather than sharing a common alliance, as with other movements of the 20th Century, the artists that adhered to the style simply shared a common aesthetic. In the Precisionist Style, as Cubist Realism denotes, is a combination of Realism and Abstraction. The subject matter is reduced to simplified forms, and flat planes. The subject matter is highly defined and presented in a clear light.

Two popular artists that adhered to the Precisionist style were Charles Demuth ( 1883 – 1935) and Charles Sheeler (1883 – 1965). Many of the artists chose industrial subject matter including steam engines and factory smoke stacks. Influenced by Italian Futurism, many of the artists believed in the development of the machine and the progression of the 20th Century. O’Keefe chose flowers as a subject matter to achieve the same result.