Postminimalism is an art term coined (as post-minimalism) by Robert Pincus-Witten in 1971[1] and used in various artistic fields for work which is influenced by, or attempts to develop and go beyond, the aesthetic of minimalism.[2] The expression is used specifically in relation to music and the visual arts, but can refer to any field using minimalism as a critical reference point. In music, "postminimalism" refers to music following minimal music.
See also: List of postminimalist artists. In visual art, postminimalist art uses minimalism either as an aesthetic or conceptual reference point. Postminimalism is more an artistic tendency than a particular movement. Postminimalist artworks are usually everyday objects, use simple materials, and sometimes take on a "pure", formalist aesthetic. However, since postminimalism includes such a diverse and disparate group of artists, it is impossible to enumerate all the continuities and similarities between them.
The work of Eva Hesse is also postminimalist: it uses "grids" and "seriality", themes often found in minimalism, but is also usually hand-made, introducing a human element into her art, in contrast to the machine or custom-made works of minimalism. Richard Serra is a prominent post-minimalist.[3]
See also: List of postminimalist composers. In its general musical usage, "postminimalism" refers to works influenced by minimal music, and it is generally categorized within the meta-genre art music. Writer Kyle Gann[4] has employed the term more strictly to denote the style that flourished in the 1980s and 1990s and characterized by:
Minimalist procedures such as additive and subtractive process are common in postminimalism, though usually in disguised form, and the style has also shown a capacity for absorbing influences from world and popular music (Balinese gamelan, bluegrass, Jewish cantillation, and so on).
For a musical style derived from minimalism, see Totalism (music).