Imperialism, Art Movements, and the Industrial Revolution

Imperialism: Definitions and Causes

Imperialism: Colonialism is the domain of any form of political, economic, or cultural influence throughout history. It is a system where one nation dominates another under the pretext of ensuring security.

Causes of Imperialism

• Economic: The necessity to invest capital, obtain markets, and control prices for the motherland.
• Strategic: Securing commercial routes.
• Political-Ideological: The desire to seek prestige as a great power.

Forms of Domination

• Colonies
• Protectorates
• White settler dominions

The Monroe Doctrine (1823)

This doctrine pursued the goal of keeping the Americas free from European intervention, allowing the U.S. to intervene economically within the continent.

Artistic Movements

Neoclassicism

Based on reason, it emerged as a rejection of Baroque and Rococo art and became the official style of the Napoleonic Empire.

Romanticism

A movement that valued the marginalized, spontaneity, and rebellious art following the fall of Napoleon.

Realism

Focused on nature and everyday life.

Painting

• Impressionism: Practiced en plein air for the direct translation of what the painter sees (e.g., Édouard Manet, Edgar Degas).
• Post-Impressionism: Notable artists include Paul Cézanne, Paul Gauguin, Vincent van Gogh, and Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec.

Vanguards

• Fauvism: A movement led by Matisse that exalted the role of aggressive color.
• Expressionism: Art that deforms forms and characteristics to define its own reality (e.g., Edvard Munch).
• Cubism: The imitation of forms through geometric shapes (e.g., Juan Gris and Picasso).
• Abstraction: Denying traditional value to forms, focusing on a world of colors and sensations (e.g., Kandinsky and Malevich).

Architecture and Modernism

Architecture of the Industrial Era

The use of molten iron and metal pillars allowed for new construction techniques, exemplified by the Crystal Palace and the Eiffel Tower.

Chicago School

The development of high-rise buildings due to internal steel structures and the application of the elevator (e.g., Carson, Pirie, Scott and Company Building).

Modernism

A new style developed in Europe and the USA after 1890, abandoning Baroque influences. It utilized new methods, techniques, and materials emerging from industrialization to improve the design of mass-produced objects.

The Industrial Revolution

A set of economic and social transformations in European societies, starting in 18th-century England. It marked the transition from a traditional agricultural society to a modern industrial society, occurring in three stages: 1760, 1870, and the current third stage.