Casualism is a 21st-century trend in art which uses color, composition, and balance to produce works with an unusual rather than obviously visually appealing appearance. [1]
The term Casualism was coined in a 2011 essay which defined a new type of postminimalist painting that features a self-amused, anti-heroic style with an interest in off-kilter composition and impermanence. [1] These artists are interested in a studied, passive-aggressive irresoluteness that reflects wider insights about culture and society [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6]
Many artists responded positively to the essay and embraced the notion of Casualism, [7] [8] [9] [10] [11] while others rejected the term, suggesting it whiffed of 'labelism' and 'crypto-institutionalism.' [12] [13] [14] The Casualist tendency continues to inform much work and conversation around American abstract painting. [15] [16] [17] [18]
Tatiana Berg, Joe Bradley, Sharon Butler, Amy Feldman, Keltie Ferris, [11] Beth Letain, Lauren Luloff, Chris Martin, Rebecca Morris, David Ostrowski, Cordy Ryman, [19] Patricia Treib, Michael Voss, and Molly Zuckerman-Hartung are painters who work in a Casualist mode. [20] [21] [22]
In addition to Casualist, the term "Provisional [23] " has been used to describe paintings that might appear unfinished or incomplete; work that is intentionally awkward, physically fragile and unstable, that reject the display of conventional skills, or that discover beauty in unassuming materials. [15] However, Provisional painters, unlike the younger Casualists, suggest a kind of exhaustion, entertaining the impossibility of painting. [22] [24] [25] The older artists whose work is considered Provisional include Raoul De Keyser, Michael Krebber, Mary Heilmann, Albert Oehlen, Kimber Smith, Richard Tuttle and Christopher Wool. [3]