Local in a global art world is an entity like the Higgs particle in much of the artwork that we see. When local is obvious, it is the size of a crumb of bread, when it is like the Higgs particle, it is so small and undetectable that even particle scientists haven't yet identified it. Because viewers and artists are physical beings in a material world there will be some effects of locality on them. Because we can't see it doesn't mean it's not there.

There were obvious geographic difference of art before artists could travel freely, globally, place obviously caused difference in the final products of the group because of local materials, vistas, personalities and the combination of these.

Now that art is global, are these local differences non existent. Unlikely. Localities still have these differences, and the combinations are multiplied by more personalities in each locale, including the infection of these personalities with global influences.

When modernism began, say in 1900, there were immense difference between the work of British modernists — even Scottish modernists from English modernists — French, Russian and Italian modernists. The difference may have merely been in who these artists knew, but those people are part of the local environment. These artists had global influences, but their work was affected by something that caused each nation to have a distinctive message.

As viewers, and we're all viewers of artwork even if we're artists, we see the global easily because we know it. It's globally known. What we have a harder time seeing is what we don't understand and that may be the local.

 

 

 

 

Terry Talty is an Art Tourist traveling the world and words to find the answers to questions about art that many Post-Modernists refuse to admit they are asking.