Pattern and Decoration movement

Pattern and Decoration movement (P&D movement) (also known as ‘the New Decorativeness'). A movement in American art, originating in New York in the mid-1970s, in which painters and other artists produced works that consist essentially of complex and generally brightly coloured patterns (abstract, figurative, or a mixture of both). The movement was one aspect of the reaction against the stark impersonality of Minimal art (see POST-MINIMALISM) and also represented a defence of the idea that decorative art is a humanizing influence and should not be regarded as inferior to ‘fine’ art. Many of the artists involved in the movement were women, influenced by the feminist concern with highly decorative crafts such as quiltmaking that have traditionally been the preserve of women. They included Valerie Jaudon (1945– ), whose work is influenced by Celtic patterns, Joyce Kozloff, and Miriam Schapiro. However, several men also were involved in the movement, notably Robert Kushner (1949– ) and the sculptor Ned Smyth (1948– ). The New York Pattern and Decoration Group first met in 1975 and organized an exhibition the following year. Many of the members were taken up by the dealer Holly Solomon, who had recently established a gallery in New York, and their work enjoyed considerable success in the later 1970s.