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Compare-and-Contrast inquiry Paper EssayIntroduction Present essay seeks to provide the comparative summary of two artworks Hoffmanns Boston Twilight, 1957, belonging to Proto-Abstract Expressionism and Rauschenbergs Retroactive 1, 1964, which may be attributed to the art movement of out- contrivance. The comparative analysis of these picture shows will focus on two crucial aspects structural and positive.Structural analysis addresses cultural, historical context, which influenced the discussed artworks, semipolitical climate, art movements stylistic characteristics, which in corpseed individual work of artists, their subjective motives, influences and inclinations. Secondly, positive analysis of the artworks focuses on the themes depicted, colorize and techniques used, lump and stylistic elements, the reflection of cultural and historical context in the artworks etc. The thesis, present stem defends, may be formulated as follows Hoffmanns and Rauschenbergs artworks were importantly influenced by historical, cultural, social and esthetical context. The fine reception to these contexts was different and reflected with opposite art movements. The discussed images belong to different artistic traditions and, thus have many differences. Similarities, however, may be attributed to the alike(p) artistic influences, and utilization of sometimes similar formal and color techniques of com lay out.Structural context art movements, history, politics and subjective perspectives. The general socio-economic and historical context of both artworks (as they were created very close in time 1957 and 1964) may be characterized by the gradual assault of potty consumption postmodernist society, which influenced the rapid development of popular culture in music, entertainment and cinema. Commoditization has reached almost every sphere of social life and closely approached art through bargain media.The increasing role of mass culture was directly seen in the ne w sphere of advertisement, which conflated the elements of high and low culture, which became central to the new postmodernist cultural logic (Jameson, 59). Political situation in the United States and Europe was characterized by the intensification of resistance and left-wing movements, which, however, aband unrivalledd communist platform and focused on new postmodernist tactics, such as situationism, counter-culturalism, influenced by new discoveries in psychoanalysis, philosophy etc.Politics also became the element of mass culture, as its raising was extended from closed couloirs of high cabinets to average population. The response of art movements to the assault of the postindustrial society was unsmooth and signifi supporttly varied from one art movement to an different. The dominance of non-objective face-liftion in 1940s and 50s was the response to vulgarization of social life, and the manifest of the absence of valuable objective themes in de-humanized world.Abstraction ism, hence was an artistic fashion of de-humanization and the search for lost subjectivity (Herskovic, 13-17). However, other extremes also came to existence. That is particularly true of the Pop-Art, which positively responded to the modern developments in economy and culture, synthesizing popular culture in the new form of art. Pop-Art was characterized by externalization of art, as the objects of ordinary life and advertisement were widely utilized. The later was particularly evident in the works of Andy warhol, Roy Lichtenstein and James Rosenquist.The similar response to changing conditions in society was made by photorealism, which exemplifies the assault of hyperrealism as the new form of cultural affirmation. Such elements of modern society as standardization, de-subjectivization was immediately seen in Pop-Art , which appeared as the resistance to self-revelation, artistic creativity and originality and focuses on the widely acknowledge cultural codes and images (Harrison 2001) . Robert Rauschenbergs and Hans Hoffmanns artistic trajectories were significantly influenced by the discussed developments in politics and ideology.Rauschenberg was, for instance, one of the forerunners of pop-art movement, as he was among the first to use hand-made or found objects in his artworks, combining the elements of high and low culture, using mass-media sources etc (Livingstone, 1990). Such experiments were influenced by Rauschenbergs strong belief that the documented artwork should exist mingled with art and life. The technique of combines used by Rauschenberg may be exposit as immediate precursor to postmodernist collage, used in installation art.Rauschenbergs mindset position deeply opposed Abstract Expressionisms argument that the self may be expressed through art. Instead, Rauschenberg focused on representation of reality in its absence of complicated body part, sense and single interpretation. Abstract-Expressionism, which was influenced by Hans Hoffman , in contrast focused on gesture picture shows and color field painting techniques. Abstract Expressionism should be mute as a historical consequence of the conflation between European and American artists due to World War 2, which forced may French, German and other artists to immigrate in the United States.Hans Hoffmann belongs to this group of artists and his destiny significantly influenced his style and ideological orientations (Herskovic, 2003). Hoffmans style was influenced by cubist tension between depth and surface, expressionist flamboyance of color and surrealist technique of automatism, which is based on following subconscious drivers of creativity and libidinal forces. The last mentioned influences were synthesized by Hoffmann in his push-pull method, which included the use of expressive colors and paint slashes in the view of creating contradiction in terms between cool and warm colors.Comparative analysis of Hoffmanns and Rauschenbergs artworks both artworks are o n the face of it affected by different artistic movements and styles. Hoffmanns composition may be posited within knock off expressionism tradition, while Rauschenbergs painting belongs to Pop-Art movement. On the surface level the similarities between these artistic may be traced in the color usage in each painting we see the utilization of yellow, green, black, white, red, white and sour colors. Moreover, the presence of grid-like rectangular layout is evident.Apart from this, both paintings are characterized by the sense of distortion. The distortion in Hoffmanns artwork Boston Twilight is due to the use of abstract expressionist style, which distorts the contours of objective reality, so that we can not find correspondence between the image and reality (Boston Twilight) that it signifies. However, in Rauschenbergs composition the distortion is reflected in the plurality of meaning and signification. The interpretation is difficult to realize due to the combination of images inserted in the painting J. F.Kennedy at the center, pointing with his finger, cosmonaut with parachute, the duplication of Kennedys hand in the right corner and evidently abstract images in other parts. There is no denying the importance of the fact, that such a combine creates difficulties for interpretation and distorts it. Furtherto a greater extent, it should be pointed to the fact that both artworks have the elements of abstraction, contrasting color tones and are influenced by Cubism in using facets of the color. Both paintings create the feeling of collage and it was noted that Rauschenbergs combine technique is very close to it.Moreover, creating current color relationships is in important in both images, however, it serves different functions, depending on style and thematic unity. Differences between images are evident in many respects. First of all, art schools are opposite with pop-art, focusing on unification of art and reality, and abstract expressionism, focusing on expressing contradictory being of individual self. Hoffmans painting is abstract in essence, while Rauschenbergs refers to widely known political and social images of American President, cosmonaut, which immediately signify objective reality.The social and political thematic of Rauschenbergs image immediately points to his belonging to Pop-Art tradition. As far as formal and color structure of the analyzed paintings are concerned blue is governing in Rauschenbergs image, while green is dominant in Hoffmans paintings the first artist uses good stress, while Hoffmann is evidently using horizontal stress. Due to stylistic differences between artworjs, colors mix into one another in Hoffmanns painting and are separated in Rauschenbergs one.Rauschenberg utilizes much more contrast, than Hoffmann, however the image of the latter is much more organic in contrast to geometric structure of Rauschenbergs composition. Conclusion To sum it up, present analysis proved the initial thesis that both artworks were significantly influenced by historical, social and cultural developments in Western societies in the middle of 20-th century. These developments provoked different responses on the part of art movements, resulting in creation of different styles and techniques.The latter are reflected in Hoffmanns and Rauschenbergs compositions, which are different in many important stylistic respects, however, have much in special K due to the same artistic influences. My interest to the discussed paintings is explained by the fact that they are picturesque representations of Abstract Expressionism and Pop Art. Main features, peculiar to each of these styles, may be found in these paintings both in complex and in separate elements. The techniques used by both artists help us better understand other artworks created in these traditions and inform our own artistic endeavors.Hoffmans image advantage is in its direct address to aesthetic taste and sensibility, while Rauschenberg ar twork represents a challenge for viewers in terms of see its political and social content. Works Cited Herskovic, Marika. American Abstract Expressionism of the 1950s An Illustrated Survey, New York School Press, 2003. Harrison, Sylvia. Pop Art and the Origins of Post-Modernism. Cambridge University Press, 2001. Jameson, Fredric. Postmodernism, or the Cultural Logic of Late Capitalism. New Left Review, 146, (53-92), 1991. Livingstone, M. Pop Art A Continuing History, New York Harry N. Abrams, Inc. , 1990