Cartoons come first to mind when thinking about the different ways 20th century art have impacted modern day art and design. Long before I saw the original "American Gothic" by Grant Wood, I laughed at a portrait of Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck standing together in front of a farm house with pitch fork in hand. Most cartoons seem to have an underlying humor meant to be understood by even the most articulate and intellectual adult, while at the same time being simplistic enough to entertain a small child. Cartoonists successfully accomplish this by being well read and educated in myth, history and art.

Advertising agencies must be just as well educated in order to create infl

uential advertisements that will impact consumers. "De Stijl" created by Peit Mondrian has without a doubt been one of the most popular designs incorporated into today's commercial art. On almost every bottled hair care product from Loreal is a composed set of lines complete with red, yellow and blue squares, expressing striking similarities to "De Stijl." Tommy Hilfiger uses clean lines and the three primary colors in all of his advertisements as well as on his signature label which also mimic the style of Peit Mondrian. While visiting a museum and studying a Mondrian, most of the general public repeatedly remarks to how his paintings look as if "anyone could do them." However, using the same artistic logic and redesigning his work on a bottle of hairspray or a t-shirt, the public becomes awe-stricken and then rushes out in a mad fury to purchase this stylish product which is actually based on the same style of art which if hung in a museum looks to them like something "anyone could make."

Advertisers look also to the photography of the past century when designing ads for magazines. Dolce and Gabbana created a series of photos to advertise their jeans which have the same look as the style of photography which became popular in the depression time of the 30's. The models sit in front of their homes, in everyday clothes, next to their families. The photo is rather high in contrast and looks the subject straight in the eye. The ads evoke the feeling from the consumer that for some reason or another they can relate to the models in the ad. Many past artistic styles of photography have been used to advertise. I

Some topics in this essay:
Gris Fantomas, Peit Mondrian, , Dolce Gabbana, Steve Madden, Daffy Duck, Juan Gris, Adobe PhotoShop, Tommy Hilfiger, 20th century, Grant Wood, 20th century art, past century, century art, commercial art, de stijl, style art, peit mondrian, juan gris, art design, art past, art past century,