Artists on the Rise: the Awakening

We live in an absolutely remarkable period of time, in which discoveries, technological advances, systems of realizations, and, evidently, the materialistic formation of thoughts and creation are evolving at a never-before-seen speed.

This first quarter of the century and millennium reveals itself to be the demonstration of a new era, one in which there is a constant generator of individuals and artists, who are daring each other to challenge codes and achievements, combining the influence of various currents of thoughts. 

Generation Z (sometimes known as Generation C for Communication, Collaboration, Connection, and Creativity), which saw daylight at the end of the 90s, is in constant interaction with its environment. They benefit from the velocity of distorted communication through social media, are exigent, and search for authenticity. They are better equipped than their parents, are ultra-connected, and drowning in information.

One could certainly speak of phenomenology as the structure of lived experiences and consciousness, which we find through the youth’s constant creation. With the use and influence of photography and filmography, traditional painting has become more figurative and narrative through time.

The number of art schools is constantly multiplying in the world, and most particularly in countries that witness a flourishing economy before their eyes. Parents of today are no longer negligent to their children’s aspirations, contrary to what they could have been in previous generations. 

To access knowledge and the results of experiences, artists from previous generations had to fend for themselves through books, studying, and even encounters. Generation Z’s art students have been facing a level of maturity starting from the youngest of ages as they get to benefit from immediate interactions and globalization at the touch of a button. Open communication is at hands’ reach for Generation Z through instant exchanges. 

We are now evidently the witnesses of a radical change in the history of contemporary art. ArtPremium felt its need to devote an issue and propose an open call selection of undergraduate and graduate art students. This selection would be considered as delicate as the materialistic space of a single magazine would not be a big enough space to prove just how intricately Generation Z are expanding their artistic potential individually.

This open space to Generation Z will allow us to escort young artists’ international careers and access to private and public institutions, all the while visualizing new figures in the contemporary art world.

Corinne Timsit