color schemes, amateurish drawing techniques, and
some bizarre and at times revolting images, they
were, thankfully, breathing life back into the artistic
process.
Schnabel Becomes a Star In addition to the Ameri-
can graffiti and neoexpressionist artist Jean-Michel
Basquiat, Schnabel became a major force in the art
world during the 1980’s. Sadly, Basquiat died in 1988
while still in his twenties. While this was a tragic blow
to the art world, the neoexpressionist movement al-
ready had established itself as a powerful artistic force
by then through the efforts of many other important
artists, including the ambitious Schnabel. He had his
first solo exhibition in New York City in 1979. As a re-
sult of a massive publicity campaign, his show was
a spectacular success. The popularity of his large,
fiercely energetic paintings led to some negative rum-
blings in the art community. Not one to be cautious,
Schnabel boldly presented his new work with no apol-
ogies for its raw and contradictory nature. Always will-
ing to take risks, he helped energize other artists to
take risks as well. During the 1980’s, with the help of
such prominent art dealers as Mary Boone and Leo
Castelli, Schnabel’s reputation as an artist skyrock-
eted to almost rock-star status. He was more than will-
ing to break established artistic norms. He was not
above using such taboo items as velvet in his paint-
ings. Viewing art as a form of “liberation,” Schnabel
continued to produce provocative works and to in-
spire a new generation of artists. He later went on to
become a noted director of such films asBasquiat
(1996) andBefore Night Falls(2000).
Impact Taking inspiration from earlier art move-
ments such as German expressionism and abstract
expressionism, the diverse neoexpressionist artists
changed the artistic landscape during the 1980’s.
Led by such American artists as Jean-Michel Bas-
quiat, Philip Guston, Susan Rothenberg, David Salle,
and Julian Schnabel; by such German artists as
Georg Baselitz and Anselm Kiefer; by such British
artists as Christopher Le Brun and Paula Rego; and
by such Italian artists as Francesco Clemente and
Sandro Chia, the neoexpressionist movement rose
to dominate the art scene of the 1980’s because of its
willingness to break with tradition and to employ
more mainstream promotional methods. Art deal-
ers and gallery owners marketed these rebellious
artists with a tenacity unrivaled in the art commu-
nity. While this commercialized approach to sales-
manship made many art experts uneasy, it definitely
put a bright spotlight on these artists and made sev-
eral of them almost superstars. Neoexpressionism
expanded the creative and commercial options for
artists of the 1980’s and beyond.
Further Reading
Dempsey, Amy.Art in the Modern Era: Styles, Schools,
and Movements. New York: Thames and Hudson,- A comprehensive survey of modern art, in-
cluding an entry on neoexpressionism.
Fineberg, Jonathan David.Art Since 1940: Strategies of
Being. New York: Harry N. Abrams, 1995. An im-
portant overview of contemporary art, including
a fascinating section on Julian Schnabel and other
American neoexpressionists.
Kuspit, Donald.The New Subjectivism: Art of the 1980’s.
Ann Arbor, Mich.: UMI Research Press, 1988. A
detailed investigation of what made the art world
unique during the 1980’s.
Little, Stephen.... Isms: Understanding Art. New
York: Universe, 2004. Includes a concise overview
of neoexpressionism.
Pearlman, Alison.Unpackaging Art of the 1980’s. Chi-
cago: University of Chicago Press, 2003. Includes
a riveting discussion of the art of the neoexpres-
sionist artists Julian Schnabel and David Salle.
Sandler, Irving.Art of the Post-modern Era: From the
Late 1960’s to the Early 1990’s.New York: Har-
perCollins, 1996. Includes an insightful chapter
on American neoexpressioniam.
Schnabel, Julian.Julian Schnabel. New York: Abrams, - An important introduction to one of the
most original American neoexpressionist artists.
Includes a wonderful selection of illustrations of
his work.
Jeffr y Jensen
See also Art movements; Basquiat, Jean-Michel;
Schnabel, Julian.Network anchors
Definition Television broadcasters of the national
evening news
Tom Brokaw, Peter Jennings, and Dan Rather each spent
more than two decades as the anchors of their network eve-
ning newscasts, and it was during the 1980’s that they en-
joyed their largest audiences and influence.702 Network anchors The Eighties in America