I am saying this ditty I made is Non-representational because I was making no reference to or thinking about anything visible from reality (the real world) whatever that is....
The distinctions or differences between
Abstract and
Non-representational are what I am discussing here. Does anybody have any thoughts, opinions, beliefs about the definitions and usage of these terms and how they do or do not apply to artwork. Where does abstraction start and where does non-representational begin?
An explanation from the Saylor Academy
Painting, sculpture, and other art forms can be divided into the categories of representational(sometimes also called figurative art, although it doesn't always contain figures), abstract, and nonrepresentational (or non-objective) art. Representational art describes artworks – particularly paintings and sculptures – that are clearly derived from real object sources, and therefore are by definition representing something with strong visual references to the real world. Most, but not all, abstract art is based on imagery from the real world. The most "extreme" form of abstract art is not connected to the visible world and is known as nonrepresentational.
- Representational art or figurative art represents objects or events in the real world, usually looking easily recognizable. For example, a painting of a cat looks very much like a cat – it's quite obvious what the artist is depicting.
- Romanticism, Impressionism, and Expressionism contributed to the emergence of abstract art in the nineteenth century as artists became less interested in depicting things exactly like they really exist. Abstract art exists on a continuum, from somewhat representational work, to work that is so far removed from its actual real-world appearance that it is almost impossible to easily discern what is being represented. Abstract art is always connected to something visual from the real world.
- Work that does not depict anything from the real world (figures, landscapes, animals, etc.) is called nonrepresentational. Nonrepresentational art may simply depict shapes, colors, lines, etc., but may also express things that are not visible – emotions or feelings for example.
Another explanation from VanGoghAlive
Nonrepresentational Art vs. Abstraction
The words nonrepresentational art and
abstract art are often used to refer to the same style of painting. However, when an artist works in abstraction, they are distorting the view of a known thing, person, or place. For example, a landscape can easily be abstracted and Picasso often abstracted people.
Nonrepresentational art does not begin with a "thing" or a subject from which a distinctive abstract view is formed. Instead, it is "nothing" but what the artist intended it to be and what the viewer interprets it as. It could be splashes of paint as we see in Jackson Pollock's work. It may also be the color-blocked squares that are frequent in Mark Rothko's paintings.