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A guide to ‘Postmodernism’ at the V&A
Of all movements in art and design history, postmodernism is perhaps the most controversial. Postmodernism's co-curator, Glenn Adamson, gives his essential guide to this exceptional exhibition at the V&A in London.
As a phenomenon it defies definition, but it is a perfect subject for an exhibition. Postmodernism was visually thrilling, a multifaceted style that ranged from the colourful to the ruinous, the ludicrous to the luxurious. What it always maintained was a drastic departure from modernism’s utopian visions, which had been based on clarity and simplicity.
The exhibition falls into three broad sections, each of which looks at a stage of postmodernism’s passage from a fringe radical style to the dominant visual language of 1980s corporate culture. Read more about the exhibition here.
