Urban Watercolour Plein Air as a Form of Understanding Urban Space in Contemporary Art

Abstract

The purpose of the article is to study the phenomenon of urban watercolour plein air as a contemporary artistic practice that forms new approaches to understanding urban space, its visual identity and emotional and aesthetic representation in the art of the 21st century. Attention is focused on identifying the relationship between the artistic perception of the urban environment and cultural transformations of the urban landscape. Research methodology. The methodological basis of the study is a combination of art history, culturology and phenomenology approaches. The methods of comparative analysis, observation, artistic interpretation and visual analysis of the works of participants in contemporary Ukrainian and European watercolour plein airs were used. The contextual method was also applied to understand urban watercolour painting in relation to the trends of ecological and social art. Scientific novelty. For the first time, urban watercolour plein air is considered as a tool for visual reflection of urban space, combining documentary and artistic interpretation of the environment. The concept of ‘plein air urbanism’ is substantiated as a form of artistic dialogue with the urban fabric, within which watercolour appears not only as a technique, but also as a means of communication between the artist and the space. The role of watercolour in the formation of the soft aesthetics of urban experience is revealed. Conclusions. Urban watercolour plein air in contemporary art functions as a form of cultural self-expression and mediation between man and urban space. Its artistic nature combines empirical observation, emotional fixation and socio-cultural reflection. Through watercolour practices, a new type of visual thinking is formed