El primer arte abstracto

Abstract

This article corresponds to chapter II of a projected "History of Basque Art". It approaches the topic of the post-paleolithic art up to the Roman era. With the title of "the first abstract art" the author wishes to emphasise the idea that the end of late Paleolithic period also marks the end of realistic art in the Basque region. After some paragraphs dedicated to the cultural context, the author exposes the forms adopted by this "flight from realism" that have been called stylisation, schematism, and abstraction. Subsequently, the author deals with the habitat up to the Iron Age, and megalitism (sense and chronology of the dolmens in the Basque Country) and the appearance of a sense of a esthetics in ceramics. He then covers the recently discovered parietal paintings, their meaning and their comparison with other contemporary paintings in the eastern region of the Iberian Peninsula. The author then shows how artistic creativity arises in objects of adornment and in a rudimentary "sculpture"(the "spatula- idols") and finally, the author deals with the topic of cromlechs and menhirs.