Atomic Anxieties & Cold War

Question 1

Abstract Expressionism

Answer 1

Term applied to forms of abstract art developed by American painters such as Jackson Pollock in the 1940s and 1950s. It is often characterised by gestural brush-strokes or mark-making, and the impression of spontaneity.

Question 2

Action Painting

Answer 2

style of painting that involves the spontaneous application of paint to a canvas, often using bold gestures and physical movement

Question 3

Cold War

Answer 3

a period of political and military tension between the United States and the Soviet Union that lasted from around 1945 to 1991. It consisted of proxy wars in Asia, and competition between propaganda and achievements as the US worked to stop the spread of communism.

Question 4

soft power

Answer 4

a persuasive approach to international relations, typically involving the use of economic or cultural influence (in short, cultural power).

Question 5

Socialist Realism

Answer 5

realistic art style required by the USSR and China’s government.

Question 6

Mao Zedong

Answer 6

a Chinese politician and political theorist who founded the People’s Republic of China, served as the chairman of the Chinese Communist Party, and founded Maoism.

Question 7

Diné sandpainting

Answer 7

a temporary traditional art form of the Navajo people, also known as the Diné, that is used in healing ceremonies

Question 8

Hózhó

Answer 8

a Navajo word describing good harmony, health, and an ordered universe.

Question 9

The Navajo

Answer 9

Native American people who have inhabited the southwestern United States for centuries