The term Postmodern Art includes all the various disciplines of art covered in this unit so far. The Postmodern movement first came into the public consciousness in the 1960s and has had many influential thinkers and philosophers. In relation to art, the central theme is that there is an unlimited and infinite number of ways to interpret a work of art. In the Postmodern world art is entirely subjective and all meaning comes from the observer rather than the artist.
    Conceptual art, or Conceptualism, is art in which the concept of the work takes precedence over the aesthetics. To put it more simply, the idea behind the work is more important than how it looks or the skill of the artist. Conceptual art can be interpreted as art that questions the very nature of itself.
   Despite being accepted into the mainstream, with various works of conceptual art winning major awards, such as, The Turner Prize, this genre causes controversy and divides the opinion of art critics. It can be perceived by the general public as self indulgent and leave many confused as to why it is considered art at all. It would appear that the main criticism concerns the lack of skill of the artists involved and lack of beauty in their works.
   Critics of Postmodern philosophy say that it can only lead to nihilism and is fundamentally the very opposite of what real art actually is.