ArtQuake: The Most Disruptive Works in Modern Art

Discover art that dared to be different, risked reputations and put careers in jeopardy. This is what happens when artists take tradition and rip it up.

ArtQuake tells the stories of 50 pivotal works that shook the world, telling the fascinating stories behind their creation, reception and legacy. Causing fascination and intrigue in some, repulse and scorn in others, these cutting-edge totems celebrated novelty and innovation and defined twentieth-century art. From Gustave Courbet’s ‘The Bathers’ (1853) to Marcel Duchamp’s ‘Fountain’ (1917); Yves Klein’s ‘Anthropology Performance’ (1960) to Judy Chicago’s ‘The Dinner Party’ (1974-9); Andres Serrano’s ‘Piss Christ’ (1987) to Banksy’s ‘Love is in the Bin’ (2018) - meet huge egos, uncompromising feminists, gifted recluses, spiritualists, anti-consumerists, activists, satirists and more.

In telling the history of Modern and Contemporary Art through the pieces that were truly disruptive, and explaining the context in which each was created, ArtQuake demonstrates the heart of modern art, which is to constantly question and challenge expectation. ArtQuake is an alternative introduction to modern art, focusing on the stories of 50 key artworks that questioned boundaries, challenged the status quo and made shockwaves we are still feeling today.

This is the first in a new series introducing the most disruptive cultural moments of the past 150 years. See also FilmQuake, MusicQuake and FashionQuake.