Art terms | MoMA

Games

A designed experience in which a set of rules balances chance and/or the skill of other participants with a player’s decisions. A game model laid out by

Carrie Mae Weems. Untitled (Woman and Daughter with Makeup). 1990

Gelatin silver print (developing-out paper)

Formulated to react quickly when exposed to light, this paper contains silver halides in a gelatin binder. It is intended for handling in the controlled

Unidentified photographer. Untitled. c. 1900

Gelatin silver printing-out-paper print (POP)

A process common from 1860 to 1940, printing-out-paper (POP) uses strong levels of ultraviolet sunlight to bring out a visible image, rather than the chemical

Generative art

Art that is created, in part or in whole, through the use of an autonomous system or computer code, and that often relies on elements of randomness or

Josef Albers. Homage to the Square: Two Whites Between Two Yellows. 1958

Geometric abstraction

A form of abstract art that combines geometric, “hard-edge,” or linear forms. When geometric shapes

Jackson Pollock. One: Number 31, 1950. 1950

Gestural

Relating to methods of applying a medium, such as paint, to a surface, often with active or sweeping body movements.

Glaze

A thin coat of transparent or translucent paint used to modify the tone of an underlying color. Glazes can alter the chroma,

Good Design

From the late 1930s through the 1950s, MoMA held a series of design exhibitions and initiatives that highlighted the democratizing potential of design

Wifredo Lam. The Jungle (La Jungla). 1942–43

Gouache

A water-based matte paint, sometimes called opaque watercolor, composed of ground pigments and plant-based binders, such as gum Arabic or gum tragacanth.

Massimo Vignelli, Bob Noorda. New York City Subway Street-Level Signage. Designed 1966-1970 (this version 1979)

Graphic design

Visual communication through the use of type, space, image, and color. Examples include printed materials like posters, books, and album covers, as well

Graphite

A soft, greasy mineral form of carbon with a steel-gray to black metallic luster, used as a drawing material. Until the 18th century, natural lump graphite

Jacob Lawrence. The trains were packed continually with migrants. 1940-41

Great Migration

A historic mass movement of over six million African Americans between 1910 and 1970, as migrants sought to escape the racial violence and limited economic

Guerrilla television

During the 1960s and 1970s, groups of young artists, filmmakers, and activists based in the US and abroad experimented with newly available portable video