Paralleling a new interest in eastern philosophy and
Zen via
Alan Watts and the literary and poetic irreverence of
Lawrence Ferlinghetti,
Allen Ginsberg, and others, visual artists such as
Bruce Conner and
Jay DeFeo diverged from the
Abstract Expressionism of the east coast to make connections between sculpture and painting. Connor's found material assemblages, collages and experimental films make him an early cross-disciplinary pioneer.
Painter
Wayne Thiebaud's paintings of commonplace products such as toys or gumball machines paralleled the pop influenced
Funk style. Involving bright colors, humor and word-play, Funk is most often associated with the ceramic work of
Robert Arneson, and the paintings of
William T. Wiley. All three, along with
Roy De Forest and
Manuel Neri taught at UC Davis in the 60s and 70s. (Artist and educator
Peter Voulkos set the stage for Funk by reengaging ceramics as part of contemporary studio practice.)
Bruce Nauman, who is often credited with dissolving the medium specific practices of previous generations, went to UC Davis and studied under William Wiley.
By the end of the 1960s
Conceptual Art and
Minimal Art were reforming the aesthetics and values of visual art. Bay Area artists responded to the dominance of the white cube, and transitioned from an object-oriented to a systems-oriented practice inspired by
Marcel Duchamp.[1] In the Bay Area, starting in the 1970s, Artists such as
Tom Marioni, Paul Kos,
Howard Fried and
Terry Fox, explored the intersection of performance and sculpture. Also picking up on conceptualism, with an added materialist strain, was
David Ireland.
Tony Labat brought a political dimension to Bay Area conceptualism, with video, performance and installation works that confronted issues of cultural identity, loss and displacement.[2]
In 1967 The Experimental Television Project (later renamed the National Center for Experiments in Television), housed at
KQED studios was one of the first programs in the nation to give artists access to television studios and equipment. Groups like
Ant Farm, Video Free America, and T.R. Uthco working in the same moment were video recording "happening" performances, and experimenting with light sound and time.[3]