The fourth and final installment in Irving Sandler's series on contemporary art, Art of the Postmodern Era surveys the artists, works, movements, and ideas as well as the social and cultural context of this energetic and turbulent period in art.The book begins with the late 1960s, when new directions in art emerged, ranging from diverse postminimal styles to pattern and decoration painting and new image painting. In turn, the 1980s ushered in a second wave of new movements?neoexpressionism, media deconstruction, and commodity art. Sandler also discusses postmodernist art theory, the art market, and consumer society, providing an essential framework for understanding the art of this period.Unlike his previous books, Art of the Postmodern Era includes both American and European artists.