Why Do We Need To Understand Theory?

Theory is important as it can underpin a design and without a theory your art or design may look good but then fall short under inspection. What I mean by this is if you chose for example a cubist style of painting and you were then asked to explain the thought process behind such. With having knowledge of theories you can build you painting up around your knowledge of such and can be a useful aid in successfully emulating a style. Each movement through art and design history has in some form or another dissolved into the next whether this be as an influence or taken away through rejection of a style. One example of an art movement which can be quite difficult to determine is that of Modernism as although throughout the period in which it existed and was influential there were other smaller notions in play which co-existed which includes, but by no means is limited to Russian constructivism, futurism, Vorticism, surrealism and Dada. I find movements such as these can be better thought of as a period of shared theoretical standing though some movements such as Art deco and Art nouveau counter this idea. Dada is one of those movements in which is difficult to determine under modernism, this is because it lived throughout the modernist period though with a post-modernist apparel. However their ideas regarding the abandonment of what is considered to be art and the anti-establishment views mirrored that of modernist designers in the way of revolution and change.