Reddit reviews ArtSpeak: A Guide to Contemporary Ideas, Movements, and Buzzwords, 1945 to the Present (Third Edition)

I’m afraid you might be disappointed and frustrated with the answers you’re likely to get.

There isn’t a guide to art styles that’s like a guide to species of birds for birdwatchers. Art is more chaotic than that. It’s something people make up as they go along. The groups, styles and schools that are used to explain what’s happened and is happening are made up as we go along, too. There are many arguments about definitions, and not much is settled. That, I think, is a good definition of “Contemporary.”

But when I started off, before the internet, like you, I wanted a guide. Almost 30 years ago, I read the first edition of Artspeak, by Robert Atkins (having trouble linking on mobile: [ArtSpeak: A Guide to Contemporary Ideas, Movements, and Buzzwords, 1945 to the Present https://www.amazon.com/dp/0789211513/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_tai_HQebAbCXSD0TC])

But I wouldn’t really recommend a book like this for someone starting out today. Several decades ago, I found Atkins’ groupings misleading and oversimplified. And the art world has gotten even more confusing and fragmented since then.

My recommendation: I would find a website of a museum online, preferably one you can visit, which has a large digital catalogue of its collection. I would wander around the website reading the entries and following the links. Spending a few hours this way will begin to familiarize you with terms and jargon that frequently appear. Good luck.