Like pop art, Minimalism critiques Abstract Expressionism, but in a very different way. It is primarily a sculptural movement. Minimalists, like Pop Artists, create objects that are crafted in such a way that they don’t make the hand of the artists present – no expressive brush marks, very smooth surfaces etc. However, they uphold the ‘Greenburgian’ idea in the purity of the medium. Abstract Expressionists asserted the purity of painting by treating the paint like paint. Minimalists approach their work the same way; they reassert the qualities that are specific to sculpture (three dimensional form, volume, mass, weight; tend to be neutral in color, because the material should be pure/true).

However, Greenburg did not approve of minimalism. Minimalism is not really about the object; instead, it is inspired by Gestalt Theory. The theory states that we, as human beings, understand the world through our spacial and visual relationships and experiences which allow us to understand our relationship to our environment. For example, when someone puts something behind their back, we understand that it is behind their back. A baby, however, does not understand this because they have not experienced this yet. They’re not trying to make sculptural objects; they are trying to create art about spacial relationships. They deny the self referentiality and expressionism of Abstract Expressionists.

Michael Freed, student of Greenburg, described Minimalism as ‘theatrical’; it’s contingent upon the viewer. It requires, to some degree, viewer participation and all of their prior visual experience in order to be meaningful. These works are not self referential or self contained. Therefore, they are not pure; they are imitating theater.