German Expressionism Jaimee Rodriguez // Karla Collaguazo What is German Expressionism? Expressionism ● A form of art in which the artist expresses his/her personal feelings about the subject through style and technique ● Focus on emotional depiction over realistic depiction (Non-naturalistic) ● Contrast to Impressionism, which sought to realistically depict the world ● The main purpose of expressionist art is to convey a message and provoke personal feelings German Expressionism ● Expressionist Art that originated in Germany ● A movement of the early 20th century ● Expressionist movements occurred elsewhere in Europe around the same time, such as France and Austria ● Emerged as a response to the conflicting relationship between humanity and the world Influences ● Post-Impressionists ○ Paul Gauguin ○ Vincent Van Gogh ○ Edvard Munch ● Fauvism ○ Henri Matisse ● Cubists ● Foreign art ○ Africa ○ Oceania ● Folk Art ○ Germany ○ Russia Characteristics ● Came from within the artist vs depiction of external visual world ● Swirling, swaying, and exaggeratedly brushstrokes ● Bold colors ● Portrayed social criticism Beginnings ● 1905 ● New technologies and massive urbanization ● Painters who rebelled against the bourgeois culture of Germany ● Four German architecture students who wanted to become painters formed the group Die Brücke (The Bridge) ○ Ernst Ludwig Kirchner, Fritz Bleyl, Karl Schmidt-Rottluff, and Erich Heckel Die Brücke - The Bridge (1905-1913) ● Founded by Karl Schmidt-Rottluff and Ernst Ludwig Kirchner in 1905 ● Based in Dresden ● Expressed radical social views through modern urban scenes, landscapes, and figure paintings ● “Achieve freedom of life and action against the well established older forces” ● Combined traditional art with African and Oceanic motifs, tribal art and Fauvist coloring Der Blaue Reiter - Blue Rider (1911-1914) ● Formed in Munich in 1911 and led by Franz Marc and Wassily Kandinsky ● Loose association rather than a coherent group like Die Brücke ● Expressed the emotional aspect of the being through symbolism and bright colors ● Abstracted forms ● Infused art with spiritual values ● Collapsed after the start of WWI and the death of Franz Marc and Auguste Macke Die Neue Sachlichkeit- New Objectivity (1920’s) ● Emerged as a style in the 1920s and challenged German Expressionism ● Reflected the resignation and cynicism in the 1920’s and early 1930’s ● Unsentimental and objective approach ● Associated with portraiture ● Famous artists of this style include Max Beckmann, Otto Dix, and George Grosz ● Portrayed society in a satirical manner Sources ● http://www.visual-arts-cork.com/history-of-art/expressionism.htm ● http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/expressionism ● http://www.visual-arts-cork.com/history-of-art/german-expressionism.htm ● http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/imml/hd_imml.htm ● http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/fauv/hd_fauv.htm ● http://www.guggenheim.org/new-york/collections/collection-online/movements/195214 ● http://www.theartstory.org/movement-expressionism.htm#beginnings_header ● http://www.visual-arts-cork.com/history-of-art/german-expressionism.htm ● http://www.moma.org/explore/collection/ge/styles/early_influences ● http://www.moma.org/explore/collection/ge/styles/brucke ● http://www.moma.org/explore/collection/ge/styles/blaue_reiter ● http://www.moma.org/explore/collection/ge/styles/new_objectivity.