Expressionism

At the beginning of the new 20th century, artists in Europe were dissatisfied with the academic standards and style of the art community. They began experimenting with new ideas for the modern world and expanding cities. As part of the European transformations, Expressionism was born in Germany; art charged with emotions and subject matter found in the urban settings. The director of a German museum stated, "The German artist looks not for harmony of outward appearance but much more for the mystery hidden behind the external form. He or she is interested in the soul of things and wants to lay this bare."[[1]]( As part of a pre-World War II change, Expressionism included art, literature, theatre, and music, fueled by young people from Germany and Russia pushing for change in the social and political structures. The movement started at the turn of the century. It continued until the 1930s when the National Socialists (Nazis) grew in power, a government rejecting Expressionism in all forms and condemned it as 'degenerate.' The Post-Impressionists influenced the Expressionists, using bold colors and unusual forms to create expressive, exaggerated images. Instead of duplicating realistic images, the artists wanted to express inner feelings and used simple shapes and broad brushstrokes to illustrate their emotional ideas. Two different groups were dominant in the movement, Die Brucke (the bridge), led by Ernst Ludwig Kirchner, and Der Blaue Reiter (the blue rider), started by Wassily Kandinsky and Franz Marc. The new art styles of Expressionism flourished were displayed in museums and were purchased by collectors. In 1933, after Adolf Hitler was named to head the government, the Nazis started dismantling the artwork and removed 20,000 artworks from the museums owned by the state. "In 1937, 740 modern works were exhibited in the defamatory show Degenerate Art in Munich to 'educate' the public on the 'art of decay.'"[[2]]( The pictures in the exhibit were hung overlapping or askew, and graffiti was written on the walls with crude sayings. The work was defined as blasphemous, art defaming women or art from Jewish or communist artists. The exhibition encouraged the people to see the art as a plot against Germany. Many of the works were subsequently destroyed, sold to make money for the government, or hidden and discovered at a much later date. Ernst Ludwig Kirchner (1880-1938), born in Germany, studied architecture and fine art at one of the experimental art schools. He belonged to the Die Brucke (The Bridge), a group of artists who brought Post-Impressionists and Art Nouveau exhibitions to Germany. The group also started Expressionism at the beginning of the 20th century wanting to pursue nontraditional methods bridging the centuries. With the advent of World War I, he was drafted into the army, then discharged because of a breakdown, and spent time in hospitals. After the war, he went to Berlin, staying in his room, painting; others' images displayed his mental instability. He moved to Switzerland and continued to move in and out of sanitoriums, painting and making woodcuts. By 1920, he improved, and moved to back to Germany with his companion and model. His art was successful until the Nazi party rose to party in Germany, destroyed art, and shut down museums. Kirchner used bold colors and angles, capturing modern city life as viewed in Street, Berlin (5.6.1). The local prostitutes walk down the street, talking, the men looking down, unhappy expressions. When Kirchner formed the bodies, he gave them unusual angles and forms. The dark colors are illuminated by the reflective light of the women's white accessories. The painting was one of a series he made about prostitutes. Paula Modersohn-Becker (1876-1907), born in Germany, is considered one of the essential artists of early Expressionism in Germany. Her artistic ability was recognized when she was younger, and she trained with private instructors before going to Paris multiple