How to Learn About German Expressionism

Contributor

By Michael Motta
eHow Contributing Writer

Article Rating: (4 Ratings)

Two Girls in the Wood by Otto Mueller

Expressionism is variously defined in the arts, but the following definition is one of the best short descriptions you'll find: Movement in fine arts that emphasized the expression of inner experience rather than solely realistic portrayal, seeking to depict not objective reality but the subjective emotions and responses that objects and events arouse in the artist.

German Expressionism is likely the most famous movement within expressionism, and this article focuses on painting as opposed to other fine arts, such as film. Note that not all artists associated with German Expressionism were Germans; we're using the term broadly to denote a mostly early 20th-century style of art in Europe. For instance, Van Gogh is often associated with German Expressionism though he was Dutch and painted in the late 19th century. Edvard Munch is even more closely related, but he was Norwegian.

Two of the major groups within German Expressionism were Die Brücke (The Bridge) and Der Blaue Reiter (The Blue Rider). Die Brücke displays a nice combination of the primitive and the modern, whereas Der Blaue Reiter tends to lose through abstraction some of the primitive. Both groups, however, are colorful and bold.

Members of Die Brücke included Fritz Bleyl, Erich Heckel, Ernst Ludwig Kirchner, Karl Schmidt-Rottluff, Emil Nolde, Max Pechstein and Otto Mueller. Some of the most famous members of The Blue Rider include Wassily Kandinsky, Franz Marc, August Macke, and Paul Klee.

Many expressionist artists of the early 20th century were not, however, members of either group.

German Expressionism was considered "degenerate" by Hitler and the Nazis, and much of it was placed in their exhibit of condemnation called "Degenerate Art."

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Step 1

Deer in the Woods, by Franz Marc

See German Expressionism in museums. The best way to go about this is to enter an artist's name in a search engine (see Resources below). Most times a list of museums that are home to that artist's work will be displayed.
Step 2

Self-portrait as a Soldier, by E. L. Kirchner

See German Expressionism on the Web. There are plenty of Web images and commentary available (see Resources below.)
Step 3

Meadow at Moritzburg, by Max Pechstein

Check out books on artists (see Resources below).

Tips & Warnings

To dig deeper, please see some of the other eHow articles (and their Resources sections) I've written on art.
You might also search for biographies of individual German Expressionists.
Remember that there are other forms of expressionism too that you may wish to explore separately if you find you like German Expressionist painting.

Resources