Biographies:
A B C D E F G H I J K L M
N O P Q R S T U V W Y Z

Dictionary:
A B C D E F G H I J K L
M N O P Q R S T V W Z

Expressionism

Expressionism [Lat. "expressio" = expression] was a 20th-century movement in art and literature. Expressionism in the visual arts arose in the early 20th century (1900-1925) as a reaction to Impressionism in particular. The idea of art advocated by Expressionism is diametrically opposed to Impressionism. Expressionist painters did not stick to realistically reproducing impressions and representing beautiful forms. On the contrary, to them art was not representing nature as viewed through a subjective take on it; unlike the Impressionists they gave priority to their own emotions, representing motifs as "profoundly felt" and thus intepreted. Vincent van Gogh with his vehemently expressive handling is regarded as the immediate forerunner of the Expressionists. The basic elements of color, dynamics and emotion occur in virtually all Expressionist works of art. However, even black-and-white Expressionist prints radiate their creators' energy and dynamism. It was in fact the "harsh" medium of woodcut that became the Expressionist vehicle of choice. The two most important groups of Expressionist artists were "Die Brücke" in Dresden and "Der Blaue Reiter" in Munich. August Macke, Paul Klee and Franz Marc were perhaps the most distinguished members of Der Blaue Reiter and those who pushed the Expressionist style of painting towards abstraction. Favourite Expressionist themes include the battle of the sexes, the father-son conflict, political revolution, war and the social squalor it causes. Expressionism protested against bourgeois convention, which at that time governed most lives. Naturalism and its aesthetic forms were eschewed by Expressionism. Friedrich Nietzsche was regarded by Expressionist artists as an intellectual role model. The "Futurist Manifesto" launched by the Italian poet Filippo Tommaso Marinetti, which was published in a German translation in "Der Sturm" magazine in March 1912, became a crucial element of the Expressionist movement. "Der Sturm" (published by Herwarth Walden) and other newly founded art and literary journals served active advocates of Expressionism as a forum for discussion. Not long after the first world war, art viewed as the vehicle for spiritual expression was overshadowed, even in part replaced, especially in Germany but in other European countries as well, by new stylistic trends such as Constructivism and New Objectivity. The following artists are leading exponents of Expressionism:
Max Beckmann (1884-1950)
Peter August Böckstiegel (1889-1951)
Erma Bossi (1882 or 1885-1960)
Heinrich Campendonk (1889-1957)
Otto Dix (1891-1969)
Lyonel Feininger (1871-1956)
Conrad Felixmüller (1897-1977)
George Grosz (1893-1959)
Osvaldo Guayasamín (1919-1999)
Erich Heckel (1883-1970)
Alexei von Jawlensky (1864-1941)
Wassily Kandinsky (1866-1944)
Carl Eugen Keel (1885-1961)
Ernst Ludwig Kirchner (1880-1938)
Oskar Kokoschka (1886-1980)
Ulrich Leman (1885-1988)
Elfriede Lohse-Wächtler (1899-1940)
August Macke (1887-1914)
Franz Marc (1880-1916)
Ludwig Meidner (1884-1966)
Paula Modersohn-Becker (1876-1907)
Wilhelm Morgner (1891-1917)
Otto Mueller (1874-1930)
Edvard Munch (1863-1944)
Gabriele Münter (1877-1962)
Emil Nolde (1867-1956)
Max Olderock (1895-1972)
Max Pechstein (1881-1955)
Christian Rohlfs (1849-1938)
Egon Schiele (1890-1918)
Karl Schmidt-Rottluff (1884-1976)
Marianne von Werefkin (1860-1938)

Yes,

I'd like
to receive future offers:

Expressionism

continue

Sold lots

Nolde, Emil

Sale 315 - June 12, 07
Lot 146
Oil on canvas 1919
2,537,000 EUR / 3,602,540 $ sold
Details

Mueller, Otto

Sale 261 - Dec. 01, 01
Lot 62
1911
587,985 EUR / 834,938 $ sold
Details

Mueller, Otto

Sale 227 - Nov. 30, 98
Lot 14
Lithograph printed in colours 1927
493,151 EUR / 700,274 $ sold
Details in German

Münter, G.

Sale 255 - May 19, 01
Lot 6
Oil on canvas 1909
488,028 EUR / 692,999 $ sold
Details in German

Nolde, Emil

Sale 197 - June 06, 94
Lot 236
Oil on canvas 1937
487,280 EUR / 691,937 $ sold
Details in German

Macke, August

Sale 330 - Dec. 05, 07
Lot 138
Oil on canvas 1912
483,800 EUR / 686,996 $ sold
Details

Bechtejeff

Sale 306 - Dec. 05, 06
Lot 111
Oil on canvas 1910
473,850 EUR / 672,867 $ sold
Details in German

Heckel, Erich

Sale 220 - May 15, 98
Lot 8
Woodcut in colours 1909
457,927 EUR / 650,256 $ sold
Details in German

Kirchner

Sale 207 - Dec. 04, 95
Lot 23
Oil on canvas 1913
452,056 EUR / 641,919 $ sold
Details in German

Bechtejeff

Sale 315 - June 12, 07
Lot 127
Oil on canvas 1910
454,300 EUR / 645,106 $ sold
Details