1. Expressionism ( s)

2. City Life
MoMA Expressionism Theme

3. Ernst Ludwig Kirchner. Street, Dresden. 1908
Ernst Ludwig Kirchner. Street, Dresden (reworked 1919; dated on painting 1907).
Oil on canvas, 59 1/4" x 6' 6 7/8" (150.5 x cm). Purchase
Ernst Ludwig Kirchner. Street, Dresden. 1908
MoMA Expressionism Theme

4. Let’s compare a painting and a lithograph
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The image on the left is a lithograph, made the same year Kirchner painted Street, Dresden on the right. A lithograph is a print made by drawing onto a stone using a greasy crayon ink. The process is based on the principle that grease and water do not mix. To create a lithograph, the stone is flushed with water, which is repelled by the crayon. Next the stone is inked, which is absorbed by the crayon. The image is printed onto paper from the stone, and can be re-inked many times without wear.
Besides the obvious media, what are the differences between these two images?
Ernst Ludwig Kirchner. Streetlife in Dresden (Strassenleben in Dresden) Lithograph, composition: 10 9/16 x 15 1/8" (26.9 x 38.4 cm); sheet: 17 3/8 x 21 1/2" (44.1 x 54.6 cm). Publisher: unpublished. Printer: Ernst Ludwig Kirchner, Dresden. Edition: 9 known impressions. Purchase
Ernst Ludwig Kirchner. Street, Dresden (reworked 1919; dated on painting 1907).
Oil on canvas, 59 1/4" x 6' 6 7/8" (150.5 x cm). Purchase
Ernst Ludwig Kirchner. Streetlife in Dresden
Ernst Ludwig Kirchner. Street, Dresden. 1908
How are these images similar? How are they different?
MoMA Expressionism Theme

5. Karl Schmidt-Rottluff. Houses at Night. 1912
Oil on canvas, 37 5/8 x 34 1/2" (95.6 x 87.4 cm).
Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Walter Bareiss. © 2012 Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York / VG Bild-Kunst, Bonn
Karl Schmidt-Rottluff. Houses at Night. 1912
MoMA Expressionism Theme

6. George Grosz. Metropolis (Grossstadt). 1917.
Oil on board, 26 3/4 x 18 3/4" (68 x 47.6 cm).
Purchase. © 2012 Estate of George Grosz/Licensed by VAGA, New York, NY
George Grosz. Metropolis (Grossstadt)
MoMA Expressionism Theme

7. Nature
MoMA Expressionism Theme

8. Ernst Ludwig Kirchner. Winter Moonlit Night (Wintermondnacht). 1919.
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The composition of this print has strong diagonals that crisscross the image. Where do they intersect? What role do the intersections play in the composition? Kirchner has inverted the colors in this print, making the normal color of blue sky a rocky brown and the normal color of rocky mountains the color of blue sky. Does this give you any ideas about how he felt about this landscape?
Ernst Ludwig Kirchner. Winter Moonlit Night (Wintermondnacht)
Woodcut, composition (irreg.): 12 x 11 5/8" (30.5 x 29.5 cm); sheet (irreg.): 12 11/16 x 12 5/16" (32.2 x 31.2 cm).
Publisher: unpublished. Printer: Ernst Ludwig Kirchner, Davos-Frauenkirch, Switzerland. Edition: 12 known impressions. Purchase
Ernst Ludwig Kirchner. Winter Moonlit Night (Wintermondnacht)
MoMA Expressionism Theme

9. Max Pechstein. Killing of the Banquet Roast (Erlegung des Festbratens) from the periodical Der Sturm, vol. 2, no. 93 (January 1912) (published 1912).
Woodcut, with watercolor additions, composition: 8 7/8 x 10 3/8" (22.6 x 26.4 cm); sheet: 9 7/16 x 11 7/16" (24 x 29 cm).
Publisher: Verlag Der Sturm, Berlin. Printer: Carl Hause, Berlin. Edition: Special edition, signed, with watercolor additions: 100 [this ex.]; regular edition: unknown (several 1000). Purchase. © 2012 Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York / VG Bild-Kunst, Bonn
Max Pechstein. Killing of the Banquet Roast (Erlegung des Festbratens) from the periodical Der Sturm, vol. 2, no. 93 (January 1912) (published 1912).
MoMA Expressionism Theme

10. Franz Marc. Horses Resting (Ruhende Pferde). 1911.
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During the early years of the 20th century, German painter Franz Marc devoted much of his artistic energy to creating images of horses and other animals. The allure of animals … stemmed from a deep fascination with the dynamic connection between animals, humans, and the natural world they shared. Longing to understand the spirit driving his own being, Marc looked to the horse in nature to perceive what he could not recognize in the human world. Through radical compositions and bold experiments with color, he strove to express the primary energy of the animals. (Text from the exhibition: Franz Marc and The Blue Rider, Walker Art Center, April-July
Does this image give you any clues about why Franz Marc used horses as a central image in many of his works? What kinds of energy might the horse represent in this print? What parallels does this energy have in the human world?
Franz Marc. Horses Resting (Ruhende Pferde)
Woodcut, composition: 6 5/8 x 9 1/16" (16.8 x 23 cm); sheet: 11 1/4 x 15 3/4" (28.6 x 40 cm).
Publisher: Verlag Der Sturm, Berlin. Printer: Franz Marc. Edition: approx. 3 impressions, printed in black; an unknown number of impressions (approx ), printed in color [this ex.]; 10 signed and numbered, printed in color, published by Verlag Der Sturm, Berlin; an unknown number, printed in black, in the periodical Der Sturm, vol. 3, no. 146/147 (February 1913); plus a posthumous edition of 30 issued by Otto Stangl, Munich, and printed by Gerhard Köhler, Baden-Baden, in Gift of Abby Aldrich Rockefeller
Franz Marc. Horses Resting (Ruhende Pferde)
MoMA ExpressionismTheme

11. War
MoMA Expressionism Theme

12. Take a close look at Explosion, by George Grosz…
Is this painting terrifying, or beautiful, or both?
What elements contribute to each impression?
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Is this painting terrifying, or beautiful, or both? What elements contribute to each impression?
George Grosz Explosion
Oil on composition board, 18 7/8 x 26 7/8" (47.8 x 68.2 cm). Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Irving Moskovitz. © 2012 Estate of George Grosz/Licensed by VAGA, New York, NY
George Grosz Explosion
MoMA Expressionism Theme

13. Otto Dix. Skull (Schädel) from The War (Der Krieg). 1924.
Otto Dix. Shock Troops Advance under Gas (Sturmtruppe geht unter Gas vor) from The War (Der Krieg)
Etching, aquatint, and drypoint from a portfolio of fifty etching, aquatint and drypoints, plate: 7 5/8 x 11 5/16" (19.3 x 28.8 cm); sheet: 13 11/16 x 18 5/8" (34.8 x 47.3 cm). Paper: Cream, smooth, wove. Publisher: Karl Nierendorf, Berlin. Printer: Otto Felsing, Berlin. Edition: 70. Gift of Abby Aldrich Rockefeller. © 2012 Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York / VG Bild-Kunst, Bonn
Skull (Schädel) from The War (Der Krieg)
Etching from a portfolio of fifty etching, aquatint and drypoints, plate: 10 1/16 x 7 11/16" (25.5 x 19.6 cm); sheet: 18 1/4 x 13 11/16" (46.4 x 34.8 cm). Paper: Cream, smooth, laid. Publisher: Karl Nierendorf, Berlin. Printer: Otto Felsing, Berlin. Edition: 70. Gift of Abby Aldrich Rockefeller. © 2012 Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York / VG Bild-Kunst, Bonn
Otto Dix. Shock Troops Advance under Gas (Sturmtruppe geht unter Gas vor) from The War (Der Krieg)
Otto Dix. Skull (Schädel) from The War
(Der Krieg)
MoMA Expressionism Theme

14. Max Beckmann. The Grenade (Die Granate). (1915, published 1918).
Drypoint, plate: 15 5/16 x 11 3/8" (38.9 x 28.9 cm); sheet (irreg.): 21 1/4 x 17 11/16" (54 x 45 cm). Paper: Cream, smooth, wove "japan". Publisher: Paul Cassirer, Berlin. Printer: probably Pan-Presse, Berlin. Edition: 20. Mary Ellen Meehan Fund, Johanna and Leslie J. Garfield Fund, and Frances Keech Fund. © 2012 Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York / VG Bild-Kunst, Bonn
Max Beckmann. The Grenade (Die Granate). (1915, published 1918).
MoMA Expressionism Theme