Print Exhibition: A Restless and Desperate Art (German Prints of the 1920s

3 November 1988–January 1989

One major source of optimism in Germany at the end of World War I was due largely to workers’ strikes, seen by the greater public as the beginning of sweeping social change. However, when the strikes were effectively put down by the government, that optimism quickly dissipated, leaving in its wake a negativism that ultimately permeated the art produced during the period. Expressionism continued to be the most popular style of the moment, but a shift occurred in its general application. Käthe Kollwitz and Max Beckmann called upon their own hardships to create works that might compel others to provide relief for those in need. George Grosz and Rudolf Schlichter parodied corruption and disorder with cynical desperation. Eventually, these artists were blacklisted by the emerging Nazi government, their art was labeled “degenerate,” and many of them fled their country. The prints from the Smart Museum’s permanent collection chosen for this exhibition arose from this difficult moment in German art, and included these artists as well as Ernst Barlach and Otto Dix.

Curator: Stephanie D’Alessandro, graduate student curatorial intern 

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