Walking into the Kimbell Art Museum’s latest exhibition this weekend, visitors to the Fort Worth institution will experience much more than an immersion into a distinctive art collection. They’ll get a glimpse at how politics influences the arts.
The “Modern Art and Politics in Germany 1910-1945” exhibition, which is debuting in Fort Worth ahead of a nationwide tour, traces the development of German modern art over the span of three decades that featured two world wars and a radical shift in global politics. The exhibition specifically explores the Neue Nationalgalerie museum of Berlin and the cultural influence of a collection fundamentally shaped by the social and political changes of the time.
That artistic evolution is felt wall-to-wall across six galleries: Expressionism, New Objectivity, International Avant-Gardes, Modes of Abstraction, Politics and War, and Before and After.
The art collection reflects works from the German Empire, World War I, the Weimar Republic, Nazi Germany and World War II. Many of the featured artworks are from German artists who worked either in secret within their homeland or in exile during periods of political repression.
“The exhibition should fascinate those more interested in history as well as those more interested in art,” Eric Lee, director of the Kimbell Art Museum, said.
The exhibition is open to the public March 30 through June 22.
If you go:
What: “Modern Art and Politics in Germany 1910-1945”
Where: Piano Pavilion at Kimbell Art Museum, 3333 Camp Bowie Blvd., Fort Worth
When: March 30-June 22
Admission: $14-$18; free for members
The Kimbell exhibition’s opening coincides with an emergence in neo-Nazism in the U.S. and growing concerns surrounding the censorship of artistic institutions and violations of freedom of speech.
George Shackelford, deputy director of the Kimbell, said the Fort Worth museum started on the exhibition several years ago to grow its German art collection.
“We were offered the opportunity to do this show and we leaped, because we don’t have great German art at the Kimbell,” he told the Report. “It really was just an opportunity to show this art to our public that happens to have this political theme.”
A glimpse into how art gets politicized
There are dual feelings of unease and fascination as viewers enter the exhibition. The museum’s dim lighting shines on nearly 70 paintings and sculptures from the Neue Nationalgalerie. The lighting feels appropriate to the ambience.
The first gallery, labeled “Expressionism,” spotlights a European art style that emerged around 1900, reflecting an emphasis on the importance of the individual. At the beginning of the 20th century, the Nationalgalerie sought to push Expressionism as the leading German art style — an idea later rejected when the Nazis came to power. Over 10 pieces in the exhibition highlight the art style’s bright colors, broad brush strokes and strong outlines.
“We have this art which was designed to be political in the first place and then it gets politicized by the government,” Shackelford explained during a press tour of the exhibition. “It is anti-establishment to start with, and that anti-establishment position was recognized and punished in the 1930s.”
In the following room, “New Objectivity” takes center stage. The art movement, spawned in the 1920s, was a sharp contrast to Expressionism that explores artists’ approach toward a realistic style inspired by the Weimar Republic. The time period was defined by political turmoil, economic hardship and new social freedoms.
A standout portrait in the gallery is Christian Schad’s “Sonja” from 1928. The woman, dressed in a flapper-style black dress, stares directly at the viewer. Her glare is almost uncomfortable, but visitors can’t help but stare right back.
The “International Avant-Gardes” portion of the Kimbell exhibition spotlights three German art dealers who were instrumental in the promotion of foreign art in the first three decades of the century. The three dealers, whose portraits are featured in the exhibition, were attacked by their fellow countrymen for their constant push of international artwork as on par with German art.
“Modes of Abstraction” shares a glimpse into a vastly different German art style from the 1900s that abandoned traditional subject matters in exchange for colors, lines and shapes. Abstract art was embraced by artists and architects who believed it best matched the modern world. The art movement was denounced under the National Socialists, the Nazi political party. The Bauhaus, founded in 1919 by German artist Walter Gropius, remains one of the most famous representations of abstractionism today.
In the final two galleries, the exhibition’s commentary on war becomes abundantly clear. Many young German artists in the late 1920s chose to directly criticize and address the political landscape. Georg Grosz’s “Pillars of Society” from 1926 spotlights four figures that represent aspects of German society: a soldier, journalist, politician and religious leader. Grosz left Germany before 1933 and spent the rest of his life outside the country.
The final gallery, “Before and After,” presents important artists of German modernism. Many of these artists, who lived under the Nazi regime from 1933 to 1945, adapted their artistic styles to convey, interpret and cope with the evolving political landscape. They took different approaches, showcasing adaptation, flight or resistance in their artworks.
Visitors leave the exhibition with a more rich, complex understanding of the ties between art and politics. That was the Kimbell’s intention, Shackelford said.
“You can come to this exhibition for a really great lesson. You can think about what happens in society and how events in history are reflected in works,” he said. “There’s a lot of gray areas to the story, but it’s one that is of real fascination for the public.”
David Moreno is the arts and culture reporter for the Fort Worth Report. Contact him at david.moreno@fortworthreport.org or @davidmreports.
Disclosure: Kimbell Art Museum has been a financial supporter of the Fort Worth Report. At the Fort Worth Report, news decisions are made independently of our board members and financial supporters. Read more about our editorial independence policy here.
This article first appeared on Fort Worth Report and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.