Expressionism

1905-1920

Expressionism was a German art movement. An art movement that was inspired by the symbolists of the late 19th-century art.

Expressionism is an art movement that made artists become more concerned with expressing their inner emotions rather than their external reality.

There is a difference between expressionism and expression.

Expressionism is conveying what the artist feels, onto something that can be seen, usually conveying these feelings on a canvas.

The expression is the action of making known of one's thoughts and feelings. These terms reflect on the Expressionism movement, which defines it and makes it a unique movement.

The expressionism movement artists used exaggerated colours, aggressive brush strokes, exaggerated distortion of the way paint was used. How these artists painted, they expressed themselves in each artwork.

Genesis 

The difference between impression and expression:

Impression- the artist's options are formed without conscious thought. The artists painted visibly, the world impacted the painters.

Expression-  the artist's feelings are pushed out into the world. The Expression is subjective and experiences are centred within the artwork. Expression rejected the social values, it broke rules of the academically educated paintings. The expression evoked the subjective responses that the artists have to objects or events.

The early 1920's concerns an ambivalent attitude with modernity.

The expressionism artists wanted the new, even though they saw the bad in it. The movement encompassed the first World War. The result of an intensely rapid period of industrialisation in the 19th century, the movement experienced an explosive in size and population density between German unification.  They believed that a person becomes alienated in with the city. 

Der Bruke(the bridge):

Banded together in 1905 creation of expressionism. The Der Bruke used bold colours to depict gritty scenes of the city life which convbeyed raw emotion. Expressionism artists often used swirling, swaying and exaggeratedly executed brushstrokes in the depiction of their subjects. Anxiousness made their marks. 

Expressionism painters had, to be honest when expressing their feelings, and that created closer connections with their emotions.

   

Figure 1: Nolde, E, Masks, 1911, Oil on Canvas.

http://www.theartstory.org/movement-die-brucke-artworks.htm#pnt_5

The painting above done by Emil Nolde is a Der Bruke painting, the painting of the masks show his maturity and how he used his colours.  He included masks in his painting and used them as the visual language of alienation and disconnect. The use of African masks showed the primitivism. These masks are painted in such a away that they look melted on the canvas. 

City life became disconnected, incorporating primitivism element. Artists wanted to avoid the alienation and be closer to nature. 

Ernst Ludwig Kirchner

Kirchner's work became comodified to the city. There is always emotion in his paintings of which he painted the modern city, by using formal innovations, psychological reasons.

De Bruke characteristics

Figurative distortion that is directly on the image and chooses the colour depending on their mood. The fascination of which is ugly. They consider their society deforms, is preserved, is negative, alienates. 

The find their inspiration in the work of primitive cultures.

Die Blaue Reiter 

Abstract counterpart.

Figure 2. Marc, F, Yellow Cow, 1911, Oil on Canvas.

https://za.pinterest.com/willemhemmen/der-blaue-reiter-franz-marc/

Preserving the spiritual value of art(spiritually through art).

Early Avant-garde(Russian immigrants.

Concerning the spirituality in art influential peace of writing, that considered as Avant-garde.

Trying to communicate a pure expression, association with form.Spiritual expression, figurative objects, non naturalistic colours, expressive meaning because of the colour change. Blue was most spiritual reaching places you couldn't before. Rider a symbol of transcendence. Spiritual journey or level.

Most of Marcs mature work portrays animals, visually in natural settings. Bright primary colours, and almost Cubist portrayal of animals start simplicity and a profound sense of emotion. The throwing away of city things.

• Blue is the male principle 
• whit is the cleansing
• Yellow, happy and women
• Red,  heavy and matter. 

 

Die Blaue Reiter didnt cacre about what they did, they cared about what the ancestors did(my thought).
Music was the perfect analogy for the abstract usual arts. Not only was music capable of evoking deep emotional reasons or spiritual resonances, but the timbres of certain instruments might evoke certain images or associations despite the inability for the human eye to "see" music. Music evoke feelings in people(pure emotions).

Vassily Kandinsky  

Each colour had a pitch and volume(auditory language) associated with specific colours.

Emotions through a unity of sensation, experiencing what emotions are.

Vassily Kandinsky, Composition No 7: 1913

People considered this artwork as a piece of music. No meaning, meaning of music hence they approach it as music. He physically painted sound. Not representing anything even his titles have no representation. 

Kathe Kollwitz

Print maker, sculpture, whose work offered an eloquent often searing account of the human condition and the tragedy of war, in the first half of the 20th century.

Destroyed her monument in 1919 and began in 1923. Woodcuts and lithographs(her prints). She made 270 prints. War had and effect on her. 

Figure 3: Kollwitz, K, The survivors, 1923, charcoal on paper.

http://aestronauts.com/post/114048762630/kathe-kollwitz-the-survivors

A quieting drawing.

The reason why she does not have eyes is because the eyes are the window of the soul.

She doesn't use colour evokes the emotion that is captured.

She chooses to use dark colour(depression).

She saw women as a protector, this was influenced by her own personal tragedy.

Her drawings were depiction of sadness and depression.

She used self portraits to express her feelings and a way of acknowledging her feelings and dealing with her feelings.

Egon Schiele

Figure 4: Schiele, E, Weilbliches Liebespaa, 1915

https://za.pinterest.com/viewfinder/egon-schiele/https://za.pinterest.com/viewfinder/egon-schiele/

He used signature graphic styles, he was one of the leading figures of Austrian expressionism. He was influenced by Gustuv klimt, he was his mentor and how he treated his mark making, and how he distorted his figures(figurative distortion) in order to explore emotion.

The reason why they did it focused on more of the ugly side of this, he didn't paint pretty things nor people.

Attempting to capture their emotional states of his sisters. He regarded drawing as his primary art form, with its emphasis on contour, graphic mark and line linearity. He used emotional distortion. 

Self portraits are extraordinary not only for the frequency with which the artist depicted himself. 

Expressionism Now-A-Days

Figure 5: Anderson, C.D, Future figure 7, 2013, Acrylic painting.

http://www.absolutearts.com/art-for-sale/themes/all/abstract_figurative/expressionism-11.html

The above painting is an expressionistic painting that allows the viewer to relate to it. the painting depicts a woman sitting alone with her face down and naked. These elements can mean that she is is not shy to expose her body however she has shame, from the look on her face and how she looks away from the viewing point. The woman looks paper cut from the background which lets her stand out from it and makes her stand out in front on her own. She is outlined in white, to show that she is the important subject on the canvas. This painting is a good example of modern expressionism, because not many people express themselves using painting anymore. It is a very simplifies painting that had greater meaning to it rather than just being a painting anyone can judge. The Brushstrokes that are used, the limited amount of colour used, taking it back to the use of primary colours, therfore it is a good example.