ST. LOUIS, MO.- The
Saint Louis Art Museum announces "Focus on the Collection: Expressionist Landscape" exhibition. The exhibition brings together a dozen German Expressionist drawings and prints from the Museums permanent collection. Dating from 1907 to 1928, these works highlight the Expressionists bold new treatment of landscape in the graphic arts.
In the early decades of the 20th century, the German Expressionists espoused a new approach to art that was both personal and confrontational, making a radical break from tradition. These artists were particularly drawn to the unapologetic and direct nature of the graphic arts, as is evident in the selection of works on view. Diverse techniques from pastel and watercolor to drypoint, lithography and woodcut are included.
The artists represented in Expressionist LandscapeMax Beckmann, Lovis Corinth, Otto Dix, Erich Heckel, Otto Müller and Emil Noldewere of different backgrounds and generations, but shared an intense subjectivity toward their surroundings that is apparent in their art. Although World War I broke the momentum of the original Expressionist movements, the artists commitment to graphic media remained a constant, as did their chosen subject matter, which included the urban scenes and pastoral landscapes featured in this exhibition.
Curated by Elizabeth Wyckoff, curator of prints, drawings and photographs, with Anne Jost-Fritz, research assistant, Focus on the Collection: Expressionist Landscape will be on view from October 14, 2011 through January 15, 2012 in Gallery 321.
The Museums collection includes over 14,000 prints, drawings and photographs, which are exhibited on a rotating basis, as in this series of Focus on the Collection exhibitions. Works on paper may also be viewed by appointment in the recently reopened Study Room for Prints, Drawings, and Photographs on the fourth floor of the Cass Gilbert building.
The Saint Louis Art Museum is one of the nations leading comprehensive art museums with collections that include works of art of exceptional quality from virtually every culture and time period. Areas of notable depth include Oceanic art, pre-Columbian art, ancient Chinese bronzes and European and American art of the late 19th and 20th centuries, with particular strength in 20th-century German art. The Museum offers a full range of exhibitions and educational programming generated independently and in collaboration with local, national and international partners.