Expressionists at LACMA Continued

I returned to the Los Angeles Museum of Art on Tuesday to view the Van Gogh to Kandinsky French and German Expressionists exhibit.  I roamed through the paintings I had seen on my last visit and once again enjoyed the up close moments with colorful expressive artist of the early 20th Century. The period between the 1870's war between France and Germany and the first world war was very rich for artists in the two countries.  The bold colors, broad and quick brush strokes of Van Gogh were finally seen and appreciated by artists and collectors all over Europe. Matisse relished the bright colors and joined a group of artists who were called the Fauvists.  Cezanne's creative images was an inspiration of the Cubists Picasso and Braque.

All of this changed with WW I.  Some of the artists were called back to their countries of origin, like Russia, to fight in the war.  Others died.  For those who survived, their life views changed as seen in the post war Dada movement and others.

The Nazi's persecuted Expressionist artist starting in the 1930's.  They were rehabilitated in the 1950's.

Here are my photos of the paintings I viewed for the first time on Tuesday:

"Saint-Tropez Evening Sun," 1894, watercolor by Paul Signac, French 1863-1935 

"Red Blossom," 1910 by Alexei Jawlensky, Russian, active Germany, 1864
This artist along with Adolf Erbsloh, Wassily Kandinsky, Gabriele Munter, and Marianne Werefkin founded New Artists Association of Munich in 1909.  They believed the Munich Secession group was too conservative.  They showed Fauvists and Cubist works, including Picasso. 

"Fairy Princess with a Fan," 1912 by Alexi Jawlensky.  By 1912 the artist created his style of painting the human face and body in a creative fashion using his bold flamboyant colors.

"Stables," 1913 by Franz Marc, German, 1890-1916
Marc was a member of the Blue Rider group and believed art contained a spiritual dimension.  Being a former theology student, he believed God was omnipresent and in animals in particular.  In this painting, Marc has created a colorful prismatic view of horses, his favorite subject, in a stable.

"Harlequin and Columbine," 1913 by Heinrich Campendonk, German, 1889-1957

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"Landscape with Cows, Sailing Boat, and Figures," 1914 by August Macke, German, 1887-1914

"Sketch I for Painting with While Boarder," 1913 by Wassily Kandinsky
This Russian artist often included imagery from Russian culture, including folk takes.  He was one of the founders of the Blue Rider group named from folk tales and the motif of horse and rider that frequently appeared in Kandinsky's work.

"Red Eiffel Tower," 1911-12 by Robert Delaunay, French, 1883-1941

"Apples and Biscuits," 1879-80 by Paul Cezanne, French, 1839-1906
In 1912, the work of Paul Cezanne, one of the essential inspirations for Cubism, was widely available in Germany and influenced the artists.  Pablo Picasso's Cubist works were also being imitated by German artists.

"Still Life with Jug and African Bowl," 1912 by Ernst Ludwig Kirchner, German, 1880-1938



"Still Life with Nude, Tile, and Fruit," 1913 by Max Pechstein
The artist's still life of carefully arranged fruit bears the influence of Paul Cezanne.  "A figure emerging from the background evokes the work of Paul Gauguin, who inspired Pechstein to travel to Palau in the South Seas.

"Reflective Woman," 1912 by Karl Schmidt-Rottluff, German 1884-1976
This painting shows the influence of Cubism after the artist moved from Dresden to Berlin and saw the works by Picasso.

"Still Life with Apples," 1893-94 by Paul Cezanne
"In this masterful composition Cezanne carefully arranged objects with contrasting textures to create a series of curves and countercurves causing distortions such as he stretched oval opening of the green jug.  This attention to structure and the experiential nature of vision appealed to the Cubists and Expressionists...when the painting was shown at the 1912 exhibition in Cologne."

"Street, Berlin, 1913 by Ernst Ludwig Kirchner, German 1880-1938
"Various levels of erotic tension are conveyed in the choreography between the coquettes and their prospective customers.  The pointed, angular forms derived from Cubism.

"Violin and Palette," 1909 by George Braque, French 1882-1963
"Cubism abandoned the traditional fixed viewpoint, which mimics the way the eye sees, with a central focal point, exploring multiple points of view at once."  Cubism was pioneered by Braque and Picasso in 1907.

"Sleeping Woman - Julia," 1913 by Lyonel Feininger, American, active Germany, 1871-1956

"Bust of a Nude Woman," 1906 by Pablo Picasso, Spanish, active in France, 1881-1973