The Other German Art 1933-1945
The exhibition “Schatten Reich” draws attention to artists such as Willi Baumeister, Jeanne Mammen, and Alexej von Jawlensky, who, after the Nazis came to power in 1933, continued—or developed anew—their non-representational work in Nazi Germany throughout the 1930s and early 1940s, despite artistic defamation and a lack of exhibition opportunities.
Image gallery
Marta Hoepffner, Feuervogel, Detail, 1940
Alexej von Jawlensky, Große Meditation: Johannes der Täufer (XXVII, N.10, V), Detail, 1936
Ella Bergmann-Michel, Im Schokkergarn, Detail, 1937
Jeanne Mammen, Brennendes Haus, Detail, um 1944
Paul Klee, Freundliches Spiel, 1933
Friedl Dicker-Brandeis, Eine negative und eine positive Form eines Kraftfeldes, 1941
Fritz Winter, Lichtstrahlen, Detail, 1934
Willi Baumeister, Tori, Detail, 1938
Perceptions of the aesthetics of the 1930s and 1940s in Germany are dominated by the Nazis’ campaign against “degenerate art.” The Nazis used this term to encompass virtually the entire artistic avant-garde of the first third of the 20th century, which did not conform to their ideological notions of an Aryan-German, naturalistic art. Yet German modernism did not end in 1933; it continued in secret.
Anyone in Germany in the mid-1930s who dared to work in an abstract style contrary to the doctrine of aesthetic conformity often faced consequences such as being banned from exhibiting or being excluded from public office. Due to political restrictions, numerous artists downplayed their artistic output, ceased producing art, or protected themselves and their work by fleeing into exile.
Following an overview of artists who went into exile after 1933—including Kurt Schwitters, Paul Klee, and Wassily Kandinsky—the exhibition focuses primarily on artists who remained in Germany and continued to work there despite the Nazi ostracism of modernism.
Only rarely was their adherence to an abstract formal language a conscious act of resistance against Nazi cultural policy. Their motivations were diverse.
Ranging from the mythically abstract works of Willi Baumeister and Fritz Winter, through the expressive works of Alexej von Jawlensky and Jeanne Mammen, the experimental photographs of Marta Hoepffner, the organic sculptures of Karl Hartung and the abstract textile works of Woty Werner, all the way to the geometric constructions of Dresden-based Hermann Glöckner or those of former Bauhaus artist Ella Bergmann-Michel—the exhibition reveals the great diversity of abstract forms of expression during the Nazi era in Germany.
Exhibition Credits
- Curated by Maike Steinkamp and Florian Illies
- Curatorial Assistant: Noor van Rooijen
- Exhibition Coordination: Luna Mignani
This project was supported by: Willi Baumeister Foundation (exhibition), German National Foundation / Zeit Bucerius Foundation (education program), Alfried Krupp von Bohlen und Halbach Foundation (catalog), Berthold Leibinger Foundation (exhibition), Ernst von Siemens Art Foundation (exhibition)
A special exhibition of the National Gallery – State Museums of Berlin
Additional information
Hours of Operation
- Monday, closed
- Tuesday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
- Wednesday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
- Thursday, 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.
- Friday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
- Saturday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
- Sunday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
