Expressionism
__________________________________________________________________
A Historical View
At the beginning of the 20th century, Expressionism developed in Germany. This movement was a reaction towards Impressionism and academic art. (USEUM, 2019).
Expressionistic artwork is mainly a representation of reality. This not objective, but rather obscured. The main reason for this was to express the inner feelings of the artist. Expressionist painters wanted to present the world from a personal perspective and show how objects and events stimulate their emotional experiences. (USEUM, 2019).
The term Expressionism was invented by Antonin Matějček, a Czech art historian, in 1910. This was the opposite of Impressionism and indicated one of the main fluctuations in art that expressed highly subjective, spontaneous, and mostly personal self-expression. This is typical of a wide range of modern artists. (USEUM, 2019).
The characteristics of Expressionism are typically exaggeration, distortion, fantasy, and primitivism. In which rich colours and bold brush strokes are used. (Totally History, 2012)
The goals of this movement were not to imitate the impression suggested by the surrounding world, but to strongly impose the artist’s own sensibility to the world’s representation. An iconic artist of this time, Edvard Munch, used these principles to create his art pieces. This can be seen in the following image. (Totally History, 2012).
The Scream, Edvard Munch,1893, Oil, tempera, and pastel on cardboard, 91 cm × 73.5 cm, National Gallery, Norway (Totally History, 2012)
__________________________________________________________________
A Contemporary Tribute
The Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of the American Indian emphasizes the transmission of contemporary native cultural practices as well as those from the past. (Smithsonian Institution, 2015).
National Museum of the American Indian, 2004, Smithsonian Institute, Washington D.C. (Encyclopedia Britannica, n.d.)
This building reflects the main features of the Expressionist movement. The design of this structure is unique due to its obscured form. There is a major exaggeration of the top part (the roof) as it forms a great curve that shadows the top half of the building. (Purvis, 2016).
As seen above, there are exaggerated curves that seem to be ongoing. The building is distorted in such a way that it seems to create a fantasied or dreamy appearance. This fantasied appearance is then heightened due to, as mentioned, the structural design not being similar to that of a generic building. (Purvis, 2016).
__________________________________________________________________
Sources
Edvardmunch.org. (2011). The Scream, 1893 by Edvard Munch. [online] Available at: https://www.edvardmunch.org/the-scream.jsp [Accessed 3 Oct. 2019].
Encyclopedia Britannica. (n.d.). National Museum of the American Indian (museum, United States). [online] Available at: https://www.britannica.com/topic/National-Museum-of-the-American-Indian/images-videos [Accessed 5 Oct. 2019].
Purvis, P. B. M. a. A. W., (2016) 6 ed. Hoboken, New Jersey(United States of America): Wiley.
Smithsonian Institution. (2015). National Museum of the American Indian on the National Mall. [online] Available at: https://www.si.edu/newsdesk/factsheets/national-museum-american-indian-national-mall [Accessed 3 Oct. 2019].
Totally History. (2012). The Scream by Edvard Munch - Facts & History of the Painting. [online] Available at: http://totallyhistory.com/the-scream/ [Accessed 2 Oct. 2019].
USEUM. (2019). Expressionism: What is Expressionism?. [online] Available at: https://useum.org/Expressionism/What-is-Expressionism [Accessed 3 Oct. 2019].
