| Unit name | German Expressionism |
|---|---|
| Unit code | HART30035 |
| Credit points | 20 |
| Level of study | H/6 |
| Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 2 (weeks 13 - 24) |
| Unit director | Professor. Price |
| Open unit status | Not open |
| Pre-requisites |
none |
| Co-requisites |
none |
| School/department | Department of History of Art (Historical Studies) |
| Faculty | Faculty of Arts |
This unit will explore the birth, development and legacies of German Expressionism within the context of twentieth century visual culture in Europe. The art of the era will be explored in relation to the cultural, social and political contexts of its production. Topics may include, but will not necessarily be restricted to, some of the following: From Secession to Expression; Art and Urbanism in Berlin; Paths to Abstraction; ‘Primitive’ and Modern; War and Destruction; Revolution and Rebellion; Cool Conduct; Gender and the Public Sphere; Mass Culture and the Avant-Garde; Degeneration and Despair. Artists to be considered may include: Max Liebermann; Paula Modersohn-Becker; Käthe Kollwitz; Ernst Ludwig Kirchner and Die Brücke; Kandinsky and Der Blaue Reiter; George Grosz, Hannah Höch and Dada; The Bauhaus; Otto Dix, Christian Schad; Art and Cultural Policy in the Third Reich.
On successful completion of this unit students will have developed: 1. an in-depth and detailed knowledge and understanding of the birth, development and legacies of German Expressionism; 2. the ability to work with primary sources; 3. the ability to integrate both primary and secondary source material into a wider analysis; 4. the ability to learn independently within a small-group context; 5. the ability to select pertinent evidence/data in order to illustrate/demonstrate more general ideas; 6. the ability to derive benefit from and contribute effectively to group discussion; 7. the ability to identify a particular academic interpretation, evaluate it critically and form an individual viewpoint; 8. the acquisition of advanced writing, research, and presentation skills.
Weekly 2-hour seminar Access to tutorial advice with unit tutor in consultation hours.
3,500 word essay (50%) 2-hour unseen written exam (50%)
Eberle, Matthias World War One and the Weimar Artists: Dix, Grosz, Beckmann,
Schlemmer, (New Haven and London: Yale University Press, 1985)
Heller, Reinhold, Brücke: The Birth of Expressionism in Dresden and Berlin 1905 -1913
(New York: Neue Galerie 2009)
Lloyd, Jill German Expressionism: Primitivism and Modernity (New Haven and London: Yale
UP 1991)
Paret, Peter German Encounters with Modernism 1840-1945 (Cambridge, CUP,2001) West, Shearer The Visual Arts in Germany 1890-1937: Utopia and Despair (Manchester,
MUP, 2000)
