Expressionism

010 074 F Kupka(1871-1957)10 Ruban bleu 65x71 Musee Saint-Etienne — F Kupka Blue Hairband 65x71 1910 Collection of Saint-Etienne Museum, France

004 055 Kirchner 1912 La toilette 100x75 Musee national d art moderne — Kirchner Makeup 100x75cm 1912 Collection of Centre Pompidou, Modern Art Museum

003 054 Kirchner 1922 Arbre deracine 100.3x120 Landesmuseum Hanovre — Kirchner Two Rootless Trees 100.3x120cm 1922 Collection of Landesmuseum Hannover, Germany

002052 Schmidt-Rottluff 1914 Deux femms 102x87 Museum Wuppertal — Schmidt-Rottluff Two Women 102x87 cm 1914 Collection of Wuppertal Museum

001 053 Schmidt-Rottluff 1913 Quatre baigneuses sur la plage 88x102.2 Landesmuseum Hanovre — Schmidt-Rottluff Four Bathing Women 88x102.2 cm 1913 Collection of Landesmuseum Hannover, Germany

008070 James Ensor 1889 La chute des Anges rebelles 108x132 Musee beaux-art Anvers — Ensor The Fall of the Bad Angels 108x132 cm Collection of Museum of Fine Arts Antwerp, Belgium

009 071 Ensor 1888 L entree du christ a Bruxelles 258x431 Paul Getty Museum Malibu — Ensor Christ's Entry into Brussels in 1889 258x431cm 1888 Collection of Paul Getty Museum, Malibu

005 068 Munch 1894 Puberte 150x110 Nasjonal Galleriet Oslo — Munch Adolescence 150x110cm 1894 Collection of National Gallery, Oslo, Norway

006 067 Munch 1893 Le Cri 83.5x66 Munchmuseet Oslo — Munch The Scream 83.5x66cm 1893 Collection of National Gallery, Oslo, Norway

007 069 Munch 1905 Quatre Jeunes filles 126x126 Wallraf-Richartz Museum Cologne — Munch Four Girls 126x126cm 1905 Collection of Wallraf-Richartz Museum, Cologne, Germany

Expressionism is an important current of modernist art that permeated all of Europe. It was not a single school or group; unlike Fauvism, Cubism, or Surrealism, it points to an aesthetic signifier of early 20th-century Northern European, particularly German, art. The term "Expressionism" was coined by the German critic Herwarth Walden in the Berlin magazine Der Sturm to contrast with Impressionism, describing this vague and indistinct mode of expression. This revolutionary trend flourished between 1910 and 1920. Broadly speaking, Expressionism traces its roots to late Post-Impressionists of the late 19th century such as Van Gogh and Gauguin, the Belgian Ensor, the Norwegian Munch, and the Swiss symbolist Hodler, who can all be considered forerunners of Expressionism.

Expressionism manifests through subjective consciousness, utilizing intense instinctive forms and lines, explosive colors, and bold, passionate brushstrokes to directly convey the creator's emotions and sensibility. Like French Fauvism, it stems from subjectivity and instinct, favoring simplification, flattening, and even color-field approaches. However, where Fauvism leans toward lyricism—an elegant, Francophile temperament characterized by pleasure and visual appeal—Expressionism is explosive, straightforward, and sincere, pouring out inner emotional life and intuition.

German Expressionism explored diverse political and social dimensions. The most representative painters around World War I included Franz Marc, founder of Der Blaue Reiter (The Blue Rider), and member Jawlensky; notably Nolde and Kirchner. In Vienna, Austria, Klimt, Schiele, and Kokoschka were prominent. In Paris, France, the works of Rouault, Soutine, and Modigliani also approached this current. During the interwar period, representative German painters included Dix, Grosz, and Beckmann of the Neue Sachlichkeit (New Objectivity) movement, conveying social violence and unease through an accelerated realism. After World War II, Expressionist exploration tended toward abstract expressionism of inner mental imagery, while post-war British painter Bacon represented another alternative manifestation of Expressionism. In the 1980s, German Neo-Expressionism was directly rooted in the tradition of German Expressionism, serving as an artistic source that honored the past while paving the way for the future.