German Expressionism

The upheaval of World War I shook the world, greatly influencing the artistic movements of the 20th century. In 1905, the new age of German Expressionism began. These artists expressed not only the physical changes in the world but more important the emotional and psychological effects on society. Their works were influenced by the avant-garde trends of the previous generation, the boldly colorful style of the European Post-Impressionists, the fauves, and the abstract flat patterning of Art Nouveau. They emphasized painterly qualities and color over realistic portrayals of impressionism.
As the war drew nearer, more and more Expressionists allowed their emotions to leap onto the canvases, displaying unique ragged outlines, agitated brush strokes, and savage and emotional themes. At the turn of the 20th century, the German Expressionists had rejected the stylistic conventions and subjects of German visual culture. They were not afraid to depict nudes, city life, sex, fantasy, primitivism, war, religion, or death. But at the start of World War One, Expressionists groups, such as Die Brücke and Der Blaue Reiter, came to an end.
Although German Expressionism had come to an end, the culmination of World War I in 1918, led to the emergence of new art movement, Neue Sachlichkeit. Artists, who had served in the war, used their talents to express their strong emotions about their combat experiences. They wanted to expose the realities of life, moving away from abstract, idealistic, and romantic tendencies of Expressionism to emphasize the ugly. One such artist, Otto Dix, was particularly known for his portrayals of Weimar society in a bitingly sarcastic and satirical way. Portraits were meant to display the inner feelings and psyche issues of the subjects, rather than flattery. In Dix’s Portrait of J.B. Neumann, the founder of the influential Berlin gallery and publishing house is shown in a rather homely manner. Although many other publishers flourished during the early 1920’s, Neumann made small profit off his love of books and art. Dix displays the inner angst on Neumann’s face, rather than idealizing his features.
The Neue Sachlichkeit movement ended in 1933 with fall of Weimar Republic and the rise of the Nazi’s to power. That same year, Dix was stripped of his honors and many of his paintings were seized and removed from public display in German Museums. Clearly, the impact of political struggles and constricting societies greatly influence both the art and artist. Expressing the emotional and psychological components of a society seizes truth in its purest form. Thanks to Otto Dix and his contemporaries, the truths of life in the early 20th century were captured with great talent.

The Human Figure

Representations of human figures in art have varied throughout history depending on the culture and society in which they were created. For instance, 11^th century African portrayals of humans differ greatly from late Roman portraits.

Soon after the start of the 19^th century, anthropologist Leo Frobenius discovered a series of 19 small lifelike statues in Nigeria. He couldn’t believe that these naturalistic works could have been made in the Yoruba civilization that had once flourished in the region. Instead he gave credit to ancient Greek artists. Other excavators of the site believed the statues had originated in Egypt. But finally it was determined that the figures were indeed created in Nigeria in the 11^th to 12^th centuries. King from Ita Yemoo (Ife), one of the 19 statues, displays an idealized naturalism. Blemishes and signs of age are omitted but body proportions are not idealized. The head is large, representing the belief in the Yoruba civilization that the head is the ‘locus of wisdom, destiny, and essence of being.’ Additionally, the statue wears a heavily beaded costume, crown, and jewelry, to depict the figure as a ruler. The value of a wise and aware ruler in the Nigerian society is apparent in this small structure.

In ancient Rome, each new ruler placed busts and portrait statues everywhere to assert their authority. One such portrait, Trajan Decius, not only displays the ruler’s authority but also serves as a reference to the society at the time. The old and sad baggy eyes are realistic, similar to the veristic style developed in the Roman Republic. His eyes seem to glance around nervously, reflecting upon the soul of an insecure ruler during a time of civil unrest.

Throughout history artists have pulled inspiration from the society around them, leading them to capture their culture in representations of the human body, such as King from Ita Yemoo (Ife) and Portrait of Trajan Decius.

Power and Authority

Images of power and authority have never ceased to be prevalent throughout the history of art. Leaders learned to use such images to convince their societies of their majesty and ability to rule. Yet, many of these images and structures vary greatly due to the societies in which they were produced. For example, equestrian statues and royal shrines both advocate for the ruler, yet due so in very different ways.

From ancient Rome to early Renaissance and beyond, the equestrian statue has been used numerous times to display the power of a ruler. Similar to Marcus Aurelius’s statue from Rome, the bronze Equestrian portrait of Charlemagne from the Carolingian medieval period depicts the ruler overtly large in comparison to the horse. In both cases the somewhat hierarchical sizing is used to display the ruler’s power. The medieval statue depicts Charlemagne during a parade, wearing imperial clothes, and a crown. Perhaps most symbolic of his authority is the globe that he holds in his outstretched hand, a hint at his desire for world domination. Charlemagne was very important in his time, reviving classical artwork and reuniting Western Europe.

Royal shrines, prevalent in Africa, were used to display a ruler’s sacred power. In Africa around the 17^th and 18^th centuries, the Altar to hand and arm (ikegobo) was created. The bronze royal shrine functioned as an object celebrating the sacred king, Oba, who is depicted both centrally and on the top of the shrine. The hierarchical composition makes it clear who the sacred king is. His head is overemphasized to show the will and power of the “great head,” the king. Additionally, the leopards symbolize the ruler’s power over all creatures. The natural world was very important to the African culture and many of their deities are linked to nature.

In both Charlemagne’s statue and the African royal shrine, hierarchical compositions are used, making it easy for the viewer to distinguish the kings from all the rest. Rulers have used images of power and authority throughout history as a way to gain the confidence of the public and spread their influence.

Comparing Sacred Spaces

Throughout history the design and appearance of sacred spaces has greatly differed depending the religion and customs of the culture. Etruscan temples and Islamic mosques are a perfect example of the vast difference in sacred spaces.

Etruscan temples were known for their characteristic terra cotta tiled wooden roof, wooden columns, sundried brick walls, and widely spaced unfluted wooden columns only in the front. One could enter the temple through a narrow staircase in the front. Unlike Greek temples, those in Etruria were not meant to be seen from all sides. They served as a home for the statues of the gods; the roof acting as a protective overhang. The common pedimental statues seen on ancient Greek temples were rare. Instead, life-size narrative statuary was placed on the peaks of the roof. Additionally, Etruscan temples had three cellas as opposed to the preceding one cella of a typical Greek temple. This change was made to accommodate the three main gods in Etruscan culture: Tinia, Uni, and Menrva.

Islamic mosques greatly differ in structure and function from a typical Etruscan temple. A mosque is an Islamic building for collective worship. It gets its name from the Arabic word, ‘masjid,’ meaning a place for ‘bowing down.' The prototypical mosque was a hypostyle hall, a hall with a roof supported by columns, with 4 vaulted iwans and a courtyard. One such structure, the Shahi (Imam) Mosque in Isfahan, Iran, was constructed in the 11^th century. Its southwestern iwan leads into a dome-covered room in front of the mihrab, a semicircular niche usually set into the qibla wall. In the Islamic culture, the faithful must face the direction towards mecca, the qibla, when praying. Therefore, the qibla iwan is always the largest; its size and dome indicated to worshipers the proper direction for prayer. Islamic art is very distinctive and different from previous styles of art, yet it pulls ideas from other cultures, such as the central planned mosque and the use of domes.

Due to the multitude of religions and worship practices around the world, varying structures and designs of sacred spaces are essential. The architectural designs of spaces adhere to the culture of societies, capturing their essence and making a mark in history.