Uwe M. Schneede

Social injustices, hunger, war, sorrow and death - these are the subjects most frequently associated with Käthe Kollwitz (1867-1945). That nude representations also featured in all areas and phases of her work is less well known. The artist dedicated drawings, printed works on paper and sculptures to this subject. Initially these works were close to the symbolism of Max Klinger, and later developed into coloured prints that are on a par with the nudes of French modernism. And finally, there are the drawings and sculptures that reveal her enthusiasm for the work of Rodin and Maillol. Exhibition: Kunstforum Ostdeutsche Galerie Regensburg, Germany (24.08.-03.11.2013). 0.

This engaging book offers a fresh look at the exceptional works of Edvard Munch (1863-1944) by examining them in the light of his precarious mental state. Following a nervous breakdown in 1908, Munch underwent electroshock therapy, which prompted a marked change in his art work. The haunting Self-Portrait between the Clock and the Bed, finished one year before his death, represents a culmination of the themes of mortality, isolation, and anxiety that he explored repeatedly, and provides, in these pages, a perfect lens through which to view the artist's entire oeuvre. Informative essays consider Munch's position in the art world, his conception of self as a means of experimentation, and the psychological content of his paintings, while a previously unpublished foreword by the celebrated Norwegian novelist Karl Ove Knausgaard offers a new perspective on Munch's life and work. Featuring over 40 masterworks from throughout the painter's career, and an illustrated chronology that traces the progression of his emotional state and its influence on the images he created, this is an intimate, provocative study of an enigmatic artist and his remarkable legacy.

This visually stunning volume offers perceptive examinations of several renowned German and Austrian Expressionist artists who redefined modern self-portraiture. The self-portrait has been a vital aspect of artistic expression throughout history. Neo-Classical painters such as El Greco and Rembrandt formalized the practice, and the first half of the 20th century saw a dramatic transformation in the self-portrait's style and context, especially in the hands of the German and Austrian Expressionists. Vibrant reproductions of works by Egon Schiele, Max Beckmann, Ernst Ludwig Kirchner, Oskar Kokoschka, and others are accompanied by essays that explore how these artists--many of whom were classified as "degenerate" by the Nazi party--imbued their images with eloquent expressions of resistance, isolation, entrapment, and provocation. From Schiele's erotically charged and overtly physical paintings to Beckmann's emotionally fraught depictions of psychic trauma, this important examination of a powerful aspect of modern European painting brilliantly illustrates how the Expressionist self-portrait became a powerful weapon against artistic oppression. 00Exhibition: Neue Galerie, New York, USA (28.02.- 24.06.2019).