Welcome

Welcome to The World of Expressionism in Art. My Name is Adreana Canchola and I run this Gallery. In this Gallery you will find works of art that all use the expressionism method. This gallery includes all types of forms of expressionism in the world of art.

Exhibition Introduction

This Is The World of Expressionism in Art. In this Gallery you will find the works of : Grant Wood, Edward Hopper, Henri Matisse, Ernst Ludwig Kirchner, Pablo Picasso, Vincent Van Gogh, Edvard Munch, Max Pechstein, James Ensor, and Max Beckmann. In this Exhibition you will see all types of works that are all different forms of Expressionism. Each Piece is individual in its own way and each piece has its own unique meaning. I started off choosing one Piece of artwork and going form there. I chose every piece of artwork and artist by finding which artists used the expressionism method when creating their artwork and even though not all of these artist's main movement might not be Expressionism they still used it to created the wonderful and iconic pieces of artwork in this Gallery.

American Gothic- Grant Wood

 American Gothic was painted in 1930 by Grant Wood. This painting is Oil on beaverboard, 2'5 7/8"x 2'7/8". This artwork can be found at the Art Institute of Chicago in Chicago, Illinois. Grant Wood was born on February 13, 1891 and lived until February 12, 1942 the day before his birthday. Wood was known for his paintings depicting the rural American Midwest. He was widely known for being a Regionalist.
In the painting American Gothic your shown a farmer holding a pitchfork and a young/old looking woman in front of a house ;of Carpenter Gothic Style. The man is shown in overalls and a blazer of some sort and the woman is shown in a colonial apron and the both carry the same non-expressive facial expression. This painting is a abstract form of expressionism and really shows the American Midwest by the way that Grant Wood saw it as. I chose this painting because it is not only a iconic painting in American History but because It is the most parodied piece of art work in pop culture.

Nighthawks-Edward Hopper

Nighthawks was painted in 1942 by Edward Hopper. The painting is Oil on canvas, 2'6"x 4'8 11/16". This painting can be found at the Art Institute of Chicago in Chicago Illinois. Edward Hopper was born July 22, 1881 and lived until May 15, 1967. Hopper was into water-coloring, printmaking, and etching. In this painting you are focused on a street corner building establishment. The audience glimpses into the lighted up interior of this establishment through huge glass windows that keep the three customers and counterman safe but vulnerable all at the same time. this painting basically shows the three customers sitting in a downtown diner late at night. This painting is a form of abstract expressionism and is seen in the colors and life that are brought into this painting. This is a classic work of art and Edward Hopper's most famous work of art and portrays the pervasive loneliness of modern humans. I chose this painting because not only was it Edward Hoppers most famous painting but I believe in its self, is his most iconic piece of art work,for obvious reasons.

Woman in a Purple Coat- Henri Matisse

Woman in the Purple Coat was painted in 1937 by Henri Matisse. This painting is Oil on canvas,81 x 65.2 cm. This work of art is currently displayed in the Museum of Fine arts in Huston Texas. Henri Matisse was one of the most important French painters in the 20th century. Henri Matisse was born December 31, 1869 and lived until November 3, 1954. He was a draughtsman, printmaker, and sculptor but is well known for being a painter. He communicates joy with expressive and vibrant colors and uses such bold patters that make the painting so detailed. In the painting Woman in a Purple Coat the woman picture is supposed to be Matisse's assistant and companion Lydia Delectorskaya. This painting is an example of his mature decorative style. Lydia is shown in an exotic Moroccan costume, surrounded by a complex of abstract design and exotic color. This is an example of one of the final groups of oil paintings in Matisse's career, in 1950 he stopped painting oil paintings in favor of creating paper cutouts. the reason I chose this painting is because it is one of Matisse's last paintings. I love the colors in this painting and especially how the purple coat stands out from the rest of the painting which helps convey the way he used the expressionism method.

Street, Dresden- Ernst Ludwig Kirchner

Street, Dresden was painted in 1908 by Ernst Ludwig Kirchner. The painting is Oil on canvas, 4'11 1/4"x6'6 7/8".The current artwork is held in the Museum of Modern Art in New York City. Kirchner was one of the founders of the Die Brucke. He was a German Expressionist painter and printmaker. Kirchner was widely involved with the arts and craft movement like William Morris was. Kirchner was born May 6, 1881 and live until June 15, 1938 when he committed suicide by killing himself with a gun.
This painting was inspired by the works of Edvard Munch and his famous painting The Scream. You can clearly see the expressionism method with the colors that are violently heightened by the use of the urban scene. The painting is full of composition and color. This painting shows you a glimpse of the bustling German city before World War I. You can also see how all the faces are like masks and how they all have vacant looking which could be a representation of the psychological alienation caused by modernization. The woman in this painting can said to be almost mechanical like; In the way that they almost look lifeless.

woman with yellow hair- Pablo Picasso

Woman with Yellow Hair was painted in 1931 by Pablo Picasso. The painting is Oil on canvas, 100x81cm. Pablo Picasso was born 1881 in Spain and lived until 1971 at the age of 92. Pablo Picasso met seventeen year old Marie-Therese the January of 1927. Marie-Therese and Pablo Picasso had a love affair. Marie-Therese is the subject of this painting and also some of Picassos other paintings. Pablo Picasso had a long life and in his 80 year career he had finished about 50,000 works of art. Woman with Yellow Hair shows Marie-Therese's initials in the painting, and with curvilinear style this painting shows a graceful, poetic, and abstract homage of Marie-Therese. This painting's bright and playful colors help show how Pablo Picasso uses the expressionism method.

Starry Night- Vincent Van Gogh

Starry Night, Oil on canvas, 2'5x3'1/4. Starry Night was painted by Vincent Van Gogh in the year 1889. Van Gogh painted this piece of artwork when he was living at Saint-Paul-de-Mausole (an asylum in Saint-Remy, near Arles) where he had committed himself. Vincent Van Gogh was born March 30th 1853 and lived until July 29th 1890. Van Gogh suffered from anxiety and a period of mental illness. He lived until he was the age of 37. Many people believe that the gun shot wound that killed him was self inflicted. Van Gogh's most famous pieces of artwork are currently held in the Museum of Modern Art in New York City. For example his works include Night Café, Starry Night, Sunflowers, and Almond Branches. In every painting that Van Gogh created you can see the use of color and expressionism that he provides especially when he uses Oil on canvas. In his letters that Van Gogh sent to his brother Theo he says that "Instead of trying to reproduce exactly what I have before my eyes, I use color more arbitrarily so as to express myself forcibly" which proves that he painted things the way that he saw them and not the way that was expected.Van Gogh painted Starry Night a year before his death. In this painting rather than representing the sky he painted his feelings about the "electrifying vastness of the universe, filled with whirling and exploding stars and galaxies of stars, the earth and humanity huddling beneath it". This painting Van Gogh uses an expressionist method you can clearly see that in how he painted the night sky full of  stars that are swirled and how it makes it seem like the sky is in motion even though its not. The whole entire painting looks as if it is some how in motion. The use of color and contrast help convey what Van Gogh was trying to portray.

The Scream- Edvard Munch

The Scream was painted in 1893 by Edvard Munch. The Scream was painted on Tempera and pastels on cardboard, 2'11 3/4"x2'5" and is displayed at the National Gallery in Oslo. This painting was painted using the expressionist method. The Scream significantly departs from our visual reality. Munch uses color, figural distortion, and line to pull a strong emotional response from the audience. The painting depicts a man standing on a bridge or a pier in a landscape. Its what Munch decides to do with that landscape, bridge, and man that makes this piece of artwork so wonderful. The man who's almost skeletal like looks as if he's trying to let out a echo or a scream. The landscape behind the man seems as if its sweeping by so effortlessly.  Edvard Munch believed that humans were powerless before the natural forces of death and love and the emotions associated with them such as jealousy, loneliness, fear, desire, and despair. I really believe that, that is really portrayed in this painting.

Under the Trees- Max Pechstein

Under the Trees was painted by Max Pechstein. Max Painted this in 1911 on Oil on canvas, 29x39in and is currently held in the Detroit Institute of Arts. In this painting Max uses such vivid colors to express nature and humans going back to nature. All the colors almost blend together as if the humans and nature were almost one naturalistic scene. Max uses his knowledge of expressionism to really bring out the vibrant colors and show a beautiful nature scene on an Oil on canvas artwork. Max Pechstein was born December 31st 1881 and lived until June 29th 1955. He was a German Expressionist painter and a printmaker. He was also a member of Die Brucke group.

Intrigue- James Ensor

The painting Intrigue was painted in 1911 on an Oil on canvas, H. 37'1/4 W. 44'1/2 in. Intrigue was painted by a man with the name of James Ensor. Ensor painted this to show the prejudice and discrimination at that time. The painting takes place in Ostend, Belgium. The people in the painting are Ensor's sister Mariette and her Chinese fiancé and the local villagers of Ostend. Mariette's relationship with Tan Hee Tseu was considered a real scandal in such a rural town. Tan was an art dealer in Berlin. In the painting Mariette and Tan are in the center of the painting surrounded by the grotesque gossiping towns people who are warring carnival masks and taunting the couple. Ensor in the painting exaggerates color, form, and lines. He uses combinations of colors to intensify and show vibrant effects. He use the expressionist method in this painting by intensifying the colors he uses to help created a sense  of life and emotion. James Sidney Edouard Ensor was born April 13th 1860 and lived until November 19th 1949. He was a Belgian painter and a printmaker. His biggest influences were expressionism and surrealism. Ensor died of a short illness in 1949. He lived his entire life in Ostend, Belgium and traveled only a few times in his life. He was an expressionist in the way that he created such color and conveyed such emotion in his works of art. His works of art include The Dangerous Cooks, Intrigue, and Self Portrait with Masks.  I chose this artist because he was really deeply involved in the expressionist method and really puts a meaning into every work of art he created.

Night- Max Beckmann

Night was painted in 1918-1919 by a man with the name of Max Beckmann. This painting was painted with Oil on canvas, 4'4 3/4"x5'1/4". Beckmann was born February 12, 1884 and lived until December 28, 1950.He was struck down by a heart attack not to far from his New York apartment. He was considered an expressionist but never considered himself one. Beckmann's painting portrayed his view of the brutality of the early-20th-century society. The painting shows people as if dislocated and contorted and the space that they're all in seems unfitted for them. The entire painting from a far is so captivating but in reality is so brutal and quite disturbing. It is unbelievable how Beckmann puts so much violence into something that could be quite beautiful.

Conclusion

I found It quite difficult to find pieces of art work that were cohesive. It was also quite difficult for me to find pieces that all use expressionism.  It was hard for me to organize my exhibition because I found myself trying to put works of art in by the same artist, but I couldn't because I realized I needed a variation of artists and their works. I found this process quite challenging when I came to actually trying to find expressionists and their works of art. I started with what was my favorite artist and went from there.
I think that the job of a curator is quite difficult and I honestly thought there is a lot of pressure and responsibility in being a curator. That expressionism is a beautiful thing and that it can be shown in so many ways. I honestly didn't know that Vincent Van Gogh was an expressionist. His works of art are my favorite so I went from what I knew and I found all these other types of art that all share the same theme which is the expressionism method.