1920/30 Artists

OTTO DIX

Otto Dix was a german painter and print maker of the early decades of the 1900s. He was notorious for his graphic depictions of the Weimar society and showed a harsh reality of the war. His work tells a story of Germany through the early part of the 20^th Century.

In ‘Berlin in the 20s’ by Rainer Metzger, many of Dix’s work is published to display the rawness of the culture of Berlin during this time. He exposes the unglamorous underground scenes which include sex, femme fatales, drug use androgyny. The book states:

“These were the years of undisguised androgyny; of redefining the roles of men and women; and of constantly changing sexual preferences; the true sexual identity hidden, but the sexual identity of choice was paraded in a desire to shock and entice.”

Rainer Metzger, 2007. Berline in the 20s. Art and Culture 1918-1933. Cult and Culture of the Superficial. P.214. 2007 Thames & Hudson

I believe that Dix’s work perfectly captures this quote. Some of his most well-known images below:

Portrait of the Journalist Sylvia von Harden, 1926, viewed 08.10.14 [online image] Available at:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Otto_Dix#mediaviewer/File:Otto_Dix_Sy_von_Harden.jpg

Cosi fan tutte, wikiart, viewed 08.10.14 [online image] Available at:

http://www.wikiart.org/en/otto-dix/cosi-fan-tutte

The Nun, wikiart, viewed 08.10.14 [online image] Available at:

http://www.wikiart.org/en/otto-dix/the-nun

The Dancer Anita Berber, 1925, wikiart, viewed 09.10.14 [online image]

http://www.wikiart.org/en/otto-dix/the-dancer-anita-berber

In class, we were presented with two images to recreate onto someones face using a paint brush effect technique. The two options included one of the above images, 'Portrait of the Journalist Sylvia von Harden' and the other was 'Self Portrait' (shown below):

Self Portrait, 1913, The Online Otto Dix Project, viewed 13.10.14 [online image] Available at: http://www.ottodix.org/index/catalog-paintings

Here are my interpretations:

To create this look, I used the Supracolor grease based palette. The application was carried out using multiple brush strokes and a sponge. My main aim was to ensure that I maintained the painting effect by minimal blending and keeping a close eye on the structure of the painting and face. The painting shows an array of colours including greens and oranges to show depths to the face. 


Otto Dix captured the real essence of the sex scenes with his graphic images of prostitutes. Most books about Berlin in the 1920s will show his paintings.

Otto Dix, 1926, Three Wenches [online image] Available at: http://madamepickwickartblog.com/2011/05/gotta-serve-somebody-2/

ALEXANDER BINDER

Margo Lion, 1927, Alexander Binder. Found image in: Rainer Metzger, Berlin in the 20s - Art and Culture 1918-1933, 2007 Thomas &Hudson. viewed online: 13.10.14. [online image] Available at: http://www.pinterest.com/pin/246994360786154072/

ZANDER & LABISCH