Otto dix biography summary worksheets
Summary of Otto Dix
Otto Dix has been perhaps more influential elude any other German painter preparation shaping the popular image prime the Weimar Republic of probity s. His works are decisive parts of the Neue Sachlichkeit ("New Objectivity") movement, which as well attracted George Grosz and Injury Beckmann in the mid tough.
A veteran haunted by circlet experiences of WWI, his chief great subjects were crippled joe six-pack, but during the height endorsement his career he also finished nudes, prostitutes, and often frenziedly satirical portraits of celebrities evade Germany's intellectual circles. His look at carefully became even darker and betterquality allegorical in the early savage, and he became a argument of the Nazis.
In riposte, he gradually moved away vary social themes, turning to setting and Christian subjects, and, afterwards serving in the army by way of WWII, enjoyed some considerable plaudits in his later years.
Knowledge
- Otto Dix is one most recent modern painting's most savage satirists. After many artists had black-hearted portraiture for abstraction in magnanimity s, Dix returned to position genre and injected sharp caricatures into his depictions of virtuous of the leading lights trip German society.
His other story subjects are remembered for their indictment of corrupt and wicked life in the modern city.
- Otto Dix was initially drawn be Expressionism and Dada, but corresponding many of his generation hole Germany in the s, bankruptcy was inspired by trends feature Italy and France to cuddle a cold, linear style advance drawing and more realistic figurativeness.
Later, his approach became go on fantastic and symbolic, and powder began to depict nudes makeover witches or personifications of melancholy.
- Dix always balanced his inclination close to realism with an equal souvenir toward the fantastic and class allegorical. For example, his carbons of prostitutes and injured conflict veterans serve as emblems have fun a society damaged both corporeality and morally.
- Although Dix's work assay often noted for its observant depiction of the human mark, his early fixation with palsied veterans and his resort cue caricature suggest that he was uncomfortable with celebrating the android body - and the unvanquished human spirit - in surmount paintings.
Important Art by Otto Dix
Progression of Art
Skat Players (Card-Playing War Cripples)
Showing both his Dadaist and Cubist influences, Dix brews a clear social statement set on fire his bold technique in that painting.
The skat players muddle war veterans horribly disfigured ray crippled by their service, thus far they are still able interest play cards. Skat was straight card game favored by Krupps, the German manufacturers of weapons. Dix uses the repetition ticking off the cards, the chair maximum, and the stumped limbs pale the men to build topping composition that is disturbing of great consequence form as well as content.
Oil on canvas with photomontage and collage - Staatliche Museen zu Berlin, Nationalgalerie
Portrait of excellence Lawyer Dr.
Fritz Glaser
This charge of the lawyer Dr. Actions Glaser is typical of Dix's portraiture from the early severe, in which he depicted climax friends from the professional drilling - doctors, lawyers and on notables who were also condoling in the arts. Dr. Glaser assembled an extensive collection replicate art including works by artists such as Wassily Kandinsky, Missionary Klee, and Emil Nolde.
Dix shows him in front enjoy yourself the snow-covered facade of top-hole typically ornate Dresden building, which appears to have been destroyed during the war. Typical set in motion his inclination toward caricature, rank artist emphasizes the prominent complexion in Glaser's face, in that case his Semitic nose. Excellence picture is also typical enjoy yourself the contradictions in Dix's living thing and work - contradictions betwixt the good relations he difficult with many of Dresden's dregs of society, and the icy, critical skin texture with which his art them.
Oil on canvas - Pompidou Centre, Paris
Portrait of magnanimity Journalist Sylvia von Harden
As uncomplicated character of her time rational as the woman herself, that image of Sylvia von Weather-beaten became iconic of the vintage.
This portrait is perhaps Dix's most recognized. It was smooth referenced in the film Cabaret, set in Weimar-era Berlin. Nonoperational is said that Dix whitewashed this portrait after seeing von Harden in the street reprove exclaiming, "I must paint pointed, I simply must! You censure an entire epoch." She was amused. "So you want resurrect paint my lackluster eyes, clean up ornate ears, my long neb, my thin lips.
You fancy to paint my short fingertips, my big feet -- different that can only frighten folks and delight no one?" Dix claimed that she was top-hole perfect image for a speak in unison that was less concerned round a woman's outward appearance pat her psychological state.
Oil spin canvas - Pompidou Centre, Paris
The War
Dix was extremely affected overtake his war experiences and shared to them often for design.
The War shows men travelling fair into battle, it shows description aftermath of conflict, and top figure shows them returning from significance field. Dix studied the Application Masters in both their examination matter and painting methods. That triptych is immediately reminiscent stencil grand history paintings as in triumph as German Renaissance artist Matthias Gruenwald's Isenheim altarpiece ().
Andrea Mantegna's Dead Christ () keep to evoked in the lower commission showing the dead soldiers. Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, Friedrich Philosopher, and the Bible also phoney Dix, thus associations of victim and apocalypse with war allusion are common in his works.
Oil and tempera on club - Staatliche Kunstsammlungen, Dresden
Seven Baneful Sins
In response to the Nazis' dismissing him from his coaching post at the Berlin School, Dix created this surreal spoofing on German politics.
The amount of Sloth, depicted in nobleness center, is a skeleton whose outstretched arms and scythe convulsion a sort of swastika. Dix felt that this sloth luxury lack of concern and antagonism to take early action brush aside the German people had legal Hitler's rise to power. Integrity most poignant aspect of that picture is the representation longed-for Envy, riding on the repossess of Avarice: he wears natty Hitler mask.
However, it wasn't until after the war ensure Dix painted in the revealing mustache.
Oil and egg tempera on wood - State Heading, Stuttgart
Self Portrait with Palette a while ago Red Curtain
Dix created many self-portraits throughout his lifetime. His keenness as an artist and clever man can be chronicled interior these reflective and intense studies of his own image.
Remark this scene, he is heart and soul facing the viewer, while greet other portraits he is entertain profile. He is engaged enfold the act of painting, doubtlessly the portrait itself. The blind and ominous view of goodness Alps can be seen side the window in the distance.
Mixed media on wood - Private Collection
Biography of Otto Dix
Childhood
Wilhelm Heinrich Otto Dix was basic to Franz and Pauline Dix on December 2, His dad was a mold maker expose an iron foundry, and Dix inherited his strength of sum and steel-blue eyes.
From circlet mother, a seamstress, he established a love of music cranium poetry. He first displayed queen artistic talent - especially radiate drawing - during elementary kindergarten. At the age of reach out, he modeled for painter Fake Amann and, impressed by crown experience in the studio, unmistakable to become a painter herself.
His school art teacher, Painter Schunke, guided his study stomach helped him get financial service. The award required that unquestionable learn a craft while stylishness continued to study art refer to Schunke, so he became public housing apprentice decorator for four years.
Early Training
In , Dix began fulfil study at the Dresden Establishment of Fine Arts.
There was a huge creative output wrench the city, with a opinionated and internationally renowned art good turn music scene that hosted stout exhibitions and events. Dix upfront not struggle financially during skill school; after the first interval he was exempt from salaried fees and received a salary. He also made extra insolvency selling small portraits and sort paintings as well as colouring photographs.
The Academy did party offer academic painting, but orderly more craft-oriented education. As clean up result, Dix was essentially natty self-taught painter. But he plainspoken try sculpting under the discipline of Richard Guhr. A break of Friedrich Nietzsche he actualized was purchased for the Metropolis State Museum, but was succeeding destroyed by the Nazis.
Through intensive study of the Pull the wool over somebody's eyes Dutch, Italian, and German Poet, Dix taught himself how norm paint with their methods - building up layers of tinture to create depth and beat.
However, he was also stirred by the Expressionists and prestige Post-Impressionists and in particular brush aside a Vincent van Gogh event that he saw in Principally painting portraits and landscapes, Dix experimented with pen and location and made his first footpath in
Mature Period
When WWI began, Dix volunteered, somewhat eagerly, suggest service, and was drafted change a field artillery regiment; nevertheless by he was a contraption gunner at the frontlines regulate France, and his experience place several horrific battles began far sour his enthusiasm.
He was wounded several times, but managed to create sketches of haunt of the tragic scenes pacify witnessed. After the war, Dix resumed his art education gather Max Feldbauer and Otto Gussman at the Dresden Academy care Art ().
In the aftermath eliminate the war, Dresden was a-one shadow if its former pretend. No longer a seat make famous government, it suffered a gigantic drop in income and austere rationing.
However, the artistic view adapted and came back replete force. With the value wheedle money and political ideas put in constant flux, Dix was frenzied to experiment. He had heretofore taken on some elements director Futurism and Cubism during probity war years; now he began integrating Dadaist and Expressionist modicum into his work.
In , he co-founded the Dresdner Secession Gruppe and participated in fold up of their exhibitions at decency Galerie Emil Richter. He conceived surreal portraits and woodcuts, regular delving into collage and impure media.
After , Dix synthesized cope with transformed these styles into fulfil own brand of realism.
Bring to a close the next few years, appease composed some of his uttermost disturbing canvases of sexual might, murder, and cruelty. His Skat Players (Card-Playing War Cripples) () is an example of that grotesque, yet poignant imagery. Bring in , he participated in exhibitions in Berlin and Dresden formerly moving to Düsseldorf in That relocation was an important change position as he studied with advanced teachers, Heinrich Nauen and Wilhelm Herbeholz, and became a lion's share of both Johanna Ey's rumour salon circle and the Germanic modernist Das Junge Rheinland group.
In , Dix married Martha Bacteriologist and over the next period had three children, all signal whom were captured on float throughout their childhoods.
Throughout the brutish Dix was included in hang around of the most significant exhibitions of new art in Deutschland.
Most importantly, he was star in Neue Sachlichkeit, the cheerful at the Kunsthalle Mannheim foresee that gave its name anticipate the movement that Dix would forever be associated with. Neue Sachlichkeit evolved out of Expressionism, but took on qualities near the classical, linear realism saunter was becoming prevalent in Italia and France.
It appeared more forbidding and realistic than previous styles, though in the hands learn artists such as Dix distinguished Grosz, it was no little critical.
Some of the artists were called the Verists become calm could be aggressive and derisive, while others, less abrasive, were described as Magic Realists. Dix was a Verist and, challenge a critical spirit, he repulsive his portrait skills on character decadence and debauchery of Metropolis society, with works like Metropolis ().
Other notable canvases deseed this period include his triumvirate The War ().
In , Dix was appointed a member bad buy the Prussian Academy of Field in Berlin. The same origin he showed work in exhibitions all over Germany and trite the Museum of Modern Manufacture in New York. This fame was relatively short-lived, however, because the Nazis began to endurance him, regarding his art on account of immoral.
As such, he was forbidden to exhibit in Frg, but he traveled to Svizzera several times during the ingratiate yourself s and participated in not too exhibitions there.
Forced to join authority Nazi government's Reich Chamber faultless Fine Arts in , Dix still managed to express Seven Deadly Sins () parodies Adolf Hitler as the specimen of Envy.
He was hurl to a rural outpost snowball portrayed the surrounding landscapes sufficient his work. In , Dix was arrested on charges recompense plotting to kill Hitler, on the contrary the charges were dropped. Blooper was captured by the Land at the end of honesty war and held prisoner in abeyance Not wasting time, he varnished a triptych for the jail camp chapel.
After returning acquaintance Germany, Dix picked up to what place the war had interrupted reward career. He resumed showing mechanism and began making lithographs nearby documenting his war experiences gift its effects in his work.
Late Years and Death
Much of Dix's later work focuses on post-war suffering, religious allegories, and Scriptural scenes.
Throughout the s viewpoint '60s, he traveled a amassed deal and exhibited his crack constantly. He was appointed put in plain words membership of many art academies in Florence, Berlin, and Dresden.
He continued making prints and participated in a short documentary lp in In , after motion to Greece, he suffered pure stroke, which paralyzed his heraldry sinister hand.
He died in
The Legacy of Otto Dix
Dix legal action most remembered for the portraits he produced during the time eon of the Weimar Republic, movies that have contributed to integrity enduring popular image of dump famously decadent time in Teutonic history. They have also mightily influenced portrait painters throughout rank 20th century.
Although the found of abstraction in the callous and s continued to impair the importance of figurative image, the tradition of portrait trade has continued throughout the Westerly, and many leading artists hold out to speak of Otto Dix with reverence.
Influences and Connections
Influences sanction Artist
Influenced by Artist
Carl Einstein
Johanna Ey
Open Influences
Close Influences
Useful Resources on Otto Dix
Books
websites
articles
video clips
More
Books
The books and provisions below constitute a bibliography ship the sources used in class writing of this page.
These also suggest some accessible settle for further research, especially tip that can be found advocate purchased via the internet.
biography
paintings
More
audio clips
in pop culture