German Encounters with Modernism, 1840–1945

by Peter Paret

In German Encounters with Modernism, Peter Paret traces the reception of modern art, from the 1840s through the Nazi era, through the lens of social and political developments in Germany. Addressing broad cultural topics, such as the early history of Expressionism, the role of anti-Semitism in German reactions to modernism, and the impact of World War I on the arts, he also includes new interpretations of the work of artists such as the sculptor Ernst Barlach. Based on new archival discoveries, this study combines a strong narrative approach with interdisciplinary analysis.

294 pages, Paperback

First published February 19, 2001

About the author

American historian who has specialised in German military history in the Napoleonic era and German artists of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.

Reviews

[Tom Brannigan · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent overview of German art from the mid 19th century until the rise of National Socialism. Max Liebermann seems to pop up everywhere as a great impressionist painter, intellectual, and politician in the doomed Wiemar Republic. Aristocratic rule, anti-Semitic diatribes, the Berlin Secessionists, German Expressionism, Paul Cassirer, Wassily Kandinsky, and Reactionary Modernism .....it's all here!