The Frist Center for the Visual Arts presents

Monet to Dalí, a teacher’s guide to accompany selected works from the exhibition. Featuring paintings and sculptures that span a series of art movements from Realism to Surrealism, Monet to Dalí Discovery Tours and Look and Learn Tours encourage students to examine the ways artists built on each other’s ideas while making their own distinctive contributions to the history of art. What’s in This Teacher’s Guide? Preparing for your visit, page 1 Monet to Dalí Overview, page 2 Prelude to Impressionism, pages 3–4 The Age of Impressionism, pages 5–6 Rodin and the Advent of Early Modern Sculpture, pages 7–8 Post-Impressionism, Symbolism, and the Nabis, pages 9–10 Picasso and the New Avant-garde, pages 11–12 Modern Artists from across Europe, pages 13–14 Expressionism and “New Objectivity” in Germany, page 15–16 Surrealism, pages 17–18 Learn more, back cover

A handprint marks discussions and activities for students.

On view at the Frist Center February 15–June 1, 2008

Preparing for your visit… The Monet to Dalí teaching packet was designed to help teachers prepare students for gallery visits and related activities. This packet contains a teacher’s guide, eleven color art reproductions, and a Master Art gallery guide. Teacher’s Guide The guide begins with an introduction to the exhibition. The subsequent sections include information about artworks and artists that may be used in class or assigned to older students for outside reading. Designed for adaptation, “Connect and Create” activities allow students of all ages to relate the material to their own lives. Activities are accompanied by color reproductions of the following artworks. Color Art Reproductions • Edouard Manet, Berthe Morisot, ca. 1869 • Claude Monet, The Red Kerchief: Portrait of Mrs. Monet,

1868 or 1878 • Auguste Rodin, The Thinker, ca. 1880 • Paul Cézanne, Pigeon Tower at Bellevue, 1889–1890 • Vincent van Gogh, The Poplars at Saint-Rémy (Les peupliers

sur la Colline), 1889 • Pablo Picasso, Harlequin with Violin (“Si tu veux”), 1918 • Amedeo Modigliani, Portrait of a Woman, ca. 1917–1918 • Piet Mondrian, Composition with Red, Yellow, and Blue, 1927 • Henry Moore, Three-Way Piece No. 2: Archer, 1964 • Karl Schmidt-Rottluff, Self-Portrait with Hat, 1919 • Salvador Dalí, The Dream (Le rêve), 1931 Master Art Gallery Guide Located in the Frist Center’s Education Gallery, Master Art features three paintings and one sculpture from the exhibition Monet to Dali: Modern Masters from the Cleveland Museum of Art. The accompanying gallery guide includes questions and activities that encourage visitors to engage deeply and directly with the works of four masters and to explore what made these artists so innovative. It also includes “A Guide to Looking at Any Work of Art,” which teachers may use to encourage careful analysis and discussion of the artworks featured in the teacher’s guide. Cover: Vincent Van Gogh (Dutch, 1853–1890). The Poplars at Saint-Rémy (Les peupliers sur la Colline), 1889. Oil on fabric, 61.6 x 45.7 cm. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Bequest of Leonard C. Hanna Jr., 1958.32. © The Cleveland Museum of Art

Monet to Dalí Modern Masters from the Cleveland Museum of Art Between 1860 and 1960 Europe faced a series of social, political, and economic upheavals: industrialization, the Franco-Prussian War, decolonization, and the First and Second World Wars. During the same century, the German philosophers Karl Marx (1818–1883) and Friedrich Nietzsche (1844–1900), and the Austrian psychiatrist Sigmund Freud (1856–1939), offered radical new ways to interpret the human experience. Art also underwent major transformations as a series of movements rapidly succeeded one another, beginning with Realism and ending in Surrealism. The chronological presentation of paintings and sculptures in the Frist Center galleries demonstrates the ways artists built on each other’s ideas and discoveries while making their own distinctive contributions to the history of art. Friendship and rivalry, creativity and rebellion, new ways of seeing and unconventional techniques are leitmotifs of this sweeping presentation of works by Europe’s modern masters. All the works of art on view come from the Cleveland Museum of Art, an encyclopedic collection especially strong in European nineteenth- and twentieth-century painting and sculpture. The temporary closure of the museum during a renovation and expansion project provides the extraordinary opportunity for Cleveland to share more than seventy-five of its greatest treasures with other cities around the world, including Nashville. Above: Salvador Dalí (Spanish, 1904–1989). The Dream (Le rêve), 1931. Oil on canvas, 96 x 96 cm. The Cleveland Museum of Art, John L. Severance Fund, 2001.34. © 2008 Salvador Dali, Gala-Salvador Dali Foundation / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York Curriculum Connections Monet to Dalí Discovery Tours and Look and Learn Tours support the Tennessee Curriculum Frameworks by introducing ideas relevant to the visual arts, language arts, and social studies curricula. Specific standards are addressed at age-appropriate levels. You may view connections for all grade levels (K–12) at www.fristcenter.org.

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Prelude to Impressionism

In mid-nineteenth-century Paris, the annual Salon of the Royal Academy of Painting and Sculpture was the major venue for artists to exhibit their work, win prizes, attract patrons, and earn commissions. Salon juries systematically rejected work that did not conform to academic subject matter, standards of beauty, and style. Progressive artists grew increasingly dissatisfied with a system that favored the conservative over the innovative. Even before the author and critic Charles Baudelaire (1821–1867) made his famous call in 1863 for an art that expressed the “heroism of modern life,” Gustave Courbet had started creating it. The painter represented peasants and laborers in rural landscapes in a direct style known as Realism. With the provocative pictures of ordinary people exhibited at the Salon in the late 1840s and early 1850s, Courbet caused one scandal after another. A decade later, another painter, Edouard Manet, shocked Salon juries and the public even more with his brazen nudes and freely brushed compositions. The next generation of progressive artists found inspiration in both Courbet’s and Manet’s defiance of academic standards, but blazed a new and different path for themselves. They focused on portraits of the upper middle class, themes of urban and suburban leisure, and landscapes. They also often painted outdoors, or en plein air. Throughout the 1860s and early 1870s, these artists continued submitting to the Salon. Their works, however, were often displayed where they could not be easily seen, or were rejected outright. Edouard Manet (French, 1832–1883) Berthe Morisot, ca. 1869 This painting depicts Berthe Morisot, a painter who began working closely with Manet around 1868 and married his brother Eugène in 1874. She posed for Manet more than any other woman; in this portrait he painted her in a momentary, fleeting state. Manet’s sketchy brushwork gives the painting a daringly unfinished look, much like that Morisot herself often achieved in her own work. Manet kept this work throughout his life, and it is listed in the inventory of his studio after his death in 1883. Right: Edouard Manet (French, 1832–1883). Berthe Morisot, ca. 1869. Oil on fabric, 74 x 60 cm. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Bequest of Leonard C. Hanna Jr., 1958.34. © The Cleveland Museum of Art

Connect and Create: Static and Active Portraits

Manet painted Morisot’s portrait numerous times, and each time he made choices about how to capture his subject. In early works, for example, he chose to present her in static poses with neatly styled hair. In later works, she often appears to be moving. What has Manet done to suggest movement in this particular portrait?

* Additional images available online at: The Cleveland Art Museum www.clevelandart.org/explore

Search: “Manet” The Art Institute of Chicago www.artic.edu/aic/collections/citi/search.html

Artist: “Manet” Title: “Morisot”

Compare this work to other portraits Manet painted of Morisot. * Notice the subtle differences between them. Manet carefully considered each posture, gesture, and expression. Even his brushstrokes seem to reflect the mood and personality of his sitter. Try it! Create several portrait sketches of a classmate in both static and active poses. Then, review your sketches and reflect on your creative process. How would you describe the lines you used to capture the stillness or motion of your subject? How do the various poses, gestures, and expressions reflect the emotional and physical state of your sitter? Which of your drawings most convincingly captures the disposition of your sitter at the time the sketches were created?

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The Age of Impressionism Turning their backs on the French academic system, thirty artists agreed not to submit any work to the 1874 Salon, and instead exhibited together in the studio of the photographer Nadar, at 35 boulevard des Capucines, in the center of Paris. Led by Claude Monet, the group included Edgar Degas, Paul Cézanne, Camille Pissarro, Berthe Morisot, and Pierre-Auguste Renoir, and called themselves the Société anonyme des artistes, peintres, sculpteurs, graveurs, etc. A hostile critic, however, branded them “impressionists” in response to Monet’s sketchy view of a harbor under morning fog entitled Impression: Sunrise (Musée Marmottan, Paris). Soon the artists embraced this name for themselves as well. Like Monet, many members of the group had a profound interest in atmospheric effects and used high-keyed colors and short, rapid brushstrokes. But what united the artists more than any name or shared style were the close friendships and rivalries that encouraged the development of new ideas. Seven more Impressionist exhibitions followed between 1876 and 1886, with the membership of the group varying slightly each time. Many significant painters of this period, most notably Edouard Manet, never joined the Impressionists because they still considered the Salon the best arena in which to compete. Nonetheless, they thoughtfully responded to the Impressionists in their own work and shared some of the same subject matter. Claude Monet (French, 1840–1926) The Red Kerchief: Portrait of Mrs. Monet (La capeline rouge, portrait de Madame Monet), ca. 1868 or 1878 Few paintings by Monet are as hauntingly beautiful as The Red Kerchief. The painting depicts Monet’s wife, Camille Doncieux, who died a young woman in September 1879. The artist did not submit this painting to either the Salon or the Impressionist exhibitions, and it is unclear precisely when he painted it. Monet limited his palette to blue, white, red, gray, and green, and focused on the transitory effects of the falling snow. Right: Claude Monet (French, 1840–1926). The Red Kerchief: Portrait of Mrs. Monet (La capeline rouge, portrait de Madame Monet), 1868–1878. Oil on fabric, 99 x 79.8 cm. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Bequest of Leonard C. Hanna Jr., 1958.39. © The Cleveland Museum of Art

Connect and Create: An Impressionist Sky

Many members of the Impressionist group had an intense interest in creating atmospheric effects. Monet, for example, used short, rapid brushstrokes to capture the fleeting effects of falling snow and the changing light of day. Try it! Observe the sky at different times of day—in the morning when you wake, on your bus ride or car ride home from school, and in the evening as the light fades. Notice variations in the sky’s color and brightness from sunrise to sunset. For each stage of your observations, select a sheet of construction paper and a few chalk pastels (or other drawing media) that correspond with the color of the sky at that particular time of day. Then, experiment with mark making. Try short, rapid strokes like the kind Monet used to capture atmospheric conditions. After filling an entire sheet of paper with marks, repeat the process for each additional stage of your observations. Complete a series of atmospheric drawings and compare your impressions of the sky over the course of one or more days. How would you generally characterize the sky and its light at different times during the day? What type of colors and marks did you use to capture the sky's variations—at sunrise versus sunset, for instance?

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Rodin and the Advent of Early Modern Sculpture

Auguste Rodin redefined sculpture during the same years the Impressionists revolutionized painting. Like them, he struggled to be accepted by the juries arbitrating entry to the Salon and to receive government commissions. After failing three times to win the French academy’s prestigious Prix de Rome, Rodin traveled independently to Italy, where he studied the bronze sculptures of Donatello and Ghiberti and the marble statues, frescoes, and drawings of Michelangelo. Rodin’s conception of the body and its expressive potential, as well as his working methods and technique, all show a clear debt to Florentine Renaissance masters. Success eluded Rodin for twenty years. In 1880, he finally won his first official commission—a pair of bronze doors for the entrance to the École des Arts Décoratifs in Paris, which Rodin developed into an ambitious ensemble called the Gates of Hell. The title refers to Ghiberti’s famous bronze doors, the Gates of Paradise, made for the Baptistery of Florence Cathedral in the early fifteenth century. Rodin never finished his doors, but they served as the framework for countless smaller sculptures that would become independent works. The best known of these is The Thinker. Once established, Rodin received many other major commissions, including portraits of French intellectuals and public monuments. During his lifetime, Rodin made multiple casts from the same plaster models. Even more casts of his works were made after his death. For this reason, it is possible to see similar versions of Rodin’s famous sculptures in museums around the world. Auguste Rodin (French, 1840–1917) The Thinker, ca. 1880 The Thinker first developed as part of Rodin’s Gates of Hell, a sculpted doorway for a proposed museum of decorative arts in Paris. Intended to be part of a relief directly above the doors, the rugged figure was originally conceived as a generalized image of the Italian poet Dante. Once Rodin separated him from The Gates, however, he became The Poet-Thinker, and finally just The Thinker. Right: Auguste Rodin (French, 1840–1917). The Thinker, ca. 1880. Bronze, h. 72.3 cm. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Gift of Alexandre P. Rosenberg, 1979.138. © The Cleveland Museum of Art

Connect and Create: Critical Thinking, Creative Writing

The Thinker was originally conceived as a figure gazing down on Rodin’s Gates of Hell. Now separated from its original context, the sculpture can be seen in a variety of settings from museums to sculpture gardens, and it has even been caricaturized in popular media. How might these different contexts and surroundings influence viewers’ perceptions of The Thinker and his “thoughts”? Think it over. Imagine The Thinker contemplating his current surroundings and current time period. Consider, for example, where he “sits” in the Frist Center galleries in 2008. If he were to speak, what insights might he share? Come up with an interesting setting in which you would place The Thinker. Consider the daily activities that occur in this location. Is the environment busy or relaxed? What are the sights, sounds, and smells here? Is it the site of an important current event? Find images and create a collage that depicts the setting you have chosen for The Thinker. Then, write a compelling narrative to accompany your work. Explain what The Thinker might share about the surroundings you have chosen for him.

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Post-Impressionism, Symbolism, and the Nabis

Post-Impressionism is the term coined in 1910 by the English art historian Roger Fry (1866–1934) to describe French painting that came directly on the heels of Impressionism and moved beyond its inherent limitations. More recently, the term has been more narrowly applied to the work of its four most significant artists: Georges Seurat, Paul Cézanne, Vincent van Gogh, and Paul Gauguin. The Post-Impressionists continued using the vivid colors, the distinctive brushstrokes, and the contemporary subject matter of the Impressionists, but emphasized geometric shapes, distorted form for expressive effect, and used unnatural or arbitrary color. Dissatisfied with the loss of structure in Impressionist paintings, they did not agree on a single way forward and pursued independent paths. Seurat developed Pointillism, the systematic use of tiny dots of color, which produces more vibrant color effects than if the pigments had been mixed together. Cézanne set out to restore a sense of order and structure to painting, which he achieved by reducing objects to basic shapes, such as cones, cylinders, and spheres. Van Gogh used color and vibrant swirling brushstrokes to convey his feelings and his state of mind. Gauguin employed large areas of unmodulated color outlined in black as part of his effort to capture primeval emotion. Gauguin served as the link between Post-Impressionism and the contemporary Symbolist and Nabi movements. Symbolists sought to imbue their art with spiritual value to counteract the decadence of modern society, and focused on universal feelings of love, desire, and fear. The Nabis, whose name is the Hebrew word for pemphasized the flat surface of a painting, asought to unite high art with the decorative.

rophets, nd

aul Cézanne (French, 1839–1906). The Pigeon Tower at

aul Cézanne (French, 1839–1906) –1890

nce an Impressionist painter, Cézanne was among the first with

d

“Treat nature by means of the cylinder, the sphere, and the cone.”

PBellevue, 1889–90. Oil on fabric, 65.6 x 81.5 cm. The Cleveland Museum of Art, The James W. Corrigan Memorial, 1936.19. © The Cleveland Museum of Art PThe Pigeon Tower at Bellevue, 1889 Oartists to break with the movement and to replace its concern atmospheric effects with a new emphasis on geometric structure. In this view of the pigeon tower at his brother-in-law’s house in Bellevue, a small town in southern France, the artist exaggeratethe cylindrical shape of the tower and extended it upward and to the left. By eliminating unnecessary details and establishing the solidity of the cedar and olive trees, which echo the contours of the tower, Cézanne followed advice he once gave a colleague:

Vincent van Gogh (Dutch, 1853–1890) The Poplars at Saint-Rémy (Les peupliers sur la Colline), 1889 Van Gogh painted this small but intensely powerful landscape at Saint-Rémy, a small town in southern France, in October 1889. He referred to it in a letter to his brother Théo: “I have a study of two yellowing poplars against a background of mountains and a view of the park here, an autumn effect.” The painting demonstrates the full power of van Gogh’s mature style. Intense color is applied with heavy, charged brushstrokes to express his emotional reaction to the subject.

Connect and Create: Landscapes Inspired by Masters

The Post-Impressionists used the vivid colors, the distinctive brushstrokes, and the contemporary subject matter of the Impressionists, but emphasized geometric shapes, distorted form for expressive effect, and used unnatural color. Try it! Survey your surroundings and select an outdoor site you would like to draw or paint. Create two variations of the exact same scene. Begin by taking inspiration from Cézanne, and create a landscape by reducing objects to basic shapes such as cones, cylinders, and spheres. Then, try van Gogh’s technique, and create a landscape by using color and vibrant swirling brushstrokes to convey your feelings. Carefully review your drawings and reflect on your creative process. Which of your works do you feel is strongest? What qualities make it stronger than the other?

Vincent Van Gogh (Dutch, 1853–1890). The Poplars at Saint-Rémy (Les peupliers sur la Colline), 1889. Oil on fabric, 61.6 x 45.7 cm. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Bequest of Leonard C. Hanna Jr., 1958.32. © The Cleveland Museum of Art

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Picasso and the New Avant-garde Pablo Picasso achieved legendary status during his lifetime for his virtuoso technique and numerous inventive styles. He hailed from Spain, where he initially studied art with his father in Barcelona followed by the Royal Art Academy in Madrid. He made his first trip to Paris in 1900, and moved there in 1904. His early work is characterized by a melancholic mood and dominated by the color blue. The Blue Period and his growing obsession with themes of human misery and social alienation reached its climax with La Vie (Life).

armer tonalities and poetic images

lowns during this time. He often

gether with Georges Braque, Picasso developed Cubism between about 1907 and 1914.

objects and figures into geometric them

. In

ques of modeling, foreshortening, and

s in

110

RS), New York

This gave way to the Rose Period, which was characterized by the wsuch as The Harem. Picasso also had a fond interest in acrobats and Pablo Picasso (Spanish, 1881–1973). La

Vie (La vida), 1903. Oil on canvas, 196.5 x of Art,

ights

cportrayed himself in the guise of a Harlequin—a homeless entertainer who lived on the margins of society and barely earned enough money to survive.

To

129.2 cm. The Cleveland Museum Gift of the Hanna Fund, 1945.24. © 2008 Estate of Pablo Picasso / Artists RSociety (ARS), New York

They reduced and fractured

forms, and then represented from multiple points of viewdoing so they abandoned the traditional techni

perspective. Through the late teens and beyond, Cubism wapushed in new directions, andthe hands of other artists, led to ever-greater abstraction.

Pablo Picasso (Spanish, 1881–1973). The Harem, 1906. Oil on canvas, 154.3 x cm. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Bequest of Leonard C. Hanna Jr., 1958.45. ©2008 Estate of Pablo Picasso / Artists Rights Society (A

Pablo Picasso

panish, 1881–1973) (SHa(“S

rlequin with Violin i tu veux”), 1918

aracter in e popular theater known

as the Commedia dell’arte. For many years, Picasso depicted himself as Harlequin, but the musician in this painting also wears the mask and white hat associated with the melancholy Pierrot, another character in the Commedia.

Connect and Create

Look closely at Picasso’s Haused vibrant hues and large,recognizable subject. This st

rofesharacteristics. Then, use brhapes to render this personreate your work of art think

Picasso painted Harlequin with Violin in the style known as Synthetic Cubism in which lively colors and large, geometric shapes were used to depict recognizable subjects. Here, the violin and sheet music provide hints of the picture’s meaning. The diamond-patterned costume and the dark, triangular hat identify the

rlequin, a musician as Hakester and chjo

th

Cubism, and was a departurto analyze (or deconstruct) pinto multiple planes. What hints does Picasso prosubject? What colors, shapehis subject’s profession? Try it! Think of a person you

onsider the person’s pCcscassociated with the particulainclude to help viewers decip

Pablo Picaswith Violin (142.2 x 100Leonard C.Estate of Pa(ARS), New

so (Spanish, 1881–1973). Harlequin "Si tu veux"), 1918. Oil on canvas, .3 cm. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Hanna Jr. Fund, 1975.2. © 2008 blo Picasso / Artists Rights Society York

: Sy tic Cubism

rlequin with Violin. Notice how he geometric shapes to portray a yle to be known as Synthetic

arlier Analytic Cubist efforts bjects by pulling them apart

reveal the identity of his tterns does he use to portray

sion and other identifying ight colors and large, geometric and his or her profession. As you about the objects and symbols

nthe

camee from eainted su

vide tos, and pa

would like to depict in a work of art.

r profession. What clues will you her the meaning of your portrayal?

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Modern Artists From Across Europe 1909 Henri Matisse established an informal school in an empty

f his pupils came from outside France. world, Paris provided unparalleled

mation and exchange of creative ideas and Europe like a magnet. The School of

inaries and foreign talent came to be in the bohemian neighborhood of

ight Bank, but in the early teens moved to side of the Seine River. Some foreign odigliani and Chaïm Soutine, stayed in

remainder of their careers, while others o their homelands and became leaders of

s there.

e twentieth century, the message of d beyond continental Europe to the

ndon became an important art center. initially settled in the shabby North

ood of Camden Town, thereby creating rt to Montmartre and Montparnasse in Paris.

War I, however, many of them migrated to the f H

lian5 x

1.358 Museum of Art

digliani (Italian, 1884–1920) Portrait of a Woman, ca. 1917–1918 Modigl efore moving to Paris in 1906. Portraits occupy a central place in his oeuvre. The

ainters Sandro Botticelli and Parmigianino.

ondrian was one of the early inventors of “non-objective” or

le

Inconvent in Paris and most oAs the art capital of theconditions for the fordrew artists from acrossParis, as the mix of local lumcalled, was initially centered Montmartre on Paris’ RMontparnasse on the otherartists, such as Amedeo Mthe French capital for theeventually returned tavant-garde movement

After the turn of thmodernism spreaBritish Isles, and LoAvant-garde artists London neighborha counterpaAfter Worldgreener suburb o Amedeo Modigliani (Ita1918. Oil on canvas, 6the Hanna Fund, 195

Amede Mo

ampstead.

, 1884–1920). Portrait of a Woman, ca. 1917–48.3 cm. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Gift of . © The Cleveland

o

iani studied briefly in Florence and Venice b

subjects are often his friends, but he also painted anyone who would sit for him, and the woman seen here has not been identified. He rendered her features as large, flat planes and exaggerated the length of her neck and nose. Art historians have compared Modigliani’s graceful and delicate style with that of the Italian Renaissance p Piet Mondrian (Dutch, 1872–1944) Composition with Red, Yellow, and Blue, 1927 Mcompletely abstract art. Many historians regard his radical departure from traditional representation as the inevitabconsequence of Cubism. As seen in Composition with Red, Yellow, and Blue, Mondrian reduced his paintings to basic, universal elements: vertical and horizontal lines, primary colors, and flat shapes arranged in balanced compositions that deny any illusion of spatial depth.

Piet Mondrian (Dutch, 1872–1944). Composition with Red, Yellow, and Blue, 1927. Oil on canvas, 49.5 x 49.5 c The Cleveland Museum of Art,1967.215. © 2008 Mondrian/Holtzman Trust c/o HCR International, VA

m.

Henry Moore (British, 1898–1986) Three-Way Piece No. 2: Archer, 1964 Cogr

nsidered by many to be the eatest figurative sculptor of

pulling in one direction. Secondlsection rof an arcbase anFinally, aprotrudinreminisc

C

odern a h esentational styles. twork shows varying

rendering of recognizable

rm, as well as the objects and ideas the artist references in the ognizable subject matter?

and gree of

do s?

try

the twentieth century, Moore also created remarkable abstract works. Three-Way Piece No. 2: Archer does not literally depict an archer, but rather evokes the vigor, strength, and conflict associated with warriors or hunters. The "three ways" of the title may refer to the three main elements of the work. First, a large sweeping curved form suggests a bent bow

y, a curved vertical epresents the torso her, which joins the

d leans backward. horizontal section g from one side is ent of an arm connecting the archer's torso to the bow.

Henry Moore (British, 1898–1986). ThreNo. 2: Archer, 1964. Bronze, h. 88.3 cmCleveland Museum of Art, Anonymous Gift, 1970.112. Reproduced by permission of theMoore Foundation

onnect and Create: Abstraction*

rtists often preferred to portray their subjects througMabstraction rather than more traditional repr

ir arDespite that commonality, however, theegrees of abstraction, ranging from thed

subject matter to work in which there is little that is recognizable. Varying degrees of abstraction can been seen in the works of the three artists Modigliani, Moore, and Mondrian. Look closely at Portrait of a Woman, Composition with Red, Yellow, and Blue, and Three-Way Piece No. 2: Archer and discussthe ways each artist employs the techniques and methods of abstraction. Describe each piece. Notice the use of media and foartwork. Which work has the most recWhich one is the most abstract or “non-objective”? Try it! Using your choice of media, create three artworks usingvarying degrees of abstraction. Carefully review your worksreflect on your creative process. Did you accomplish the deabstraction that you had intended in each work? Which pieceyou feel is strongest? What makes it stronger than the other *Visit the Abstration Station in the Martin ArtQuest Gallery toyour hand at this activity.

e-Way Piece . The

Henry

14

Expressionism and New in Germany

and the Post-Impressionists in Germany withdrew from the Imperial

independent exhibiting associations in nineteenth century. Known as Secessions,

l establishment took place first in the d Berlin before spreading to smaller cessions paved the road for the

bellious group of young artists known 905.

toge, ae forms, acrid colo , and sinuous work had already been labeled

Der Bla

er

ie Neue Sachlichkeit (New Objectivity)

ts’

ight: Karl Schmidt-Rottluff (German, 1884–1976). Self-Portrait with Hat, 1919. Oil on

,

Objectivity Inspired by the ImpressionistsFrance, progressive artists in academic system to formthe final decade of thethese breaks with the officiamajor art centers of Munich ancities such as Dresden. The Seformation of an even more reas Die Brücke (The Bridge) in 1 Die Brücke (The Bridge) The artists of Die Brücke liveda common aesthetic languamade use of strong, assertivlines. As early as 1911, theirExpressionist because of its heightened emphasis on emotion.

gether and attempted to maintain t least in their early years. They

rs

ue Reiter (the Blue Rider)

The second major Expressionist group active in Germany was DBlaue Reiter (the Blue Rider). This international group of artists exhibited in Munich together from 1911 to 1914, and shared a common belief that colors were the external expression of the creative spirit. D After World War I, Die Neue Sachlichkeit (New Objectivity) emerged in Germany. It consciously rejected the Expressionisobsession with subjectivity and distortion; instead it sought an objective way of seeing and commenting on everyday reality. Rcanvas, 73.3 x 65 cm. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Bequest of Dr. William R. Valentiner, 1965.440. © 2008 Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/VG Bild-KunstBonn

Karl Schmidt-Rottluff (German, 1884–1976)

ial features suggest that Schmidt-Rottluff was miliar with Cubism as well as African sculpture.

tice is

motions.

ur choice of media, create a self-portrait with olors that reflect your current state of mind or a way you have felt

before. For example, what colors would you use to show happiness versus sadness? Excitement versus boredom? Try not to worry about creating a photographic representation of yourself, but focus instead on the expressive qualities of color and its power to portray moods and emotions.

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Self-Portrait with Hat, 1919 A founding member of Die Brücke and one of its boldest colorists, Schmidt-Rottluff painted this powerful self-portrait in Berlin, where he had recently settled after being discharged from army servicein World War I. The jarring colors outlined in black reflect the artist’s desire to project his inner, emotional self. The angular, ragmented facf

fa Connect and Create: Inside-Out Self-portrait

The artists of Die Brücke used powerful forms, harsh colors, and flowing lines. Look closely at Schmidt-Rottluff’s self-portrait. No

ow he used bold, clashing colors and black outlines to show hhe How would you create a work of art that conveys your inner emotions? What colors and types of lines would you use? Try it! Using yoc

Surrealism Surrealism originated in Paris in the mid-1920s as a literary movement inspired by the new field of psychoanalysis. Utmost in importance to Surrealist ideas were Sigmund Freud’s theories about free association, dream analysis, and the hidden unconscious. Under the direction of André Breton (1896–1966), a writer trained in medicine and psychiatry, Surrealism became a pan-European phenomenon that spread to theater, film, music, and painting. In the public imagination, no artist is more closely associated with Surrealism than the larger-than-life Spaniard, Salvador Dalí, followed closely by the highly experimental German painter Max Ernst and the Belgian René Magritte. Though Breton courted Picasso, the great master always remained peripheral to the movement, even though his work often illustrated Surrealist publications. Surrealism remained vital through the 1930s, but during World War II many of its leading artists fled Europe for the United States. There they contributed to the development of a new artistic

ovement—Abstract Expressionism. New York eclipsed Paris as reby ending a

rld re

bscuring her mouth suggests the sensory confusion of a dream. The man at the far left with a bleeding face and amputated left foot may be Oedipu mother in lassica n’s back

ne holds a golden key or scepter, and together they ymbolize access to the unconscious.

mthe Western world’s greatest artistic center, the

modern art. major chapter in the history of Salvador Dalí (Spanish, 1904–1989) The Dream (Le rêve), 1931 The Dream gives visual form to the strange, often disturbing woof dreams and hallucinations. The face of the large central figuwith closed, bulging eyelids and a cluster of ants o

s who unwittingly killed his father and married hisl mythology. The column that grows from the mac

and sprouts into a bust of a bearded man may refer to the Freudian father, the punishing superego who condemns the son’s sexual fantasies about his mother. In the distance, two men embrace; os

ight: Salvador Dalí (Spanish, 1904–1989). The Dream (Le rêve), 1931. Oil on Rcanvas, 96 x 96 cm. The Cleveland Museum of Art, John L. Severance Fund, 2001.34. © 2008 Salvador Dali, Gala-Salvador Dali Foundation / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York

Connect and Create: Interpretation *

Interpret The Dream for symbolic meaning. Use the following uestions to guide your investigations. q

What do I see? To answer this questio

t matter? n, describe what you are What media does Dalí

ge if Dalí had used pen or pencil

d

, as well as what you now about the time and place in which the artwork was made.

in

d gage in thoughtful discussions about art

nd life. *Text adapted from: Terry Barrett, Talking about Student Art (Worcester, Massachusetts: Davis Publications, Inc. 1997), 48–49.

18

looking at. What is the subjecse? Would the painting chanu

instead of paint or if he had applied the paint in thicker layers, for example? What is the artwork about? Determining what an artwork is about entails finding the relationships between the subject matter, use of media, employment of artistic technique, and its form. All of these elements together help one identify the content. The content is not the subject matter itself, but is the way the artist uses materials and technique to render the subject matter. How do I know? This question asks you to provide evidence anjustification to support your interpretations, which usually come rom what you directly observe in a workf

kStrong interpretations are those that accurately reflect what is the work and the elements that bring it to life. Such interpretations reveal to viewers what there is to consider about the work, an

lso ask others to enaa

Learn more… Websites The Cleveland Museum of Art www.clevelandart.org The Frist Center for the Visual Arts www.fristcenter.org Exhibition Catalogue Catalogues of this exhibition are available for purchase in the Frist Center Gift Shop.

Presenting Sponsor for 2007–2008Teacher and School Programs:

The Teacher and School Programs

are supported in part by:

This exhibition has been organized by the Cleveland Museum of Art.

This exhibition is supported by the HCA Foundation on behalf of the

TriStar Family of Hospitals.

EXHIBITION SPONSORS

2008 Platinum Sponsor:

2008 Gold Sponsor:

2008 Silver Sponsor:

VISIONThe vision of world in new ways. MISSIONThe mission ns with related educational p To learn more about Frist Center exhibitions and programs, visit www.fristcenter.org.

the Frist Center is to inspire people through art to look at their

of the Frist Center is to present and originate high quality exhibitiorograms and community outreach activities.