Ernst Ludwig Kirchner

Ernst Ludwig Kirchner (1880-1938) is one of the greatest German artists of the early twentieth century. This exhibition pays tribute to Kirchner’s inventive genius with a focus on his highly individual approach to color, which he viewed as the fundamental building block to his paintings. Yet Kirchner was a multi-talented figure and his work encompassed various media—painting, sculpture, drawing, printmaking, photography, and even the decorative arts. Rather than accepting the traditional hierarchy that placed fine art solely at the pinnacle of an artist’s achievement, Kirchner compared his activity in these different fields to “a tightly woven, organic fabric, in which process and completion go hand in hand and one aspect drives the other on.”

In its totality, “Ernst Ludwig Kirchner” underscores the artist’s evolving approach to color and his uncanny ability to capture the spirit of his time. He was profoundly affected by the experience of military training during World War I. This led to a complete nervous breakdown, the effects of which he continued to suffer for the remainer of his life and which probably contributed to his suicide in June 1938 at the age of fifty-eight. His tremendous achievements were remarkable and it is our hope that his work will continue to inspire and spark dialogue.


In this video, co-curators Jill Lloyd and Janis Staggs brings you through highlights in the exhibition.

ON VIEW
October 3, 2019 – January 13, 2020