Max Beckmann.. from Germany to St. Louis

Mysticism, and Dreams.

Medieval Imagery meets German Expressionism!

A fascinating man, and a great story!

One of my rediscoveries at the St. Louis museum was Max Beckmann, the German Expressionist. Born in Leipzig, his work was influenced by his stint as a medical orderly during the first world war. Figure and space became transformed, as he himself delved deeper into philosophy and mysticism. Through the 1920s he was highly successful until the rise of the Nazi regime, who condemned his work as Degenerate, and labeled him a “Cultural Bolshevik”.

First living in Amsterdam for 10 years, he ultimately found his way to the US, where the director of the St. Louis museum invited him to teach at Washington Univ. It was in St, Louis Beckmann found his patron, Morton D, May, and was able to rebuild his career.

He ultimately moved to NY living on West 69th street and died of a heart attack on his way to visit one of his paintings at the Met.

His work is intense, physical, sexual, and rich in color and texture. Themes range from “The Sinking of the Titanic” to metaphysical subjects such as “The Dream”.

In “The Dream” a man without hands stands on a ladder holding a fish, beside a blind beggar playing two instruments. A drunk woman plays a cello in front of a legless man on crutches. At the center stands an innocent blonde girl… the only character with eyes open.

It is through development of his own mythologies, and symbols that Beckmann created a world unto himself, and one in which you can stare for hours feeling it steep inside you.

Looking at a Beckmann painting is much like looking at a work of medieval stained glass, and finding new details every time.

It is human, sometimes pained, sometimes voluptuous, but always real.