Expressionism in 10 Paintings

Expressionism is one of the essential artistic movements of modernism in the 20th century. Expounding upon the modernist notion of radically recreating reality, the Expressionist painters sought to externally impress heightened emotions on canvas and present their worldviews through distortion and disorientation of color. Expressionist artworks revel in a myriad of moods and feelings; they present a new truth in the swiftly modernizing and shifting world of the early 20th century. These 10 paintings are the epitome of expressing the world through a subjective lens.

1. Marianne von Werefkin, Procession in Ascona

Marianne von Werefkin was a founder of yet another Expressionist group. This group, Neue Künstlervereinigung München (New Artists’ Association Munich or NKVM), founded in Munich in 1909, was the predecessor to Der Blaue Reiter. Werefkin, a native of Russia, was forced to flee Germany at the outbreak of war in 1914. She emigrated to Ascona, Switzerland, the setting of this Expressionist painting. The titular procession at the bottom center of the composition is dominated by buildings and mountains layered in various colors. Though the surroundings tower over the people in the town, the distorted buildings and canted angles point the viewer’s eye to the figures below.

2. Edvard Munch, Young Girls on a Bridge

Young Girls on a Bridge is one of a series of 12 similar paintings by Edvard Munch. This piece, from 1901, is the only one that shows the full facial features of the girl in the white dress. The rest of the composition is emblematic of Munch’s atmospheric style. His swirling use of color and lines enhances the work’s fervent emotionalism. Meanwhile, how the girls stand on the bridge, one facing forward while the other two look at the view, offers an ambiguously psychological interpretation. Undoubtedly, Munch’s work was one of the most important precursors of Expressionism.

3. Karl Schmidt-Rottluff, Dr. Rosa Schapire

Karl Schmidt-Rottluff painted this portrait of Dr. Rosa Schapire in 1919 and gifted it to her. Dr. Schapire was an art historian and supporter of Schmidt-Rottluff and Die Brücke. This artwork is a great example of an Expressionist portrait. Schmidt-Rottluff presents Dr. Schapire in a wonderful array of angular color formations. One can sense the admiration the artist felt for his subject, especially in eschewing Realism for pure Expressionism. Dr. Schapire hung this artwork in her apartment in Hamburg, Germany. She saved it along with other works of art while escaping Nazi oppression in 1939.

4. Paula Modersohn-Becker, Girl in a Red Dress Standing Under a Sunflower

Paula Modersohn-Becker’s fascination with girlhood is best rendered in Girl in a Red Dress Standing Under a Sunflower. Although not a member of Der Blaue Reiter, Modersohn-Becker is widely regarded as an important precursor of German Expressionism. The artist depicted many facets of femininity in both portraits and self-portraits. This piece centers on a young girl in a red dress standing pensively. She wears a pink and white bonnet. A sunflower rises above her head in the background. Two tree branches and other colorful flowers also surround her. The girl’s eyes hold on something to her right while her hands are clasped together, a thumb protruding out.

The color and curiosity of youth are on full display, expressed in Modersohn-Becker’s brilliant style. The artist’s work, along with many other Expressionist painters, was scorned by the Nazis and labeled as “degenerate.” The Paula Modersohn-Becker Museum, opened in 1927, still thrives in Germany today.

5. Gabriele Münter, Breakfast of the Birds

As one of the founders of Der Blaue Reiter, Gabriele Münter focused her early Expressionist paintings on landscapes (some featuring her partner, Wassily Kandinsky), self-portraits, and still lifes. For Breakfast of the Birds, she wrote:

Indeed, the piece is one of closed-in reflection and isolation. The thick brushstrokes and drab colors convey a sense of both comfort and unease. We see simply formed birds sitting on snow-covered branches through a window. A woman, the back of her head toward us, sits quietly watching them. The “content of things” is made wonderfully and expressively ambiguous.

6. Erich Heckel, House in Dangast (The White House)

This painting by Erich Heckel overlaps with Fauvism, another artistic movement beginning around the same time that Heckel, along with Karl Schmidt-Rottluff, Ernst Ludwig Kirchner, and Fritz Bleyl, co-founded Die Brücke. Like Expressionism, Fauvism developed from Post-Impressionism. Both movements collide in their bold use of color and imprecise brushstrokes. Heckel was especially proficient in expressive brushstrokes, designing compositions filled with lively color. Here he depicts a white house (also featured in another Schmidt-Rottluff painting) in the village of Dangast, Germany. This was a popular spot for the artists of Die Brücke. Heckel’s piece is one of the best examples of an Expressionist landscape.

7. Franz Marc, Large Blue Horses

Franz Marc’s Large Blue Horses was shown in Der Blaue Reiter’s first exhibition in 1911. Marc’s signature touchstones of primary colors and transcendent portrayal of animals are on full display. While more geometric than the work other Expressionist painters, signaling a nearly Cubist style, Marc’s paintings fit the Expressionist character simply by their ability to evoke a multitude of strong emotions. The centered blue horses contrast with the red hills and colorful sky in the background, making a balanced and harmonious composition. In fact, Marc’s Expressionist artwork was inspired by another art form: the symphonies of musical compositions.

8. Ernst Ludwig Kirchner, The Belle-Alliance-Platz in Berlin

The townsfolk of Belle-Alliance Square (now Mehringplatz) in Berlin are simply shadowy stick figures in this painting by Ernst Ludwig Kirchner. Their presence is highlighted by the composition’s tilted perspective. Kirchner distorts a popular urban location, contrasting the yellow road with the muted tones of the trees and buildings. It’s a striking and expressive depiction of a cityscape, revealing the peculiar alienation of urban life.

9. Wassily Kandinsky, The Blue Rider

Kandinsky’s The Blue Rider bridges the gap between Impressionism and Expressionism in its technique. However, the heavy use of impasto and eye-catching color in the painting separates it as a true work of early Expressionism. The name Der Blaue Reiter is often associated with this painting, but it also reflects Kandinsky’s and Franz Marc’s shared fascination with the symbolic meaning of the color blue and the motif of the rider. It is a dynamic and forceful piece, wondrous in its titular subject and lively in its dominant shades of green.

10. Erma Bossi, Interior with Lamp

Erma Bossi, a Croatian-born Italian Expressionist painter, was an original member of the Munich New Association of Artists in Germany. This cozy painting by Bossi is another spectacular work of Expressionism. A faceless woman appears to be knitting under the light of a lamp. The heightened colors and simplified forms of Expressionism all appear. However, this piece stands out in its high perspective. The lamp and its colorful shade dominate the composition as we look down on the domestic interior. It is a delight to look at, utilizing expressive distortion for emotional comfort and ease.