Franz Marc
Franz Moritz Wilhelm Marc (* 8 February 1880 in Munich; † 4 March 1916 near Verdun, France) was a German painter, draughtsman and graphic artist whose work is considered one of the most important of German Expressionism. Alongside Wassily Kandinsky, he was a co-founder of the editorial group "Der Blaue Reiter".
Franz Marc was born in Munich on 8 February 1880. His father Wilhelm Marc is a landscape and genre painter and a member of the Munich Artists' Cooperative. In 1899 Franz Marc decides to study philology. However, he changes his mind and enrols at the Munich Art Academy one year later. There he studied under Gabriel Hackl and Wilhelm von Dietz.
First trips to France and friendship between August Macke and Franz Marc
In 1903 the young artist travelled through France and came into contact with Impressionism. He was so fascinated by the art metropolis of Paris that he spent several months there. On his return to Germany, Marc took his easel outdoors for the first time and brightened up his colour palette.
His acquaintance with Jean Bloé Niestlé in 1905 inspired the artist to create animal depictions.
He was particularly fascinated by the horse. What counts for him is the symbolic power of colour, which increasingly stylises his depictions. The landscape motif remains in his art, but is degraded to the habitat of the animals depicted. An affair with the painter Marie Schnür led to their marriage in 1907, but they divorced after a year. In the same year, the artist travelled to France again and was deeply impressed by the ...
the works of Vincent van Gogh. He writes reports of this trip to his friend Maria Franck. In 1909 Franz Marc becomes a member of the Neue Künstlervereinigung München. The following year the artist moves to Sindelsdorf in Upper Bavaria. His first exhibition is held at the Brakl Gallery in Munich. As a result, August Macke visits him with the art collector Bernhard Koehler. Koehler concludes a pre-purchase agreement with Marc for his works, which provides the artist with financial security. Macke and Marc will have a long and intense friendship.
In 1911 the artist marries his long-time girlfriend Maria Franck. He joins the "Neue Künstlervereinigung München", but resigns the same year because of tensions within the group. The founding of the editorial group "Der Blaue Reiter" with Wassily Kandinsky follows. The two exhibitions of "Der Blaue Reiter" take place in 1911 and 1912. In 1912 Kandinsky and Marc publish the almanac "Der Blaue Reiter", which is described as the programme of Munich Expressionism.
In 1912 August Macke and Franz Marc travel to Paris, where they visit Robert Delaunay. Back in Germany, the artist becomes acquainted with Futurist painting in Berlin on the occasion of an exhibition at the "Sturm" gallery. Now Marc overcomes the monochrome colour surfaces in his painting. In his further works, a dynamic, polyfocal surface construction comes to the fore, whereby the motif is prismatically dissected. The colour subordinates itself to this geometric structure.
Together with Kandinsky, Paul Klee, Alfred Kubin and Oskar Kokoschka, Marc made plans to produce a Bible illustration. He then chooses the first book of Moses and begins a series of woodcuts. In the same year, the artist is involved in the organisation of the "First German Autumn Salon" in Berlin.
After the outbreak of the First World War, Franz Marc was still called up for military service in 1914. On 4 March 1916 Franz Marc was fatally shot by a shell. He was killed shortly before Verdun. His sketchbook "aus dem Felde" (from the field), which also contains further ideas for Bible illustration, is found in his belongings.
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Pferdchen (Erster Deutscher Herbstsalon), 1913, pencil on paper, 12,1 × 15,2 cm
Vita
Artist groups
The Blue Rider
The artists' group "Der Blaue Reiter" (The Blue Rider) is one of the most important art movements of German Expressionism. "Der Blaue Reiter" was founded by the artists Wassily Kandinsky and Franz Marc, who wished to make a new mark on exhibitions and publications in the field of fine art. Exhibitions of the "Blaue Reiter" not only show works by members of the association, but also exhibit progressive works by international avant-gardists. Even more important than the exhibitions is an almanac that Kandinsky and Marc published in 1912. The almanac bundles essays and manifests from different genres - art, literature, theatre and music - and reflects Kandinsky's utopia of one convergence across all forms of art. In keeping with these views, the artistic programme is characterised by great diversity. Adherents of the group are convinced that every form of art has to come from within an artist. Thus, art is no longer a representation of society, but becomes a way of expressing emotions and inner experiences. With the outbreak of the First World War, the group splintered.
Classical Modernism
Classical Modernism comprises various art and style movements of the first half of the 20th century. Especially across countries, there is a great heterogeneity of the arts, whereby not all artists and works can be clearly categorised. Classical Modernism includes not only the visual arts but also design, architecture and photography. The tremendous wealth of currents and tendencies in Classical Modernism shows similarities and differences and proves how strong the exchange among artists is beyond national borders and stylistic movements. Alongside the artists of Expressionism, Surrealism, Cubism, Futurism, New Objectivity and various other avant-garde movements, painters such as Marc Chagall, Marino Marini, Lovis Corinth, Marcel Duchamp, Egon Schiele, Hannah Höch, Maria Lassnig, Max Ernst, Robert Delaunay and Paul Klee belong to Classical Modernism.
New Secession
November Group
The "Novembergruppe" was founded in Berlin in 1918, shortly after the November Revolution. Until its dissolution in 1933 when the National Socialists seized power, over 170 artists were members of this trend-setting movement. Initiated by Max Pechstein and César Klein, the association brought together artists working in the Expressionist, Futurist and Cubist movements such as Lyonel Feininger, Paul Klee, Alexej von Jawlensky, Willi Baumeister, Wassily Kandinsky, Otto Mueller and Christian Rohlfs. This syncretism also asserts itself in the unification of art, music, architecture, theatre and philosophy that the group advocates. Members asked for a say in matters of art policy, such as the acquisition of art for public collections, art policy and the provision of exhibition space.