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Artist: Ernst Ludwig Kirchner
(1880-1938)
Style: German Expressionist
Ernst Ludwig Kirchner was a German born expressionist painter
from the town Aschaffenburg. Kirchner was one of the founder of the
famed German Expressionist art group Die Brucke. In school Kirchner
studied architecture in the city of Dresden in 1901. During this
time Kirchner was introduced to Fritz Bleyl, Erich Heckel and Karl
Schmidt-Rottluff and before long they formed Die Brucke. Their art group
found inspiration in art done by painters such as Vincent Van Gogh, Edvard
Munch and Georges Rouault. After completing his studies in architecture
Kirchner moved on to studying painting in Munich. Kirchner's had an
incredibly passionate style of painting; he because famous for his heavily
saturated brushstrokes and bright abstract colors. During World War
I Kirchner entered military service, and suffered a nervous breakdown in
1915. In 1918 Kirchner moved to Switzerland where he continued to
paint and show his work while at the same time battling severe depression.
Like many other expressionist artists of the time Kirchner's art was
tragically included in the Nazi Entartete Kunst 1937 exhibition of
degenerate art and over 500 of his priceless works were destroyed. This
caused Kirchner even further depression and in 1938 Ernst Ludwig Kirchner
committed suicide.
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