German Historical Art

9 Pages 2138 Words

n three months after coming to power, the Nazis issued “What German artists expect of their government” (Cohen) in March of 1933. One of the first projects of the Nazi regime was the House of German Art (Haus der Deutschen Kunst), a large museum. Quickly the Third Reich was forming its own style of art, as identifiable as Soviet “Social Realism” (Nicholas, 63), but symbolizing the national and racial policies. Also, while the Soviets tended to emphasize Literature, the Nazis focused on Visual art and Architecture. Nazi art was neo-Classical with a twist of German romanticism, heroism, and nostalgia for the times of yore.

In the beginning there was debate on what exactly the Nazis were looking for in art. It is well known that the Third Reich was extremely hostile to Avant-Garde artists, but before the Nazis came to power, Joseph Geobbels took to the opinion that some German Expressionists were compatible with National Socialist ideas. These artists include Ernst Ludwig Kirchner, Erich Hecker, Karl Schmidt-Ruttluff, Ernst Barlach, and Emil Nolde. Nolde was even a Nazi party member, but these artists can hardly be called “Nazi artists” (Payne, 40). They declared nationalism and were very anti-capitalist. The Expressionists promoted sensation and passion over rational logic and were heavily into primitive German culture. Hitler, Alfred Rosenberg, and other senior Nazis attacked these modern artists as incompatible with the Nazi ideal because of their strong opposition to authoritarianism and the individualism expressed within their work.

Albert Speer, commissioned to decorate Goebbels home would later write: “I borrowed a few watercolours from…the director of the Berlin National Gallery. Goebbels and his wife were delighted with the paintings – until Hitler...