AWC and The Arts
Guided Tour of Universum Max Beckmann
by Monique Varma
Sharp angles, disconcerting perspectives, restrictive framing. Artist Max Beckmann used all kinds of techniques to manipulate space in his paintings. The painted surface was his domain. Painting allowed Beckmann to control reality, which he believed had both physical and spiritual dimensions. His unique depiction of space made him one of the most extraordinary and idiosyncratic artists of the twentieth century.
n Universum Max Beckmann Kunstmuseum Den Haag will – for the first time – explore his work on the basis of his depiction of space. Max Beckmann’s paintings are in the traditional genres: portraits, still lifes, landscapes (including seascapes and cityscapes), and mythological and historical scenes. The innovative and modern aspect of his work does not, therefore, lie in his choice of subject, but in his treatment of it. He came to grips with the world around him by introducing and rearranging elements of reality. The way in which he depicted – or in fact manipulated – space is unique.
From his early monumental, traditional compositions, to his edgy framing, angular and disconcerting perspective, assemblages, cropping and unusual formats. Some of his paintings are feverish images, featuring innumerable objects and figures, often in sharply defined, claustrophobic spaces. Perspectives that cannot be seen in isolation from the life of the artist, and which resonate with the turbulence in Europe during and between two world wars.
Are Beckmann’s paintings perhaps a response to the pivot in society? Were they his way of processing his own experiences, in the war and later, when he fled Germany?
Date: Wednesday, April 24
Time: 11:00 – 12:00
Place: Kunst Museum, Stadhouderslaan 41, 2517 HV The Hague
Cost: €15.00 (Museum entrance fee of €19.00 is not included. Entrance is free with museum card) Please buy entrance tickets on the day or in advance by internet: https://www.kunstmuseum.nl/en/visit
Number of attendees: Minimum 10/maximum 15
Registration opens: March 5
Cancellation deadline: April 12 (it is possible to sign up after this date if there is space)
Contact: Jane Choy jechoy@me.com or 0654331764
