Max Beckmann

Max Beckmann was a German painter, graphic artist and sculptor who became known for his individual style of Expressionism and New Objectivity. His works are often characterized by intense colors and symbolic depictions.

 

• Name: Max Beckmann
• Date of birth: February 12, 1884
• Place of birth: Leipzig, Germany
• Date of death: December 27, 1950
• Place of death: New York City, USA
• Nationality: German
• Art style: Expressionism, New Objectivity
• Known works: “The Night”, “Self-Portrait with Horn”, “Family Portrait”
• Techniques: Painting, printmaking, sculpture
• Influences: Symbolism, Renaissance art, Vincent van Gogh
• Exhibitions: Exhibitions at the Tate Modern, MoMA, and Städel Museum
• Special features: Known for his metaphorical, gloomy works, often critical of the political and social situation of his time

 

Max Beckmann left behind an extensive body of work that had a lasting influence on 20th century art.

 

Exhibitions

• 25.11.2022 – 12.03.2023 Max Beckmann. Departure – Kunsthalle Bremen, Bremen.
• 23.10.2021 – 27.02.2022 Max Beckmann: The Still Lifes – The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York.
• 20.09.2018 – 27.01.2019 Max Beckmann: Figures in Exile – Thyssen-Bornemisza National Museum, Madrid.
• 24.10.2015 – 14.02.2016 Max Beckmann: The Path to Myth – Städel Museum, Frankfurt am Main.
• 26.10.2003 – 11.01.2004 Max Beckmann Retrospective – Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), New York.

 

Awards

• 1906 Honorary Prize of the German Artists' Association
• 1928 Reich Honorary Prize for German Art
• 1929 Honorable Mention of the Carnegie Institute with the work "Die Loge"
• 1939 First prize at the Golden Gate International Exposition in San Francisco
• 1949 First Prize of the Carnegie Institute for Women Fishermen
• 1950 Awarded an honorary doctorate by Washington University in St. Louis and the Conte Volpi Prize at the Venice Biennale

 

FILMs

• Max Beckmann: Departure, documentary, Michael Trabitzsch, 93 min, Germany, 2014.
• Max Beckmann: Artist in Exile, documentary, Michael Blackwood, 52 min, Germany, 2003.

 

LITERATURe

• Max Beckmann: Retrospective, Sabine Rewald, Prestel Verlag, Munich, 2016.
• Max Beckmann: The Still Lifes, Lillian Landon & Barbara Stehle, The Met Publications, 2021.
• Max Beckmann: Self-Portrait in Words, Barbara Copeland Buenger, University of Chicago Press, 1997.
• Max Beckmann and Berlin, Peter Vergo, Berlin, 2001.

 

Collections

Germany

• Frankfurt am Main - Städel Museum
• Munich - Pinakothek der Moderne
• Berlin - Neue Nationalgalerie

 

USA

• New York - The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA)
• Washington D.C. - National Gallery of Art

 

Schwitzerland

• Basel - Kunstmuseum Basel

 

WEBlinks

• Max Beckmann on the website of the Städel Museum
• The Metropolitan Museum of Art: Max Beckmann Collection