Degenerate Art Exhibition

Degenerate Art Exhibition. The *Entartete Kunst* exhibition was a state-sponsored propaganda event orchestrated by the Nazi Party to vilify modern art. Held from July to November 1937 in Munich, it presented over 600 works confiscated from German museums as morally and culturally corrupt. The exhibition was a central component of the Nazi regime's campaign to define and purge "un-German" artistic expression, coinciding with the inaugural Great German Art Exhibition.

Background and context

The ideological attack on modern art was rooted in the Nazi Party's adoption of völkisch movement ideals, which championed a romanticized, racially pure Germanic culture. Key figures like Adolf Hitler and ideologue Alfred Rosenberg condemned movements such as Expressionism, Dada, and New Objectivity as symptoms of societal decay, often linking them to Bolshevism and perceived Jewish influence. This condemnation was formalized through the establishment of the Reich Chamber of Culture under Joseph Goebbels, which began systematically controlling artistic production. Prior to the exhibition, the Nazi seizure of power had led to the purging of "degenerate" works from institutions like the Kunsthalle Mannheim and the Berlin Nationalgalerie, setting the stage for a public spectacle of condemnation.

Organization and content

The exhibition was hastily organized in the cramped, makeshift galleries of the Hofgarten arcades by a commission headed by artist Adolf Ziegler, president of the Reich Chamber of Fine Arts. Works were deliberately displayed in a chaotic, crowded manner, accompanied by derogatory labels and inflammatory slogans mocking the artists and their intentions. The curated selection targeted a wide range of avant-garde movements, prominently featuring works by artists associated with Die Brücke and Der Blaue Reiter, alongside examples of Cubism, Surrealism, and Abstract art. The installation was designed to provoke ridicule and disgust, contrasting sharply with the orderly presentation of officially approved art at the concurrent Great German Art Exhibition held in the nearby Haus der Deutschen Kunst.

Public reception and impact

Despite—or because of—its intended message of contempt, the exhibition attracted enormous crowds, with over two million visitors recorded during its run in Munich and subsequent tour to cities including Berlin, Leipzig, and Düsseldorf. This attendance far surpassed that of the Great German Art Exhibition. The Nazi propaganda apparatus, including newspapers like the Völkischer Beobachter, heavily promoted the event, framing public curiosity as outrage. The exhibition effectively legitimized the state's persecution of modern artists, leading to professional bans, forced emigration, and in some cases, arrest. It served as a powerful tool for the Ministry of Public Enlightenment and Propaganda to shape public taste and justify the ongoing confiscation of artworks from public collections.

Aftermath and legacy

Following the exhibition, the Nazi regime escalated its campaign with the 1938 "Law on the Confiscation of Products of Degenerate Art," which authorized the state sale or destruction of seized works. Many pieces were sold through dealers like Theodor Fischer at auctions in Lucerne, while others were burned in Berlin. Key organizers, including Adolf Ziegler, later fell out of favor with the regime. The event became a defining symbol of totalitarian cultural oppression, profoundly influencing post-war German art and museology. The reconstruction of collections and historical reassessment of affected artists, such as those undertaken by the Städel museum or documented in the Database of Art Objects at the Jeu de Paume, remain ongoing endeavors in the wake of this cultural trauma.

Notable works and artists

The exhibition featured a vast array of seminal modern works, though presented in a derogatory context. Notable artists targeted included Emil Nolde, despite his Nazi Party membership, Ernst Ludwig Kirchner of Die Brücke, and Wassily Kandinsky, a founder of Der Blaue Reiter. Works by Paul Klee, Oskar Kokoschka, and Max Beckmann were prominently displayed, as were sculptures by Ernst Barlach and Wilhelm Lehmbruck. Paintings such as Kirchner's *Berlin Street Scene* and Beckmann's *The Night* were singled out for particular scorn. The exhibition also included pieces by foreign artists like Pablo Picasso and Vincent van Gogh, linking international modernism to the alleged decay.

Category:1937 in Germany Category:Nazi propaganda Category:Art exhibitions in Munich Category:Modern art