[CULTURE AND ENTERTAINMENT ★★★]
EXHIBIT DEVOTED TO PIONEER WOMEN ARTISTS
(P1) The Sturm HERALDED the ADVENT of modern art.
(P2) Originally the name of a magazine founded in 1910 devoted to promoting EXPRESSIONIST art, the term Sturm (English: Storm) soon became a TRADEMARK.
(P3) Herwarth Walden, the publisher of the journal, also founded the Sturm ART GALLERY in Berlin in 1912. Numerous women artists, including many from other countries, were presented in Germany for the first time at his gallery.
(P4) Composed of friends with similar interests, the Sturm NETWORK served as a forum for INTENSIVE and ANIMATED DISCOURSE on the ideas, theories, and concepts of the AVANT-GARDE.
(P5) The Schirn Kunsthalle Frankfurt is DEVOTING an EXHIBITION to the women of the Sturm beginning on October 30, 2015. For the first time ever, eighteen women Sturm artists representing Expressionism, CUBISM, FUTURISM, CONSTRUCTIVISM, and the NEW OBJECTIVITY will be presented in a COMPREHENSIVE exhibition featuring around 280 works of art.
(P6) Each of the eighteen women artists of the Sturm will be presented along with her most important works in a separate room at the exhibition. They are artists from Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, France, Sweden, Ukraine, and Russia whose works were exhibited at the Sturm gallery or published in “Der Sturm” magazine.
(P7) Herwarth Walden (1878−1941) actively promoted well over thirty women painters and sculptors without BIAS. He was regarded as a VISIONARY and a PIONEER ON BEHALF OF ABSTRACTION and modern art in general, and he united the international avant-garde with his programs.
(P8) For many women artists, the Sturm represented their first big CHANCE, for in the early years of the twentieth century they were neither fully recognized by society nor did they have access to academic training comparable to that of their male colleagues. The life stories, personal circumstances, and critical reception of the eighteen women artists of the Sturm are all very different, and their styles vary considerably as well. Yet viewed as a group, they represent an impressive PANORAMA of modern art.
(P9) For this exhibition, the Schirn is presenting a selection of outstanding paintings, works on paper, prints, WOODCUTS, stage sets, costumes, masks, and historical photographs acquired on loan from prominent museums as well as university and private collections.
(P10) “Through their ideas and visions, the Sturm Women played an INSTRUMENTAL role in the development of modern art. Some of them are still quite familiar to us today, while others have been UNJUSTLY forgotten. However, they all played a part in ensuring that new MOVEMENTS in art, such as Cubism, Expressionism, and Constructivism, would gain the recognition they deserved.
(P11) “With this exhibition featuring impressive major works by the eighteen women of the Sturm, the Schirn focuses attention on the CRUCIAL role played by these artists. It is an extraordinary exhibition devoted to modern art, the role of women in art, and the significance of a gallery in Berlin during the 1920s—an exhibition featuring famous names and famous works as well as numerous REDISCOVERIES,” states Max Hollein, Director of Schirn Kunsthalle Frankfurt.
(P12) In the words of exhibition CURATOR Dr. Ingrid Pfeiffer: “Herwarth Walden was unique among the art dealers of his era. He promoted male and female artists with equal VIGOR and paid no attention to the typical PREJUDICES of the period. Roughly one-fifth of the Sturm artists were women. That DISTINGUISHED him from many of his fellow gallery owners.
(P13) “It was the individual work of art that was most important to Walden. He consistently promoted the most recent developments in art. His thoughts and actions TRANSCENDED national boundaries, and he constantly sought out networks in all artistic and intellectual fields.”
WORDS: 592
SOURCE: http://artdaily.com/index.asp?int_sec=11&int_new=82539#.VjLStPlViko
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:
If you found the passage difficult to read or had problems understanding specific words or idiomatic expressions, please discuss them with your tutor. The following discussion questions should be answered in your own words and with your own arguments.
- Briefly summarize the content of the article in your own words.
- Do you think there are still BARRIERS to the appreciation and recognition of women in the arts?
- Have you visited art galleries and museums in your local area?
- All the movements in modern art were extremely international. Why do you think that was true?
- Herwarth Walden’s attitudes seem very CONTEMPORARY to us. In what ways was he AHEAD OF HIS TIME?
EXPRESSIONS TO PRACTICE:
What do the following expressions mean? Practice using each expression in a sentence; extra points if you can use it in conversation.
- Art gallery
- Avant-garde
- On behalf of
- Ahead of his time
