The War
Factual Information:
Artist: OTTO DIX
Period: 1929–1932
Period: 1929–1932
General Information:
This triptych painting by Otto Dix is a representation of the horrors of WWI, in which the artist participated. Dix initally thought of the war as a cleansing event, that the world will be better after the war is over. As he fought in the war, however, his faith in this cleansing was quickly dissipated. When he was discharged, he painted many works showing the horrors of the war in a fearless way. Dix graphically displayed the horrific results in the center and right panels, and in the far left panel showed many soldiers, like a brotherhood, marching off to battle. Underneath the scenes of apocalyptic destruction is a small view of many people buried in a row, like a mass grave. The artist chose to represent himself in the furthest right scene, as a soldier carrying a comrade out of the war zone. This type of painting was a rather common sight coming out of Germany after the first World War. The soldiers that survived saw the world in a completely different way, usually in a pessimistic fashion, and sometimes made art liek this one to show people the reality of war.
Why This Artwork?
This painting was chosen because it shows the type of artwork coming from the German Expressionist movement, and it was important to this movement because of the emotion it evokes and shows of the artists, a common theme of the movement.