The New Objectivity, known in German as Neue Sachlichkeit, emerged as a significant German art movement in the 1920s, primarily as a counter-reaction to Expressionism. Gustav Friedrich Hartlaub, director of the Kunsthalle in Mannheim, originated the term, employing it as the title for a 1925 art exhibition designed to feature artists operating within a post-Expressionist framework. Concurrently, prominent Weimar intellectuals advocated for public collaboration, engagement, and a rejection of romantic idealism, aligning with the artists—including Max Beckmann, Otto Dix, Adolf Dietrich, George Grosz, Christian Schad, Rudolf Schlichter, Georg Scholz, and Jeanne Mammen—who eschewed the Expressionists' introspective focus and romantic aspirations.
The New Objectivity (in German: Neue Sachlichkeit) was a movement in German art that arose during the 1920s as a reaction against expressionism. The term was coined by Gustav Friedrich Hartlaub, the director of the Kunsthalle in Mannheim, who used it as the title of an art exhibition staged in 1925 to showcase artists who were working in a post-expressionist spirit. As these artists—who included Max Beckmann, Otto Dix, Adolf Dietrich, George Grosz, Christian Schad, Rudolf Schlichter, Georg Scholz and Jeanne Mammen—rejected the self-involvement and romantic longings of the expressionists, Weimar intellectuals in general made a call to arms for public collaboration, engagement, and rejection of romantic idealism.
While initially delineating a trend predominantly within German painting, the term transcended its original scope, subsequently defining the prevailing ethos of public life in Weimar Germany, alongside the art, literature, music, and architecture developed in response to this shift. This concept did not signify a pursuit of philosophical objectivity; instead, it denoted a shift towards pragmatic engagement with the world, embodying a utilitarian approach that Germans perceived as inherently American.
The movement effectively concluded in 1933, coinciding with the dissolution of the Weimar Republic and the establishment of the Nazi dictatorship.
Meaning
While "New Objectivity" is the most prevalent English translation for "Neue Sachlichkeit," alternative interpretations include "New Matter-of-factness," "New Resignation," "New Sobriety," and "New Dispassion." Art historian Dennis Crockett asserts that a direct English equivalent does not exist, proceeding to elucidate the term's meaning within its original German context.
The termSachlichkeit derives from its root, Sache, which translates to "thing," "fact," "subject," or "object." Sachlich is most accurately interpreted as "factual," "matter-of-fact," "impartial," "practical," or "precise." Consequently, Sachlichkeit, as the noun form of this adjective/adverb, typically conveys the sense of "matter-of-factness."
Specifically, Crockett refutes the interpretation suggested by the translation "New Resignation," characterizing it as a common misapprehension of the underlying attitude. This perception of resignation stems from the belief that the era of significant socialist revolutions had concluded, prompting left-leaning German intellectuals of the period to seek adaptation within the social framework of the Weimar Republic. Crockett contends that the artistic output of Neue Sachlichkeit was intended to be more politically proactive than the Expressionist styles it opposed, stating: "The Neue Sachlichkeit embodies Americanism, a reverence for the objective, the unyielding fact, a preference for functional labor, professional diligence, and utility."
Background
Prior to World War I, a substantial portion of the art world was significantly influenced by Futurism and Expressionism, both movements characterized by their rejection of established order, objectivity, and tradition. Notably, Expressionism emerged as the predominant artistic form in Germany, manifesting across numerous aspects of public life, including dance, theater, painting, architecture, poetry, and literature.
Expressionists deliberately moved away from naturalistic representation, instead striving to convey emotional experiences, frequently focusing their artistic endeavors on internal turmoil (angst), whether as a response to modernity, societal alienation, or the formation of individual identity. Complementing this portrayal of angst and discomfort with bourgeois existence, Expressionists also articulated revolutionary sentiments akin to those expressed by Futurists. A notable illustration of this is the 1919 anthology of Expressionist poetry, Menschheitsdämmerung, translated as "Twilight of Humanity," which implied that humanity was at a transitional stage, signaling the impending end of an established order and the nascent stirrings of a new era.
Diverse groups criticized Expressionism. A significant critique emerged from the left, spearheaded by Dadaism. Early Dada proponents, coalescing in neutral Switzerland during the war, shared a common objective: to employ art as a vehicle for moral and cultural dissent. They equated the rejection of artistic linguistic constraints with their refusal of national borders, aiming to articulate political indignation and incite political engagement. Dadaists perceived Expressionism as merely reflecting societal angst and anxieties, yet failing to provide any actionable response.
Bertolt Brecht, a German dramatist, initiated another early critique of Expressionism, characterizing it as both constrained and superficial. He posited an analogy: just as Germany possessed a new parliament in politics but lacked competent parliamentarians, literature exhibited an enthusiasm for concepts without generating novel ideas, and theater displayed a "will to drama" devoid of genuine dramatic substance. His initial theatrical works, Baal and Trommeln in der Nacht (Drums in the Night), explicitly repudiated the prevailing interest in Expressionism.
Following the devastation of the war, conservative critics gained prominence, particularly in their stylistic assessment of Expressionism. Across Europe, a prevailing "return to order" in the arts manifested in neoclassical productions by modernists like Picasso and Stravinsky, alongside a general shift away from abstraction by numerous artists, including Matisse and Metzinger. This emphasis on order was notably widespread in Italy.
Due to travel restrictions between 1919 and 1922, German artists possessed limited awareness of contemporary French artistic developments; consequently, Henri Rousseau, who passed away in 1910, emerged as the French painter whose influence was most discernible in the works of the New Objectivity movement. Nevertheless, certain German artists derived significant inspiration from the Italian magazine Valori plastici, which showcased photographic reproductions of recent paintings by Italian classical realists.
Painting
Verists and Classicists
Hartlaub initially employed the term in 1923 within a letter dispatched to colleagues, outlining a forthcoming exhibition. In his subsequent article, titled "Introduction to 'New Objectivity': German Painting since Expressionism," Hartlaub elucidated:
what we are displaying here is distinguished by the—in itself purely external—characteristics of the objectivity with which the artists express themselves.
Hartlaub delineated the New Objectivity into two distinct tendencies, conceptualized as a left and right wing: the left comprised the verists, characterized by their propensity to "tear the objective form of the world of contemporary facts and represent current experience in its tempo and fevered temperature"; conversely, the right encompassed the classicists, who "search more for the object of timeless ability to embody the external laws of existence in the artistic sphere."
The verists' fervent realism accentuated the unsightly and the squalid, manifesting in art that was raw, provocative, and acutely satirical. George Grosz and Otto Dix are recognized as the foremost exponents of this verist approach. These artists advanced Dada's rejection of conventional pictorial rules and artistic language into what Raoul Hausmann termed "satirical hyperrealism," with John Heartfield's graphical works and photomontages serving as prime illustrations. In these creations, collage functioned as a fundamental compositional principle, merging reality and art to imply that the mere documentation of factual reality transcended superficial appearances. Artists including Grosz, Dix, Georg Scholz, and Rudolf Schlichter rendered satirical tableaux that frequently exposed an underlying irrationality, portraying figures in a caricatured manner. In their portraiture, specific features or objects deemed characteristic of the subject were prominently emphasized.
Other verists, such as Christian Schad, rendered reality with a clinical exactitude, conveying both empirical detachment and profound familiarity with the subject matter. According to art critic Wieland Schmied, Schad's paintings are distinguished by "an artistic perception so sharp that it seems to cut beneath the skin." His oeuvre frequently incorporated psychological elements, thereby intimating an underlying unconscious reality.
Max Beckmann, despite occasionally being labeled an Expressionist, never identified with any specific artistic movement; however, Hartlaub regarded him as a verist and the foremost artist associated with Neue Sachlichkeit.
In contrast to the verists, the classicists more distinctly embodied the "return to order" trend prevalent across European arts. Notable classicist artists comprised Georg Schrimpf, Alexander Kanoldt, Carlo Mense, Heinrich Maria Davringhausen, and Wilhelm Heise. Their artistic influences spanned 19th-century art, Italian metaphysical painters, artists from Novecento Italiano, and Henri Rousseau.
Franz Roh's concept of Magic Realism provides the most comprehensive understanding of the classicists, although Roh initially conceived "magical realism" as synonymous with Neue Sachlichkeit in its entirety. Roh articulated this concept as a counter-reaction to Expressionism, aiming to assert "the renewed appreciation for the autonomy of the objective world surrounding us; the marvel of matter capable of crystallizing into objects was to be perceived afresh." Through this term, he underscored the inherent "magic" within the ordinary world as it manifests, illustrating how everyday objects can appear peculiar and fantastical upon close observation.
Regional Artistic Groupings
A majority of New Objectivity artists exhibited limited geographical mobility, resulting in stylistic trends often correlating with specific regions. While classicists predominantly resided in Munich, verists were primarily active in Berlin (including Grosz, Dix, Schlichter, and Schad), Dresden (featuring Dix, Hans Grundig, Wilhelm Lachnit, among others), and Karlsruhe (such as Karl Hubbuch, Georg Scholz, and Wilhelm Schnarrenberger). The artists from Karlsruhe notably employed a rigorous, precise drawing style, exemplified by Hubbuch's watercolor, The Cologne Swimmer (1923).
In Cologne, a Constructivist collective, spearheaded by Franz Wilhelm Seiwert and Heinrich Hoerle, also featured Gerd Arntz. Anton Räderscheidt, also a Cologne native, transitioned from a short Constructivist period to embrace influences from Antonio Donghi and the metaphysical artists.
Artists working in Hanover, including Grethe Jürgens, Hans Mertens, Ernst Thoms, and Erich Wegner, frequently portrayed provincial themes using a distinctly lyrical aesthetic.
Franz Radziwill, known for his foreboding landscapes, resided in relative seclusion within Dangast, a modest coastal settlement. Carl Grossberg, who pursued painting after architectural studies in Aachen and Darmstadt, is recognized for his meticulous, almost clinical, depictions of industrial technology.
Photographic Practices
Albert Renger-Patzsch and August Sander emerged as prominent figures in the "New Photography" movement, which introduced a sharply focused, documentary aesthetic to photographic art, contrasting with the previously dominant self-consciously poetic approach. Concurrently, other related initiatives, such as Neues Sehen, also existed. Karl Blossfeldt's botanical photography is frequently categorized as a distinct manifestation of New Objectivity. The impact of New Objectivity photography transcended German borders; in Japan, the interwar movement termed Shinkō shashin (New Photography) drew partial inspiration from German New Objectivity (Neue Sachlichkeit) principles.
Architectural Manifestations
Within architecture, New Objectivity, mirroring its influence in painting and literature, characterizes German architectural output during the early 1920s' transitional period within Weimar culture. This emerged as a direct response to the stylistic extravagances of Expressionist architecture and a shift in the national temperament. Architects including Bruno Taut, Erich Mendelsohn, and Hans Poelzig adopted New Objectivity's direct, functionally oriented, and pragmatic construction methodology, which became recognized in Germany as Neues Bauen ("New Building"). The Neues Bauen movement, which thrived during the short interval between the implementation of the Dawes Plan and the ascent of the Nazis, encompassed significant public exhibitions such as the Weissenhof Estate, extensive urban planning and public housing initiatives by Taut and Ernst May, and groundbreaking experiments conducted at the Bauhaus.
Cinematic Expression
New Objectivity in cinema attained its zenith approximately in 1929. As a distinct cinematic style, it manifested through realistic mise-en-scène, unembellished camerawork and editing, a propensity to analyze inanimate objects for character and event interpretation, an absence of overt emotional display, and a focus on social commentary.
Georg Wilhelm Pabst is widely recognized as the director most closely associated with the New Objectivity movement. Pabst's cinematic works from the 1920s frequently explored pressing social issues, including abortion, prostitution, labor disputes, homosexuality, and addiction. His dispassionate and critical 1925 film, Joyless Street, stands as a seminal example of the objective style. Other notable directors within this movement included Ernő Metzner, Berthold Viertel, and Gerhard Lamprecht.
Literature
New Objective literature was fundamentally characterized by its political engagement with reality, presenting dystopias through a non-sentimental, emotionally detached reporting style. This approach emphasized precise detail and a profound reverence for "the fact." Such works were interpreted as a rejection of humanism, a refusal to portray art as utopian, a negation of art as escapism, and an overt expression of cynicism regarding humanity. Prominent authors linked to New Objectivity literature included Alfred Döblin, Hans Fallada, Irmgard Keun, Erich Kästner, and, within Afrikaans literature, Abraham Jonker, who was the father of poet Ingrid Jonker.
Theater
Bertolt Brecht, driven by his opposition to the individualistic focus prevalent in expressionist art, initiated a collaborative methodology for theatrical production, beginning with his "Man Equals Man" project. This distinctive approach to theater-craft subsequently became known as "Brechtian," and the collective of writers and actors with whom he collaborated were termed the "Brechtian collective."
Music
In music, similar to the visual arts, New Objectivity repudiated the sentimentality of late Romanticism and the emotional intensity characteristic of expressionism. Composer Paul Hindemith, depending on the specific composition, can be categorized as both a New Objectivist and an expressionist throughout the 1920s. For instance, his wind quintet Kleine Kammermusik Op. 24 No. 2 (1922) was conceived as Gebrauchsmusik, contrasting with his operas Sancta Susanna (part of an expressionist trilogy) and Neues vom Tage (a satirical commentary on modern life). Hindemith's music typically referenced Baroque models, employing traditional forms and stable polyphonic structures alongside modern dissonance and jazz-influenced rhythms. Ernst Toch and Kurt Weill also composed New Objectivist music during the 1920s. Although later in life known for his austere interpretations of classical works, conductor Otto Klemperer was a leading figure associated with this movement in its earlier years.
Legacy
The New Objectivity movement is generally considered to have concluded with the demise of the Weimar Republic, following the National Socialists' seizure of power under Adolf Hitler in January 1933. Nazi authorities denounced much of the movement's output as "degenerate art," leading to the confiscation and destruction of works, and many artists were prohibited from exhibiting. A select group, including Karl Hubbuch, Adolf Uzarski, and Otto Nagel, faced complete bans on painting. While some prominent figures of the movement sought exile, they did not continue to paint in the same style. George Grosz, for example, emigrated to America and adopted a romantic aesthetic, and by the time Max Beckmann departed Germany in 1937, his work, according to Franz Roh's classifications, had evolved into expressionism.
The international impact of New Objectivity is evident in the works of artists such as Balthus, Salvador Dalí (particularly in early pieces like his 1924 Portrait of Luis Buñuel), Auguste Herbin, Maruja Mallo, Cagnaccio di San Pietro, Grant Wood, Adamson-Eric, and Juhan Muks.
History of painting
- History of painting
- Western painting
Notes
References
Essay by Fritz Schmalenbach
- Fritz Schmalenbach essay
- Tate Modern definition
- Image Library for Neue Sachlichkeit (New Objectivity)
- Chaos and Classicism: Art in France, Italy, and Germany, 1918–1936. Exhibition at The Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, October 1, 2010 – January 9, 2011.
- Table of Contents for the book Neue Sachlichkeit and Avant-Garde. Amsterdam / New York: Brill/Rodopi, 2013.
- The Essence of Magic Realism: A Critical Study of the Origins and Development of Magic Realism in Art.