Fascinating mountains and inspiring relationships
«Expressionism from the mountains» Kirchner, Bauknecht, Wiegers and the Group
This exhibition, organized in collaboration with the Bündner Art Museum Chur and the Groninger Museum , presents for the first time in such a comprehensive form the intense artistic and human exchange between Ernst Ludwig Kirchner (1880-1938) and a group of younger colleagues during his early years in Davos.
In addition to the German Philipp Bauknecht (1884-1993), who had already arrived in Bündnerland before Kirchner, and the Dutchman Jan Wiegers (1893-1959), were the three founders of the Group " Rot-Blau" – Albert Müller (1897-1926), Hermann Scherer (1893-1927) and Paul Camenisch (1893-1970). They all stayed for some time in Davos, some as guests of Kirchner, and friendly relations reigned. Many intense artistic discussions took place which were not only fruitful for the younger artists but for Kirchner as well. In 1924, Kirchner began to teach painting to Scherer, who had been trained as a sculptor. Scherer then, probably stimulated by the older artist, began the series of wooden sculptures that have ensured him a place in the history of art until today. Conversely, Kirchner felt inspired by Scherer’s competition to take up sculpting again more intensively. The younger artists did not merely imitate Kirchner’s style, but interpreted very much in their own way what were obviously the artistic impulses of their mentor. By the thematic ordering of the exhibits, the analogues as well as the differences in the works of the six artists are to be illustrated. Sometimes they not only depicted the same themes but often the same motifs – in addition to nudes and the mountain landscape around Davos, there were scenes of mountain life. They also portrayed each other in numerous self portraits and individual and group portraits that are still witness today of their close friendship. Further subject matter and also the counterpoint to their alpine scenes was found in the landscape of the Mendrisiotto to where the Basle artists Scherer, Müller and Camenisch often withdrew for varying lengths of time.
The main timeframe of the exhibition, which is presenting paintings as well as numerous sculptures and works on paper, covers the years 1926/1927, when the relations between the artists more or less broke apart due to the early deaths of Müller and Scherer and the return of Wiegers to Holland.
