Art

Great German Art Exhibition 1939 - Exhibition Catalogue - German

Introduction

From 16 July to 15 October 1939 the third annual Great German Art Exhibition (Grosse Deutsche Kunstaustellung) opened at the House of German Art in Munich. Exhibited were artists selected by Hitler. It was the third of eight exhibitions staged annually until 1944. Participation in the exhibitions became almost indispensable for an artist's reputation in Germany. The official arts magazines and general press reviewed exclusively artists who had been exhibited in the Munich show.

Several thousand works had been submitted for the first exhibition. 1322 of these went on this show. The president of the Reich Culture Chamber, Adolf Ziegler, supervised the selection of paintings, while sculptors Arno Breker and Josef Wackerle were responsible for the sculptures. There were no formal criteria. The selection was based on Hitler's taste and on that of the judges.

The pictures were mostly displayed by subject. Flower painting, industrial landscape, the family, country life and nudes. The exhibition was to be a mirror of the world, a confirmation of the regeneration that, according to Hitler, had taken place after painting and sculpture had been freed from all degenerate ingredients. The exhibition 'Degenerate Art' had been organized in Munich in 1937 and opened in Berlin in 1938 before traveling throughout Germany.

The opening of the annual art exhibition began with the celebration of the 'Day of German Art'. In 1939 a procession was organized to celebrate 2000 years of German culture. Several thousand people carried models of German art and architecture from the House of German Art to the centre of Munich. Many more people watched procession.

The 1939 exhibition was held in the 'House of German Art' (Haus der deutschen Kunst) built from 1933 to 1937 by Paul Troost, one of Hitler's favorite architects. The neoclassical building contained exhibition rooms, an air-raid shelter, a restaurant and a bar. Today the building is called 'House of Art' (Haus der Kunst) and it is hosting modern art exhibitions.

Contents

Structure of the Exhibition (1 page)

Information regarding opening times and how to purchase pictures from the exhibition (2 pages)

Floor plans with room numbers including the ground floor and first floor of the exhibition (2 pages)

Listing of 1158 works alphabetically by name of the artist and room number (78 pages)

Illustrations of 77 key works (77 pages)

Advertisement by German businesses (25 pages)

Book details

Illustrations: 78 photographs of paintings and sculptures.

First published as "Grosse Deutsche Kunstaustellung 1939 - Im Haus der Deutschen Kunst zu München- Offizieller Austellungskatalog"

Title: Hitler's Art 1939 - The Great German Art Exhibition 1939 in the House of German Art in Munich - Official Exhibition Catalogue (First published as 'Grosse Deutsche Kunstaustellung 1939 im Haus der Deutschen Kunst zu München - Offizieller Austellungskatalog)

Publisher: Foxley Books

Language: German with English introduction

ISBN-10: 1905742231

ISBN-13: 978-1-905742-23-3

Product Dimensions: B&W 5.5 x 8.5 in or 216 x 140 mm (Demy 8vo) Perfect Bound on White w/Gloss Lam

Price: UK £15.00 / EU €17.50 / US $20.00 / AUS $20.00 / CAN $20.00

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