Floortalk: Introduction to the NGV exhibition ‘The Mad Square’
Join Dr Jacqueline Strecker, curator of special exhibitions, Art Gallery of New South Wales the curator of The Mad Square for her introduction to the exhibition as it opens at the NGV.
About the Exhibition
In an era of chaos came an explosion of creativity – experimental, provocative and utterly compelling.
Germany in the early twentieth century was a country in turmoil. After the First World War, the monarchy was abolished and replaced with the Weimar Republic. This was a period of political unrest, but it was also an era of optimism characterised by industrial development, innovation, and unprecedented freedom of expression.
In Berlin and cities throughout Germany, avant-garde art movements flourished: Expressionism, Dada, Constructivism, Bauhaus and New Objectivity. Artists shared interest in radical experimentation extended across all art forms, including painting, photography, design, decorative arts, film, theatre and political satire. The Mad Square: Modernity in German Art 1910–37 shows the diversity of the art created in this period.
The exhibition brings together over 200 works exploring the fascinating and complex ways in which artists represented the modern world, including major works by Max Beckmann, Otto Dix, George Grosz, Christian Schad, Hannah Höch,August Sander, László Moholy-Nagy and El Lissitzky. Drawn from renowned international and Australian collections, this is the most comprehensive exhibition of German modernism to be seen in Australia.
Exhibition Dates: 25 November 2011 to 4 March 2012
Date: Friday 25th NOvember 12:30pm
Venue: NGV INternational, St Kilda Rd – meet in Exhibition Space.
Cost: Talk free but exhibition entry fees apply, ticket prices here.
For other programs associated with this exhibition see the NGV website
