Eishockeyspieler (1935)

Ernst Ludwig Kirchner prints bring the raw energy of German Expressionism into your home. A founding member of the Dresden artists' group Brücke, Kirchner painted crowded Berlin streets, bathers on the Baltic coast and, in his later years, the mountain farms around Davos. Our collection gathers more than two hundred of his paintings, drawings and woodcuts as fine art prints, from early Dresden scenes to his last Swiss landscapes.

About Ernst Ludwig Kirchner

Ernst Ludwig Kirchner was born on 6 May 1880 in Aschaffenburg, Bavaria. He began studying architecture in Dresden in 1901 and finished his diploma in 1905, but by then he had decided to paint instead.

In 1905 he founded the artists' group Brücke in Dresden with Fritz Bleyl, Erich Heckel and Karl Schmidt-Rottluff. The group turned away from academic painting and revived the woodcut, looking back to German masters such as Dürer, Grünewald and Cranach. From 1907 Kirchner spent summers painting at the Moritzburg lakes near Dresden and on the Baltic island of Fehmarn.

In 1911 he moved to Berlin, where he met the dancer Erna Schilling, his partner for the rest of his life. Between 1913 and 1915 he painted his famous series of Berlin street scenes. He volunteered for the army in 1914 but suffered a breakdown in 1915 and spent time in sanatoriums.

In 1917 he went to Davos, Switzerland, for treatment and stayed, living first at a farm called In den Lärchen and from 1923 at a house in Wildboden. In 1937 the Nazis removed 639 of his works from German museums as "degenerate" art. He died at his home near Davos on 15 June 1938.

Style and Subjects

Kirchner's early work is loud and direct: bright, flat color, quick outlines and figures that look caught in motion. Nudes in the open air, dancers, circus performers and friends in the studio fill his Dresden years, and his woodcuts have the same blunt, carved look.

In Berlin his lines grow sharper and more angular and his colors less glowing, which suits the nervous mood of his city streets. In Davos the subjects change to mountains, alpine huts, cattle and farmers, and from around 1925 his style becomes flatter and more abstract, with strong shapes and patterned color.

Famous Works

• Street, Berlin (1913), Museum of Modern Art, New York. Tall, elegant women and men in dark coats crowd a Berlin pavement in one of his best-known street scenes.
• Berlin Street Scene (1913), Neue Galerie, New York. Part of the same series, it sold at Christie's in 2006 for a record price for the artist.
• Five Women on the Street (1913), Museum Ludwig, Cologne. Five fashionable women stand together like a row of sharp, dark shapes.
• Potsdamer Platz (1914), Neue Nationalgalerie, Berlin. Two women stand at the centre of one of Berlin's busiest squares, painted in the same series.
• Self-Portrait as a Soldier (1915), Allen Memorial Art Museum, Oberlin, Ohio. Painted after his breakdown in the army, it shows the artist in uniform.
• Marzella (1909–10), Moderna Museet, Stockholm. A portrait of a young model, painted in flat, bold color during his Dresden years.
• Standing Nude with Hat (1910), Städel Museum, Frankfurt. A life-size nude in a large hat, among his best-known Dresden pictures.

Decorating with Kirchner Prints

Kirchner's Davos landscapes, such as Alphütten und Tinzenhorn or Kühe auf der Alp, have calm mountain shapes and strong color that work well in a living room, hallway or a cabin-style bedroom. His Fehmarn pictures, like Leuchtturm im Grünen, Fehmarn, bring a coastal feel to a bathroom or a sunny kitchen.

The street scenes, café scenes and dancers suit a home office, a modern apartment or a dining room where you want some city energy. Many of his woodcuts and drawings are in black and white or a few colors, so they sit easily in a gallery wall with other prints. Note that many works in the collection are nudes, which may suit a bedroom better than a shared space.

FAQ

What art movement was Ernst Ludwig Kirchner part of?

Kirchner was a leading German Expressionist. In 1905 he co-founded the Dresden artists' group Brücke, which helped shape the Expressionist style.

What is Ernst Ludwig Kirchner's most famous painting?

His Berlin street scenes of 1913–1915 are his best-known works. Berlin Street Scene (1913) set a record price for the artist at auction in 2006, and Street, Berlin (1913) and Potsdamer Platz (1914) are also widely known.

Where can I see original Kirchner paintings?

Major works hang at the Museum of Modern Art and the Neue Galerie in New York, the Neue Nationalgalerie in Berlin, the Museum Ludwig in Cologne, the Städel Museum in Frankfurt and the Moderna Museet in Stockholm.

What makes Kirchner's style recognizable?

Look for flat, bold color, sharp angular figures and quick outlines. His woodcuts have a rough, carved look, and his later Davos paintings turn mountains and farmers into strong, flattened shapes.

Why did Kirchner move to Davos?

After a breakdown during his army service in 1915, he went to Davos in 1917 for treatment. He stayed for the rest of his life, painting the mountains, farms and people around him.

Related Artists

• Karl Schmidt-Rottluff — co-founded Brücke with Kirchner in Dresden in 1905
• Max Pechstein — Brücke member who opened a painting school with Kirchner in Berlin in 1911
• Emil Nolde — joined Brücke as a member in 1906