Expressionism is referred as a modernist form of art that was initially introduced in Germany during the early part of the 20th century. The main feature of this art is to present a subjective perspective by altering its elements to stimulate emotional impact which eventually leads to conjuring certain moods and perception. There was the conviction that artists have the ability to express some form of inner awareness through their works of art, and this notion has been prevalent among artist and intellectuals in Germany in early twentieth century (Perry, 1993). In due course, the expressionist considered looking for an inspiration from outside the typical European society, such as those that represent peasantry and the traditional folk arts in the suburbs of Europe to distant or remoted societies in Africa and the Pacific region. The process of borrowing from non-western perspectives and other traditional concepts derived from tribal societies is referred to as primitivism. According to the definition provided by the Museum of Modern Art, primitivism is the response of the west to ethnic cultures according to the works and perceptions of modern day artists (The Museum, 1984).
The origin of primitive arts has a distinct function in the European expressionism as the latter was once generally focused on aesthetic and appreciation function, while the former has the functional type of image-making and artistic techniques that are common among different ethnic cultures around the world. The first studies of primitivism focused on the formal edifices shared by the 20th century European and primitive art. This motivated art historians, scholars and anthropologists to be interested in the study of the formal features of African artistry, instead of taking and using this art merely as a source of anthropological records of ethnic and traditional practices. Primitivism is valued for it being indicative of the affinity of the tribal and the modern art, which is referred to as formal affinity that make them comparable and similarly valid. On the other hand, both primitive and twentieth century European aesthetics emphasize the inner form of the work of art rather than its ability to imitate reality.
It is noted that the process of borrowing from the traditional concepts or primitive art has a great impact in altering modern art. The influence of primitivism to expressionists are apparent on how artists stylistically borrowed from eye-catching volumetric outlines, symmetrical ornaments, eye-pleasing patterns, and compacted surfaces used in works of arts and other objects that they often encounter in cultural museums, galleries, exhibitions and even through the media. In some instances, expressionist artist travel to visit ethnological artifacts in other countries such as Wassily Kandinsky who saw primitive collections of arts in Berlin sometime in 1907. For his part, Kardinsky combined the primitivism of cultural goals associated with the Brücke artists with the formal primitivism of the cubists to promote an aesthetic based, yet broad social project that envisions a fundamental transformation of European culture away from materialism and toward spirituality. Kardinsky’s interest in integrating spiritual element in art began very early in his career, and his development was interpreted as a form of systematic use of the techniques of primitive religious art. Some of Kardinsky’s works focus on the images of folk gatherings in the Russian empire such as his Motley Life (Das bente Leben), which is discussed below.
During the initial years of exploring his artistic abilities, Kandinsky was known to have been influenced by mythical and legendary motifs that included themes from the folklores and traditions of Russia. It was through these references that made him deal with different colors and designs that encompasses freedom from the precision associated with real life representations. In Motley Life, he used themes and symbols related to the expression of religiosity yet, he did not fail to demonstrate techniques and objects that were associated with primitive art (Pan, 2001).
The painting entitled The Motley Life demonstrated how Kandinsky not only aimed to communicate a colorful canvass, but that he also wanted to show how one piece of art can convey a lot of meaning. By examining this piece of art, one finds that it is a heterogeneous assortment of activities that are representative of worldly and spiritual aspects from both the present and the past. In this painting, Kardinsky claimed to have used the ‘birds-eye view’ as a means to place the objects one above the other figures. The art is full of a combination of people in actions and objects that were the prime example of Christian and pagan images.
One of the central images in the Motley Life is the bald, yet green-bearded old man with a cane, who can be interpreted to represent past traditions. The old man can also be associated with the mysticism because of the unusual appearance of his long beard, so that some viewers may identify him as a representation of cultural myths such as the existence of sorcerers among different tribes. It is to be noted that more often than not, sorcerers are often associated with the image of an old man or woman. The image of the old fellow shows how expressionist artist tend to use traditional or ethnic images in their work.
Another image in the said painting, which stood right at the back of the old man, is a tree which can be construed to symbolize paganism. In many tribal communities in the past, tall and big trees were believed to be the abode of pagan spirits. In contrast, just a little distance from the old fellow is the image of a mother and child which can be deduced as a representation of the Virgin Mary and her Child. One finds the relationship of the mother and child image to religion because of the child in a prayerful mode, positioned right behind the woman and child imagery. Other images in the paintings include other people in action, a priest, a group of older people, a knight in a horseback and even a man chasing a woman. The art work of Kandinsky demonstrates how an expressionist artist, integrate primitive arts and figures in modern art. While there are people who claimed that an alliance with primitivism distorted the imagery of modern art, primitive objects has, in fact, enhance the works of modern artists.
References
Barasch, M. (2000). Theories of Art: From Impressionism to Kadinsky, Volume 3. Psychology Press.
German Expressionism () Primitivism, Available at:http://www.moma.org/explore/collection/ge/themes/primitivism (Accessed: 22nd May 2016).
Pan, D. (2001). Primitive Renaissance: Rethinking German Expressionism. University of Nebraska Press.
Perry, G. (1993) 'Primitivism and the Modern', in Harrison, C., Frascina, F., Perry, G. (ed.) Primitivism, Cubism, Abstraction: The Early Twentieth Century. London: Yale University Press, pp. 62-81.
The Museum of Modern Art (1984) Primitivism in the 20th Century: Affinity of the Tribal and the Modern, New York: .
