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Otto Dix

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Otto Dix

Otto Dix was a German painter and etcher, most of whose works were created in World War One, World War Two, and Post War Germany. He was both a successful painter during his life time and political, having many works which commented on German social conditions of the time. He lived through war and created art that told about the horrors he saw it causing.

Born in Untermhause, Germany (near Gera) on December 2, 1891, Otto Dix was involved with art most of his life. He apprenticed as a painter and decorator while he was growing up and supported himself as a portrait painter when he became a student at the Dresden School of Arts and Crafts. When World War One began, he volunteered for service in the German Army and saw service first as part of an artillery regiment and then in a machine gun unit. During his first experience with war, Dix saw action on both the Russian and French fronts, earned an Iron Cross (second class), achieved the rank of vice-sergeant-major, and saw horrors that inspired much of his work. After the war, he attended the Düsseldorf Academy of Art and then returned to the Dresden Academy of Art, this time as a Professor. During this time he produced many works and gained recognition not only in Germany but also in America, having exhibitions displayed throughout Germany and in New York. When the Nazi party rose to power in Germany, they declared the work of many modern artists, including the works of Otto Dix, “unwholesome”. Dix was dismissed from his professorship at the Dresden Academy by the Nazis and banned from exhibiting. His work was featured in several Nazi displays of “Degenerate” art including “Reflection of Degeneracy”, “The Spirit of November: Art in the Service of Demoralization”, both ...

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...by Movement: Die Neue Schlichkeit. Artcyclopedia. 26 Jan. 2004 <http://www.artcyclopedia.com/history/dieneuesachlichkeit.html>.

Dix, Otto. Encyclopedia.com. 26 Jan. 2004 <http://www.encyclopedia.com/html/d/dix-o1tto.asp>.

Neue Sachlichkeit: New Objectivity in the Visual Arts. 26 Jan. 2004 <http://oregonstate.edu/instruct/ger341/neuesach.htm>.

Otto Dix. 1 Jan. 2002. 26 Jan. 2004 <http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/ARTdix.htm>.

Otto Dix. 4 May 1998. 26 Jan. 2004 <http://gurukul.ucc.american.edu/DSHEP/modern_students/gp3601a/home.htm>.

Otto Dix Article. Arts Zone. 26 Jan. 2004 <http://www.ovationtv.com/artszone/programs/degenerate/>.

Otto Dix. FortuneCity. 26 Jan. 2004 <http://www.fortunecity.com/victorian/picasso/500/Dix.html>.

Otto Dix. Wikipedia. 19:16, 23 Nov. 2003. 26 Jan. 2004 <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Otto_Dix>.
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