Blumen in einer Vase 1918

Alexej von Jawlensky created this painting of flowers in a vase with oil on canvas, but the date of its creation is not known. At first glance, this is a simple still life. But it is also a work of art with a place in the history of early twentieth-century modernism. Jawlensky was a Russian émigré working in Germany. He was associated with the expressionist group Der Blaue Reiter, or the Blue Rider, during a period of intense artistic innovation and social change. In 1937, the Nazi regime condemned Jawlensky’s work as "degenerate." They seized and sold more than 70 of his paintings from German museums as part of a campaign against modern art. Jawlensky’s bright colors and simplified forms stood against academic conservatism. He challenged viewers to see the world in new ways. To understand the painting better, we can look at its style and the artist's biography. We can also look at the historical context of expressionism and the politics of art in Nazi Germany. In this way, we will find that Blumen in einer Vase transcends the simple subject of the painting.