Akrobat in der Brücke (Backbend) [p. 1] 

Max Beckmann made this sketch, "Backbend," with pencil on paper. The scene is of a female acrobat performing on what seems to be a stage. Beckmann was a German artist, and this drawing can be understood in the context of the Weimar Republic of the 1920s, a time when the divisions of class and taste were being challenged by the rise of popular culture and avant-garde art. Traditional hierarchies were questioned and new forms of art were tried. The sketch reflects this spirit through the subject of the acrobat, who was a popular figure in the cabarets and circuses of the time. The drawing is sketchy, which is characteristic of Beckmann's style of art. By studying Beckmann's letters, diaries, and the cultural history of Germany in the 1920s, we can better understand the social forces that shaped his art and the role it played in challenging the conventions of his time.