In the Rain 1912

Editor: Franz Marc’s “In the Rain,” painted in 1912, uses oil paint to conjure up…well, I see animals and foliage. It feels chaotic, almost violently so, but there’s also something captivating in the fragmented forms. How do you interpret this work? Curator: I see a cultural memory striving for rebirth. Notice the fragmented, geometric forms of the animals, hallmarks of the Cubist influence, yes, but consider what they signify here. Marc, amidst the growing storm of pre-war Europe, sought a purity in nature, a return to an unspoiled world represented by these animals. Are they hiding, blending into the downpour? The rain itself is symbolic; what do you feel it washes away, or perhaps brings forth? Editor: It’s like a cleansing, a destructive force, but maybe also a force of growth? I guess I’m so used to rain meaning something sad, it’s cool to think of it differently. Curator: Precisely! The downpour is also the animal’s natural environment, and perhaps it's more symbolic than literal, indicating emotional turbulence and foreshadows a greater upheaval in the forthcoming World War. It reminds us to acknowledge the power of the symbol and their interpretation as carriers of both meaning and feeling across time and cultures. Editor: So even the choice to paint it this way, with those specific colours and shapes, it’s all meant to tell a bigger story beyond just ‘animals in the rain’? Curator: Indeed. And recall how color holds cultural meaning; for Marc, blue was spiritual, yellow represented gentleness. See how the symbolism operates to convey psychological undercurrents and offer clues into collective emotional states during that period. Editor: Wow, okay, I’m definitely going to rethink how I look at colours now. Thanks so much for your insights. Curator: And I hope this helps you find new symbolic meanings and how they play into our cultural narratives.