Nolde, Emil (1867-1956), a German painter , was an important member of the Expressionism movement during the early 1900’s. Expressionist artists tried to portray life as modified and distorted by their personal interpretations of reality. Nolde’s Expressionist works portray intense emotion through his use of violent color, bold brushstrokes, simplified drawing, and extreme distortion.
Nolde was deeply religious, and many of his best-known paintings are inspired by Biblical subjects, such as Pentecost (1909) and Life of Christ (1912). He also painted many landscapes and seascapes inspired by the natural beauty of his north German home. In addition, Nolde gained recognition for his glowing water colors of flowers and his graphic art, notably his etchings , lithographs , and woodcuts .
Nolde was born Emil Hansen on Aug. 7, 1867, near the village of Nolde in the Duchy of Schleswig (now the state of Schleswig-Holstein). He changed his surname to Nolde in 1902. His parents were peasants, and he was originally trained to be a woodcarver . Nolde first became successful by painting colored postcards of mountains containing features from peasant folklore, such as goblins , trolls , and mountain spirits.
Nolde was a member of the Expressionist group called Die Brücke (The Bridge) in Dresden in 1906 and 1907. He founded the radical modern art movement called the New Secession in Berlin in 1910 and then participated in the Expressionist group known as Die Blaue Reiter (the Blue Rider), founded in 1912 in Munich. But in spite of these associations, Nolde was basically an independent artist who created his own personal style.
Nolde joined the Nazi Party in Germany in 1934, but the Nazis soon attacked his work as “degenerate art.” In 1941 he was forbidden to paint. In the early 1940’s, Nolde secretly painted small water colors, which he called “unpainted pictures.” He turned some of these intimate works into large oil paintings after the end of World War II in 1945. Nolde died on April 13, 1956.
