The Saint Louis Art Museum has assembled one of North America’s largest and most comprehensive collections of German Expressionist paintings. Rediscover a defining movement of modern art through this original study of works by 25 artists who span its famously wide arc. This is the first publication on the Saint Louis Art Museum’s internationally renowned collection of German Expressionist art, which includes major works by the movement’s leading artists and lesser-known figures rarely seen outside of Germany. Engaging entries delve into the paintings’ histories, from their production to their arrival in St. Louis. An introduction traces the collection’s origins to the flood of Expressionist art that entered the United States during World War II. What emerges is a new account of a pivotal era in modern art.

Raw, unprettified and decried in conservative circles as “gutter art�: Käthe Kollwitz employed her art uncompromisingly as a political voice for the social and human misery of her time. Her focus always lay on the dignity of humankind. The volume provides a wide-ranging insight into the commitment and creative work of the artist, whose achievements are more topical than ever. The book covers the entire spectrum of Kollwitz’ creative work with the world-famous cycles of graphic works A Weavers’ Revolt and Peasants’ War, rare proofs and moving drawings and sculptures, thereby showing all facets of her masterful skills. The political dimension of Kollwitz’ art becomes tangible in a particularly impressive manner through her posters. The unbroken validity of her work is demonstrated in a juxtaposition with the interventions by the artist Mona Hatoum (b. 1952), which revolve around topics such as vulnerability, persecution and the experience of conflict.