One dimension separates the sculptor Dietriche Klinge and the painter and graphic artist

Ernst Ludwig Kirchner. But the works of the two German artists are not as distant from one

another as one might think - in an exciting dialogue, the Bode Galerie presents selected

objects from Friday, October 10 th until Friday, November 08 th 2019 in Nuremberg.

Dietrich Klinge (* 1954 in Heiligenstadt / Eichsfeld in Thuringia) is one of the most significant

contemporary German sculptors. In his work he strives for the representation of the diversity

of the human being and body. He realizes this in forms that have expressive appeal. Most of

his works are bronze figures whose molds are made of partly weathered wood. Thus, the

alloying of the works transports the aura of the old wood and its soft, open surface. This

creates an exciting contrast in the sculptures, which makes up the special charm of this work.

Dietrich Klinge's handling of materials also stands as an example of the changeability and,

ultimately, the transience of any earthly existence.

The sculptures experience particular intensity through their expression. They are not typified

faces that represent a particular culture. Instead, the figures seem like super-cultural, almost

archaic beings, which do not integrate themselves into the human-conceived boundaries of

cultural circles.

Ernst Ludwig Kirchner (* 1880 in Aschaffenburg, † 1938 in Frauenkirch-Wildboden near

Davos / Switzerland) is one of the most important representatives of German expressionism.

After studying architecture in Dresden and briefly staying in Munich, he founded the avant-

garde artist group Die Brücke in 1905 together with the architecture students Erich Heckel,

Fritz Bleyl and Karl Schmidt-Rottluff. Kirchner had decided against working as an architect

after the successful completion of his studies and developed his expressionist painting style

in the following years. Portraits, landscapes, cityscapes and the world of vaudeville were

among his favorite motifs, with female nudes and dancers playing a special role.

After his move to Berlin in 1911 and the dissolution of Die Brücke in 1913, the hitherto

unsuccessful artist created hundreds of drawings and sketches, especially during his stays

on the island of Fehmarn, two of which can be seen in our exhibition (Badende zwischen

Steinen am Fehmarnstrand (around 1912) and Frau und Kind am Meeresstrand von

Fehmarn (around 1913).

The year 1914 marks, in addition to the beginning of Kirchner’s traumatic experiences during

the First World War, also the date of his first effective publicity exhibitions in the Jena

Kunstverein. During this time, three of his major works, Der Trinker (1914/15) and

Selbstbildnis als Soldat (1915) and the triptych Badenden Frauen (1915-20) were created.

From the 1920s, Ernst Ludwig Kirchner's position in modern art was finally established.

His extraordinary oeuvre includes intimate drawings and watercolors, of which selected

works are presented in our exhibition. These include filigree works such as Badende

zwischen Steinen am Fehmarnstrand (1912), Sitzende Frau (1914), Sitzender Akt auf Divan

(1924) and Nackte Tänzerin und Zuschauer (1929).

In the joint presentation with sculptures by Dietrich Klinge from the catalogue Broken

published in 2019, unexpected parallels between the works of the two artists open up.

Despite Kirchner’s different artistic development and working methods, the archaic types that

represent the universal image of mankind in Klinge's oeuvre can also be discovered in his

drawings.