16/05/24
Expressionists: Kandinsky, Münter and The Blue Rider
Tate Modern, London
25 April – 20 October 2024
This exhibition opens with a question to its visitors: “What comes to mind when you picture expressionism?” The introductory wall panel goes on to provide a – tentative? – answer: “On the one hand, bold experiments with colour, dramatic forms, atonal music and poetry in free verse. On the other, cross-cultural artistic collaborations set against the imperial ideologies and social inequalities of early 20th-century Europe.” Indeed, this exhibition of more than 131 works, 50 of which have never before been shown in the UK, covers all these bases, but, by focusing on a limited time period (of a decade, give or take), drawing out the relationships between the artists involved, and going back to basics in thinking about who and what the Blue Rider was, the curation enjoys a clear focus and reduces the overwhelm so often found in large-scale Tate exhibitions intent on pursuing academic theses. In an effort to bring women more into the spotlight, showcasing their work on an equal footing to that of their male counterparts, the exhibition further introduces several artists I had not previously encountered (or, at least, not previously encountered as artists). And, as the first Blue Rider exhibition in the UK in 64 years (the previous one also having been at Tate), this celebration of international friendships, colour, form and spirituality is long overdue.
Read the full review here