Foto Exhibition Recasts Central European Modernism Through Photography, 1918-1945
The Milwaukee Art Museum hosted the exhibition 'Foto: Modernity in Central Europe, 1918-1945' from February 9 to May 4, 2008, showcasing 165 pieces by nearly 100 artists. Curated by Matthew Witkovsky and organized by the National Gallery of Art, the exhibition examined photography's influence on modernism in Central Europe, including Germany, Austria, Poland, Hungary, and the former Czechoslovakia. It featured prominent artists such as El Lissitzky and László Moholy-Nagy, addressing themes of social change, hope, despair, and national identity. Among the highlighted works were Moholy-Nagy's 'Militarism' (1924) and an activist piece by Vladimir Hnizdo (1936). Following its run, the exhibition was set to move to the Guggenheim Museum and then to the Scottish National Gallery from June 7 to August 31, 2008.
Key facts
- Exhibition featured 165 original artworks by nearly 100 artists
- Defined Central Europe as Germany, Austria, former Czechoslovakia, Poland, Hungary
- Curated by Matthew Witkovsky of the National Gallery of Art, Washington
- Ran at Milwaukee Art Museum from February 9 to May 4, 2008
- Traveled to Guggenheim Museum, New York and Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art, Edinburgh
- Included eight thematic sections exploring photomontage, surrealism, worker photography
- Argued for distinct Central European modernism with photography at its center
- Accompanied by film program featuring Hans Richter's 'Ghosts before Breakfast'
Entities
Artists
- Susan Snodgrass
- Matthew Witkovsky
- László Moholy-Nagy
- John Heartfield
- Hannah Höch
- Hans Bellmer
- August Sander
- El Lissitzky
- Stanisław Ignacy Witkiewicz
- František Drtikol
- Karel Teige
- Jaromír Funke
- Witold Romer
- Eva Besnyö
- Lucia Moholy
- Ringl and Pit
- Trude Fleischmann
- Lotte Jacobi
- Yva (Else Neulander-Simon)
- Antoni Wieczorek
- Sergej Protopopov
- Miloš Dohnány
- Eugène Atget
- Umbo (Otto Umbehr)
- Václav Zykmund
- Vladimír Hnizdo
- Władysław Bednarczuk
- Kata Kálmán
- Jan Bułhak
- Edward Hartwig
- Kazimierz Lelewicz
- André Kertész
- Rudolf Balogh
- Gyula Pap
- Rudolf Koppitz
- Wilhelm Angerer
- Wieland Herzfelde
- Władysław Strzemiński
- Marianne Brandt
- Lajos Vajda
- Hans Richter
- Eugeniusz Cekalski
- Shaul Goskind
- Yitzhak Goskind
- Peter Demetz
Institutions
- Milwaukee Art Museum
- National Gallery of Art, Washington
- Guggenheim Museum, New York
- Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art, Edinburgh
- Bauhaus
- Devětsil
- Blok
- Artes
- AIZ (journal)
Locations
- Milwaukee
- United States
- Washington, D.C.
- New York
- Edinburgh
- Scotland
- United Kingdom
- Germany
- Austria
- Czechoslovakia
- Poland
- Hungary
- Soviet Union
- Paris
- France
- Lviv
- Prague
- Bratislava
- Brno