Anastasia Yu. Koroleva

The article deals with the phenomenon of the perception by the artists of the Weimar Republic of the classical heritage of the masters of previous centures. The reader is offered an attempt to comprehend the semiotic properties of the concept of "classical" and the attitude towards it on the part of German painters of the interwar era. The author substantiates the relevance of this issue from the perspective of state policy and the specifics of modern scientific interests.

The article considers the works of artists of different directions within the realist art of the 1920–1930s, verists (O. Dix, G. Gross, K. Hubbuch, G. Scholz, R. Schlichter, M. Beckmann) and neoclassicists (K. Schad, W. Peiner, E. Rüter-Rabinovitsch), taking into account their avant-garde past and "degenerate" future. In the course of reviewing the artistic material, several levels of appeal to the heritage of old masters were revealed, from imitation of the form of a medieval altar painting — a triptych, a complex semantic interpretation of meanings, to direct quotation, from sharp satire on modern society to exquisite humor directed at ourselves.

In conclusion, the author notes the paradox that, studying the works of artists of the new objectivity and those samples, the interpretation of which was the basis of many of the iconic works of the era, it turns out that in her eyes the concept of exemplary is related mainly to those periods of world art (Northern Renaissance, Romanticism, impressionism), which classical art history interprets as non-classical.

The article deals with new objectivity and the item world as viewed by artists. The reader is shown semiotic properties and role of things in the painting of the Weimar Republic created by the artists, whose belonging to new objectivity does speak for itself about the attitude towards the image of things and the interpretation of the physic world. The article consistently examines portraits and stilllifes by O. Dix, G. Gross, G. Scholz, M. Beckmann, K. Schad, A. Kanold and others. That is, paintings in which an inanimate object of the visible world is used as a means of realistic depiction of reality, an attribute or symbolic element, and also as a quotation that reveals the meaning of the image through an appeal to traditional images of the art of old masters. In the course of examining these painting the author identifies several basic principles of the attitude towards things throughout the history of its existence and their transformation in the works of the interwar era. In conclusion the author notes that after the revolutionary changes in depicting the visible world, perfected by avant-garde art, the new objectivity, returning things to their material essence, and regards this process to be its own new meanings, only emphasizing the metaphysical nature of a human's relationship with reality.

The article aims to offer a detailed analysis of the artworks by the German artist Kate Diehn-Bitt. The performed analysis considers the broader context of the period — social and cultural changes unfolding in Europe — and focuses on the perception of female identity. The article examines the paradoxes of modernism, emphasizing the dual nature of artistic activity: the desire for self-expression, on the one hand, and the existence of certain aesthetic norms, on the other. The key objective was to study the artist’s portraits through the lens of gender, as well as examine their iconography and semantics within a complex socio-cultural context. Kate Diehn-Bitt’s works reflect the traditional social roles women played, such as mothers and wives, while considering them from the standpoint of a woman painter, which shapes their perception. The very fact of turning to figuration places her works (mainly portraits and considerably fewer genre compositions) among the masters of new materiality. However, she also significantly stands out due to an unusually lyrical tone of her works, encouraging the viewers approach seemingly familiar motifs from a different perspective. Many of her works show archetypal images; by addressing this theme, the artist questions the possibility of female self-expression in the 20th century society. The author concludes that without radicalising the topic, nor turning to resonant motives, Kate Diehn-Bitt managed to become one of the main exponents of the true self-awareness of women of her generation. Namely, of the mid-20th century European women who, were not deprived of their original essence after getting “freedom of speech”, but rather acquired further opportunities to do achieve their aims, play a significant role in political and social life, as well as to act as an equal partner.