männliche Bildnisstudie (Male Portrait) [p. 13]
1944-1949
Image not available — this artwork is under copyright
View on museum website →Medium
graphite on paper
Classification
Drawing
Department
CG-W
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Gift of Mrs. Max Beckmann
Accession Number
1984.64.38.3
Art Historical Context
Max Beckmann's *männliche Bildnisie (Male Portrait)* [p. 13], created between 1944 and 1949, is a compelling graphite drawing on paper that captures the artist's mastery of introspective portraiture. As a leading figure in German Expressionism, Beckmann was renowned for his bold, distorted forms and psychological intensity, often reflecting the turmoil of his era. This work, housed in the National Gallery of's CG-W Department and gifted by Mrs. Max Beckmann exemplifies his late-career focus on the human face as a window into deeper truths. Drafted during and after World War II—a period when B...
About the Artist
Max Beckmann
Max Carl Friedrich Beckmann (1884-1950) stands as one of the most significant German painters of the twentieth century, a complex artist who bridged Expressionism and the New Objectivity while forging a deeply personal visual language. Born in Leipzig into a middle-class family, Beckmann's artistic journey spanned from academic classicism through the traumatic crucible of World War I to a mature s...