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The first prints were simple woodcuts produced as devotional images for pilgrims. In the second half of the 15th century, with the invention of movable type, the woodcut became intimately tied to book illustration. At the same time, engraving and etching developed into independent art forms. Though we are not certain who collected such ephemeral objects, we know that in addition to their religious function, early prints also served as entertainment for the leisured and wealthy members of an increasingly literate society, and as a way to transmit artistic ideas.

The earliest German prints were created by anonymous artists in very small editions, only a few precious examples have survived. By the 1470s, painters like Martin Schongauer began to make prints, translating the range of tone in their drawings and paintings into black and white and creating increasingly complex designs. In the succeeding generation, Albrecht Dürer would develop the print into a supremely beautiful work of art — an object worth collecting solely for its artistic merit.

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The period covered by this exhibition was one of the most turbulent and dramatic in history. The earliest work dates from 1893, roughly two decades after the unification of Germany under Prussia, and the latest was made in 1938, five years after the end of the Weimar Republic and Adolf Hitler's rise to power. Those forty-five years saw unprecedented military and economic devastation, accompanied by drastic social, political, and cultural change.

For much of that time, the dominant avant-garde style in Germany — in the visual, literary, and performing arts — was Expressionism, a term first used around 1911 in opposition to Impressionism. Gradually, Expressionism came to signify any art primarily concerned with rendering the vital emotions and desires at the core of human experience. Defying conventional attitudes toward art and life, the Expressionists believed they could initiate social and spiritual renewal.

In pursuit of this revolutionary, utopian goal, the 32 artists featured in this exhibition employed many styles and techniques. Käthe Kollwitz imbued monumental figures with haunting emotions. The members of Brücke unleashed bold lines and stark contrasts in their exhilarating landscapes, nude studies, and portraits. George Grosz, avoiding gestural flourish, produced biting, precise political caricature.

Assembled during the last thirty years by Marcia and Granvil Specks of Evanston, Illinois, this collection of German Expressionist prints is particularly notable for its breadth, depth, and quality. With the Specks' gift of more than 300 prints in 2000, the Milwaukee Art Museum became one of the most important centers for the study of German Expressionism in North America. Here, over 200 powerful images from a chaotic era communicate with undiminished force and immediacy.

Defiance Despair Desire: German Expressionist Prints from the Marcia and Granvil Specks Collection is organized by the Milwaukee Art Museum. Generous support for the exhibition's presentation in Pittsburgh has been made possible by The Scudder Charitable Foundation and Janet and Bill Hunt.

General support for the museum's exhibition program is provided by The Heinz Endowments and the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts.

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