Masterpiece: The Zoo as Eden Garden



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In 1912, August Macke painted a zoo in which humans, animals and nature are united peacefully. Nothing in this chart suggests that the First World War is upon us. Only a few weeks after the start of the war, the 27-year-old artist falls

Christina Genova

In the spring of 1912, August Macke, 25 , traveling with his wife for five days in Holland. There he visits the Amsterdam Zoo, where he makes many sketches. He found a new pictorial theme that fascinated him and kept him busy until his untimely death in 1914. Back in Germany, the artist continued his studies and sketches at the Cologne Zoo. The mother of a friend runs the Zoorestaurant. There, Macke can drop off his paint objects and pick them up anytime.

Two versions of Zoothemas are made in 1912: "Zoologischer Garten I" stands out as remarkable. As in his other works, the young artist inspires various influences from the contemporary avant-garde: he associates Fauvism with Cubism and inspires Matisse and Kandinsky. But in the choice of subject, composition and coloring, Macke is free and completely recognizable; The artist is developing more and more his own individual style. He is therefore satisfied with his work. In a letter to the gallerist Bernhard Koehler, who acquired the painting, he writes that it is one of the best that he has painted so far. Today, "Zoologischer Garten I" is located in the municipal gallery of the Lenbachhaus in Munich.

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