Otto Mueller
(1874–)
(–1930)
Otto Mueller
1874–1930
Otto Mueller (1874–1930) was a German Expressionist painter and printmaker. His work mainly focused on idyllic landscapes, nude women and bathers, and scenes of Romani women.
Born in Liebau, Silesia (now Lubawka, Poland), Mueller trained as a lithographer in Görlitz and Breslau from 1890 to 1892 before attending the Academy of Fine Arts Dresden and the Academy of Fine Arts Munich from 1894 to 1896. In 1898, he moved to the remote mountains of Riesengebirge before moving to Berlin in 1908.
His early work was influenced by Impressionism, Jugenstil, and Symbolism. However, as he settled in Berlin and began circulating in the artistic community, his style became increasingly Expressionist. In fact, in 1910, he joined Die Brücke, a Dresden based group of Expressionist artists, until they disbanded in 1913. Mueller volunteered as a German soldier in France and Russia during World War One, and after the war ended, he moved to Breslau, where he taught at the Academy of Arts from 1920 until his death in 1930. He was posthumously declared a degenerate artist by the Nazi regime and 357 of his works were removed from German museums.
His work was focused on the unity between nature and humans, and his early subject matter was focused on pastoral images of the land and depictions of nude women and bathers. In the 1920’s, Mueller turned to new subject matter, documenting the life of Romani women inspired by his travels through the Balkans. His paintings are characterized by their flat distorted spaces and their simplification of form, colour, and contours. Muller preferred to paint using distemper on a coarse canvas, resulting in a muted colour palette compared to other German Expressionists and a matte surface effect.
Over the course of his lifetime, Mueller produced over 172 prints, mainly lithographs. His paintings and prints have been widely exhibited internationally, and his work is held in numerous private and public collections across the globe.