How the Nazis Waged War on Modern Art: Inside the “Degenerate Art” Exhibition of 1937
Before his fateful entry into politics, Adolf Hitler wanted to be an artist. Even to the most neutral imaginable observer, the known examples of the estimated 2,000 to 3,000 paintings and other works of art he produced in his early adulthood would hardly evidence astonishing genius. They do show a certain technical competence, especially where buildings are concerned. (Twice rejected from the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna, the young Hitler was advised to apply instead to the School of Architecture, a subject for which he also professed a passion.) But their lack of imagination and interest in humanity were too plain to ignore. Could Hitler’s failure to gain entry to the art world explain anything about the cultural policy of the Nazi Party he went on to lead? Here on Open Culture, we’ve previously featured that policy’s single defining event: Die Ausstellung “Entartete Kunst,” or the Degenerate Art exhibition, staged in 1937 at the Institute of Archaeology in Munich’s Hofgarten. Presenting 650 confiscated works of art purported to “insult German feeling, or destroy or confuse …
