Art of the Third Reich 1

Art of the Third Reich

Die Partei, Arno Breker's statue representing the spirit of the NaziParty

The art of the Third Reich, the officially approved artproduced in Nazi Germany between 1933 and 1945, wascharacterized by a style of Romantic realism based onclassical models. While banning modern styles asdegenerate, the Nazis promoted paintings and sculpturesthat were narrowly traditional in manner and that exaltedthe "blood and soil" values of racial purity, militarism,and obedience. Other popular themes for Nazi art werethe Volk at work in the fields, a return to the simplevirtues of Heimat (love of homeland), the manly virtuesof the National Socialist struggle, and the lauding of thefemale activities of child bearing and raising symbolizedby the phrase Kinder, Küche, Kirche ("children, kitchen,church").

Similarly, music was expected to be tonal and free of jazz influence; films and plays were censored.Nazi art bears a close similarity to the Soviet propaganda art style of Socialist Realism, and the term heroic realismhas sometimes been used to describe both artistic styles.Among the well-known artists endorsed by the Nazis were the sculptors Josef Thorak and Arno Breker, and paintersWerner Peiner, Adolf Wissel and Conrad Hommel.

Historical backgroundThe early twentieth century was characterized by startling changes in artistic styles. In the visual arts, suchinnovations as cubism, Dada and surrealism, following hot on the heels of Symbolism, post-Impressionism andFauvism, were not universally appreciated. The majority of people in Germany, as elsewhere, did not care for thenew art which many resented as elitist, morally suspect and too often incomprehensible.[1]

During recent years, Germany had become a major center of avant-garde art. It was the birthplace of Expressionismin painting and sculpture, the atonal musical compositions of Arnold Schoenberg, and the jazz-influenced work ofPaul Hindemith and Kurt Weill. Robert Wiene's The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari and Fritz Lang's Metropolis broughtexpressionism to cinema.The Nazis viewed the culture of the Weimar period with disgust. Their response stemmed partly from conservativeaesthetics and partly from their determination to use culture as propaganda.[2] Upon becoming dictator in 1933,Adolf Hitler gave his personal artistic preference the force of law to a degree rarely known before. Only in JosephStalin's Soviet Union, where Socialist Realism had become the mandatory style, had a state shown such concern withregulation of the arts.[3] In the case of Germany, the model was to be classical Greek and Roman art, seen by Hitleras an art whose exterior form embodied an inner racial ideal.[4] It was, furthermore, to be comprehensible to theaverage man.[5] This art was to be both heroic and romantic.[5]

The reason for this, as historian Henry Grosshans indicates, is that Hitler "saw Greek and Roman art asuncontaminated by Jewish influences. Modern art was [seen as] an act of aesthetic violence by the Jews against theGerman spirit. Such was true to Hitler even though only Liebermann, Meidner, Freundlich, and Marc Chagall,among those who made significant contributions to the German modernist movement, were Jewish. But Hitler ...took upon himself the responsibility of deciding who, in matters of culture, thought and acted like a Jew."[6]

Art of the Third Reich 2

The supposedly "Jewish" nature of art that was indecipherable, distorted, or that represented "depraved" subjectmatter was explained through the concept of degeneracy, which held that distorted and corrupted art was a symptomof an inferior race. By propagating the theory of degeneracy, the Nazis combined their anti-Semitism with their driveto control the culture, thus consolidating public support for both campaigns.[7]

Their efforts in this regard were unquestionably aided by a popular hostility to Modernism that predated theirmovement.[8] The view that such art had reflected Germany's condition and moral bankruptcy was widespread, andmany artists acted in a manner to overtly undermine or challenge popular values and morality.[9]

Degenerate artThe term Entartung (or "degeneracy") had gained popularity in Germany by the late 19th century when the critic andauthor Max Nordau devised the theory presented in his 1892 book, Entartung.[10] Nordau drew upon the writings ofthe criminologist Cesare Lombroso, whose The Criminal Man, published in 1876, attempted to prove that there were"born criminals" whose atavistic personality traits could be detected by scientifically measuring abnormal physicalcharacteristics. Nordau developed from this premise a critique of modern art, explained as the work of those socorrupted and enfeebled by modern life that they have lost the self-control needed to produce coherent works.Explaining the painterliness of Impressionism as the sign of a diseased visual cortex, he decried modern degeneracywhile praising traditional German culture. Despite the fact that Nordau was Jewish (as was Lombroso), his theory ofartistic degeneracy would be seized upon by German National Socialists during the Weimar Republic as a rallyingpoint for their anti-Semitic and racist demand for Aryan purity in art.Belief in a Germanic spirit—defined as mystical, rural, moral, bearing ancient wisdom, noble in the face of a tragicdestiny—existed long before the rise of the Nazis; Richard Wagner celebrated such ideas in his work.[11] Beginningbefore World War I the well-known German architect and painter Paul Schultze-Naumburg's influential writings,which invoked racial theories in condemning modern art and architecture, supplied much of the basis for AdolfHitler's belief that classical Greece and the Middle Ages were the true sources of Aryan art.[12] Hitler's rise to poweron January 31, 1933 was quickly followed by actions intended to cleanse the culture of degeneracy: book burningswere organized, artists and musicians were dismissed from teaching positions, artists were forbidden to utilize anycolors not apparent in nature, to the "normal eye",[13] and curators who had shown a partiality to modern art werereplaced by Party members.[14]

Creation of the ReichskulturkammerIn September 1933 the Reichskulturkammer (Reich Culture Chamber) was established, with Joseph Goebbels,Hitler's Reichminister für Volksaufklärung und Propaganda (Reich Minister for Public Enlightenment andPropaganda) in charge.[15] Subchambers within the Culture Chamber, representing the individual arts (music, film,literature, architecture, and the visual arts) were created;[15] these were membership groups consisting of "raciallypure" artists supportive of the Party, or willing to be compliant. Goebbels made it clear: "In future only those whoare members of a chamber are allowed to be productive in our cultural life. Membership is open only to those whofulfill the entrance condition. In this way all unwanted and damaging elements have been excluded."[16] By 1935 theReich Culture Chamber had 100,000 members.[16] Nonetheless there was, during the period 1933-1934, someconfusion within the Party on the question of Expressionism. Goebbels and some others believed that the forcefulworks of such artists as Emil Nolde, Ernst Barlach and Erich Heckel exemplified the Nordic spirit; as Goebbelsexplained, "We National Socialists are not unmodern; we are the carrier of a new modernity, not only in politics andin social matters, but also in art and intellectual matters."[17] However, a faction led by Rosenberg despisedExpressionism, leading to a bitter ideological dispute which was settled only in September 1934, when Hitlerdeclared that there would be no place for modernist experimentation in the Reich.[18]

Modern artworks were purged from German museums. Over 5,000 works were initially seized, including 1,052 by Nolde, 759 by Heckel, 639 by Ernst Ludwig Kirchner and 508 by Max Beckmann, as well as smaller numbers of

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works by such artists as Alexander Archipenko, Marc Chagall, James Ensor, Henri Matisse, Pablo Picasso andVincent van Gogh.[19] These became the material for a defamatory exhibit, Entartete Kunst ("Degenerate Art"),featuring over 650 paintings, sculptures, prints, and books from the collections of thirty two German museums, thatpremiered in Munich on July 19, 1937 and remained on view until November 30 before travelling to eleven othercities in Germany and Austria. In this exhibition, the artworks were deliberately presented in a disorderly manner,and accompanied by mocking labels.

The House of German Art in Munich

Coinciding with the Entartete Kunst exhibition, theGroße Deutsche Kunstausstellung (Great German artexhibition) made its premiere amid much pageantry. Thisexhibition, held at the palatial Haus der deutschen Kunst(House of German Art), displayed the work of officiallyapproved artists such as Arno Breker and Adolf Wissel.At the end of four months Entartete Kunst had attractedover two million visitors, nearly three and a half times thenumber that visited the nearby Grosse deutscheKunstausstellung.[20]

Musicologists of the Third ReichAs the Nazi regime accrued power in 1933, musicologists were directed to rewrite the history of German music inorder to accommodate Nazi mythology and ideology. Richard Wagner and Hans Pfitzner were notable preexistingcomposers who conceptualized a united order (Volksgemeinschaft) where music was an index of the Germancommunity. In a time of disintegration, Wagner and Pfitzner wanted to revitalize the country through music. In abook written about Hans Pfitzner and Wagner, published in Regseneberg in 1939 followed not only the birth ofcontemporary musical parties, but also of political parties in Germany. The Wagner-Pfitzner stance contrasted ideasof other notable artists – Arnold Schonberg and Theodor W. Adorno – who wanted music to be autonomous frompolitics, Nazi control and application. Although Wagner and Pfitzner came before the Third Reich, their sentimentsand thoughts, Wagner's Gesamtkunstwerk, were appropriated by Hitler and his propagandists – notably JosephGoebbels. According to Michael Meyer, "The very emphasis on rootedness and on tradition music underscored Naziunderstanding of itself in a dialectic terms: old gods were mobilized against the false values of the immediate past tooffer legitimacy to the epiphany of Adolf Hitler and the music representation of his realm."Composers, librettists, educators, critics, and especially musicologists, through their public statements, intellectualwritings, and journals contributed to the justification of a totalitarian blueprint to be implanted through nazification.All music was then composed for the occasions of Nazi pageantries, rallies, and conventions. Composers dedicatedso called 'consecration fanfares,' inaugurations fanfares and flag songs to the Fuhrer. When the Fuhrer assumedpower the Nazi revolution was immediately expressed in musicological journalism. Certain progressive journalismpertaining to modern music was purged. Journals that had been sympathetic to the ‘German viewpoint,’ entrenched inWagnerian ideals, like the Zeischrift fur Musik and Die Muzik, showed confidence in the new regime and affirmedthe process of intertwining government policies with music. Joseph Goebbels used the Volkscher Beobatcher, ajournal that was disseminated to the general public in addition to elites and party officials, as an organ of ReichCulture. By the end of the 1930s the Mitteilungen der Reichsmusikkammer became another prominent journal thatreflected the music policy, organizational and personnel changes in musical institutions.In the early years of the Third Reich, the musicologists and musicians redirected the orientation of music, defining what was ‘German Music’ and what was not. Nazi ideology was applied to the evaluation of musicians for hero status; musicians defined in the new German musical era were given titles of prophets, while their accomplishments and deeds were seen as direct accomplishments of the Nazi regime. The contribution of German musicologists led to the justification of Nazi power and a new German music culture in whole. They defined the greater German values

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that musicians would have to identify with, because their duty was to integrate music and National Socialism in waythat made them look inseparable. Nazi myth making and ideology was forced upon the new musical path of theThird Reich rather than truly embedded in the rhetoric of German music.

Genres in the Third Reich

PaintingIn general, painting – once purged of "degenerate art" – was based on traditional genre painting.[2] Titles wereheavily significant, such as "Fruitful Land", "Liberated Land", "Standing Guard", "Through Wind and Weather", or"Blessing of Earth."[2] Hitler's favorite painter was Adolf Ziegler and Hitler owned a number of his works.Landscape painting featured mostly heavily in the Greater German Art exhibition.[21] While drawing on GermanRomanticism traditions, it was to be firmly based on real landscape, Germans' Lebensraum, without religiousmoods.[22] Peasants were also popular images, reflecting a simple life in harmony with nature.[23] This art showed nosign of the mechanization of farm work.[24] The farmer labored by hand, with effort and struggle.[25] Not a singlepainting in the first exhibition showed urban or industrialized life; the exhibition in 1938 contained only two.[26]

Nazi theory explicitly rejected "materialism", and therefore, despite the realistic treatment of images, "realism" was aseldom used term.[27] A painter was to create an ideal picture, for eternity.[27] The images of men, and still more ofwomen, were heavily stereotyped,[28] with physical perfection required for the nude paintings.[29] This may havebeen the cause of there being very few anti-Semitic paintings; while such works as Um Haus and Hof, depicting aJewish speculator dispossessing an elderly peasant couple exist, they are few, perhaps because the art was supposedto be on a higher plane.[30] Explicitly political paintings were more common but still very rare.[21] Heroic imagery,on the other hand, was common enough to be commented on by a critic: "The heroic element stands out. The worker,the farmer, the soldier are the themes ..... Heroic subjects dominate over sentimental ones".[31]

With the advent of war, war paintings became far more common.[32] The images were heavily romanticized,depicting heroic sacrifice and victory.[33] Still, landscapes still predominated, and among the painters exempted fromwar service, all were noted for landscapes or other pacific subjects.[34]

Even Hitler and Goebbels found the new paintings disappointing, although Goebbels tried to put a good face on itwith the observation that they had cleared the field, and that these desperate times drew many talents into politicallife rather than cultural.[35]

SculptureSculpture's monumental possibilities gave it a better expression of Nazi racial theories.[36] The Greater German ArtExhibit displayed, throughout Nazi years, a steady rise in the number of sculptures at the expense of paintings.[36]

The most common image was of the nude male, expressing the ideal of the Aryan race.[37] Arno Breker's skill at thistype made him Hitler's favorite sculptor.[38] Nude females were also common, though they tended to be lessmonumental.[39] In both cases, the physical form was to show no imperfections.[29]

Josef Thorak was another official sculptor of the Third Reich owing to his skill at monumental sculpture.[40]

MusicGermany's urban centers in the 1920s and 30s were buzzing with jazz clubs, cabaret houses and avant garde music. In contrast, the National Socialist regime made concentrated efforts to shun modern music (which was considered degenerate and Jewish in nature) and instead embraced classical "German" music. Highly favored was music which alluded to a mythic, heroic German past such as Johann Sebastian Bach, Ludwig van Beethoven and Richard Wagner. Anton Bruckner was highly favored as his music was regarded as an expression of the zeitgeist of the German volk. [41] The music of Arnold Schoenberg (and atonal music along with it), Gustav Mahler, Felix

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Mendelssohn and many others was banned because they were Jewish or of Jewish origin.[42] Paul Hindemith fledrather than fit his music into Nazi ideology. Some operas of Georg Friederich Händel were either banned outright forthemes sympathetic to Jews and Judaism or had new librettos written for them.Music by non-German composers was tolerated if it was classically inspired, tonal, and not by a composer of Jewishorigin or having ties to ideologies hostile to the Third Reich. The Nazis recognized Franz Liszt for having Germanorigin and fabricated a genealogy that purported that Frédéric Chopin was German, and the Nazi Governor-Generalof occupied Poland even had a "Chopin Museum" built in Krakow. Music of the Russian Peter Tchaikovsky could beperformed in Nazi Germany even after Operation Barbarossa. Operas by Gioacchino Rossini, Giuseppe Verdi andGiacomo Puccini got frequent play. Such contemporary composers as the Russian Igor Stravinsky and Béla Bartókwere tolerated until they ran afoul of Nazi politics.There has been controversy over the use of certain composers' music by the Nazi regime, and whether that implicatesthe composer as implicitly Nazi. Composers such as Richard Strauss,[43] who served as the first director of thePropaganda Ministry's music division, and Carl Orff have been subject to extreme criticism and heateddefense.[44][45]

Jews were quickly prohibited from performing or conducting classical music in Germany. Such conductors as OttoKlemperer, Bruno Walter, Josef Krips, and Kurt Sanderling fled Germany. Upon the Nazi seizure ofCzechoslovakia, the conductor Karel Ančerl was blacklisted as a Jew and was sent in turn to Theresienstadt andAuschwitz.

Graphic designThe poster became an important medium for propaganda during this period. Combining text and bold graphics,posters were extensively deployed both in Germany and in the areas occupied. Their typography reflected the Nazis'official ideology. The use of Fraktur was common in Germany until 1941, when Martin Bormann denounced thetypeface as "Judenlettern" and decreed that only Roman type should be used.[46] Modern sans-serif typefaces werecondemned as cultural Bolshevism, although Futura continued to be used owing to its practicality.[47]

Imagery frequently drew on heroic realism.[48] Nazi youth and the SS were depicted monumentally, with lightingposed to produce grandeur.[48]

Popular artMass culture was less stringently regulated than high culture, possibly because the authorities feared theconsequences of too heavy-handed interference in popular entertainment.[49] Thus, until the outbreak of the war,most Hollywood films could be screened, including It Happened One Night, San Francisco, and Gone with theWind. While performance of atonal music was banned, the prohibition of jazz was less strictly enforced. BennyGoodman and Django Reinhardt were popular, and leading English and American jazz bands continued to performin major cities until the war; thereafter, dance bands officially played "swing" rather than the banned jazz.[50]

A film premiered in Berlin on Nov. 28, 1940 which was clearly a tool used to promote Nazi Ideology. The release ofthe film: Der ewige Jude (The Eternal Jew) was only two months prior to the announcement made by Germanofficials of the establishment of the ghetto in Lodz, Poland. The film was portrayed in the Nazi press as adocumentary to emphasize the cinema as truth, when in reality it was nothing more than propaganda to raise hatredagainst the Jewish community to its viewers..[51]

The filmmaker: Fritz Hippler used numerous visual techniques to portray Jews as a filthy, degenerate, and disease infested population. The film was intended to provide the viewer with an in depth and up-close and personal look at Jewish lifestyle, which showed staged scenes of Lodz (soon to be ghetto) with the presence of flies, and rats, as to suggest a dangerous-to-life area of Europe; which in turn only perpetuated underlying superstition and fear to the viewer. To add to this staged and exaggerated scene of filth was a warning released by officials of The Reich: an advisory that Lodz is an area of widespread infectious disease. The film director utilized racist cinema to bolster the

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illusion that Jews were a parasitic being which was corrupting German culture.[52] One of the many techniques usedby Hippler and used frequently throughout the film was voice-overs. Hippler would have a voice-over citing hatespeeches or fictitious statistics of the Jewish population, or that “truth” would be revealed to the German viewer ofthe deceitful Jew. A cinematic technique used by Hippler that was combined with Voice-overs was simplyborrowing numerous scenes from other films, and presenting them out of context from the original. One particularscene was that of a Jewish business man in the United States hiding money accompanied with a bogus claim: thatJewish men get taxed more than non-Jews in the Unites States, which was used to insinuate that Jews withholdmoney from the government. Another visual technique that was used in Der ewige Jude was the repetition of sideangles of Jewish people, which would only be filmed (without knowledge) while looking over their shoulder at thecamera, which in turn created a visual suggesting a shifty and conspiring nature of Jews. Yet another powerful andwarped technique of promoting a false picture against the Jewish community was superposition. Hipplersuperimposed the Star of Davidonto the tops of world capitals, incinuating an illusion of Jewish worlddomination.[53] Overall, Der ewige Jude is notorious for being extremely anti-Semitic, and a powerful piece ofhistory in the fabrication of cinematic propaganda used against Jewish people intended to convey reality throughdistortion of the truth to deceive the viewer. All of these techniques are only a few which were used throughout thefilm, all to satisfy Hitler, and to embrace the Germanic ideology that would fuel a nation in support of an obsessiveleader..[54]

Art theftLater, as the occupiers of Europe, the Germans trawled the museums and private collections of Europe for suitably"Aryan" art to be acquired to fill a bombastic new gallery in Hitler's home town of Linz. At first a pretense was madeof exchanges of works (sometimes with Impressionist masterpieces, considered degenerate by the Nazis), but lateracquisitions came through forced "donations" and eventually by simple looting.[55]

The Purge of art in Germany and occupied countries was extremely broad. The Nazi theft is considered to be thelargest art theft in modern history including Paintings, furniture, sculptures, and anything in between consideredeither valuable, or opposing Hitler’s purification of German culture. During the Second World War, art theft byGerman forces was devastating, and the resurfacing of missing stolen art continues today, along with the fight forrightful ownership. Not only did the Reich confiscate and reallocate countless masterpieces from occupied territoriesduring the war, but also put to auction a large portion of Germanys collection of great art from museums and artgalleries. In the end, the confiscation committees removed over 15,000 works of art from German public collectionsalone.[56]

It took four years to “refine” the Nazi art criteria; in the end what was tolerated was whatever Hitler liked, andwhatever was most useful to the German government from the point of view of creating propaganda. A thoroughhead hunting of artists within Germany was in effect from the beginning of the Second World War, which includedthe elimination of countless members within the art community. Museum directors that supported modern art wereattacked; artists that refused to comply with Reich-approved art were forbidden to practice art altogether. To enforcethe prohibition of practicing art, agents of the Gestapo routinely made unexpected visits to artist’s homes and studios.If wet brushes were found during the inspections or even the smell of turpentine in the air was reason enough forarrest. In response to the growing discrimination against artists, many chose to flee Germany.[57]

Before the impending war and a time of simply looting occupied nation’s art treasures, but during the Reich’s efforts to free Germany of conflicting art, authorities of the Nazi party realized the potential revenue of Germany’s own collection of art that was considered degenerate art which was to be purged from German culture. The Reich began to collect and auction countless pieces of art, for example: “On June, 30, 1939 a major auction took place at the elegant Grand Hotel National in the Swiss resort town of Lucerne”..[58] Art auctions were not uncommon at the time, as they are not uncommon today, but the unique aspect about this particular auction were the origins of the art pieces that were to be sold. All of the paintings, and sculptures had recently been on display in museums throughout

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Germany. This collection offered over 100 paintings and sculptures by numerous famous artists, such as, HenriMatisse, Vincent van Gogh, and Pablo Picasso; all of which were considered “degenerate” pieces by Nazi authoritiesand were to be banished from Germany. An auction of this magnitude was viewed as suspicious by potential buyers,who feared that the profits would end up funding the Nazi party: “The auctioneer had been so worried about thisperception that he had sent letters to leading dealers assuring them that all profits would be used for Germanmuseums”.[59] When in reality all of the proceeds from the auction were deposited into “Germancontrolled-accounts”, and as for the museums: “. . . as all had suspected, did not receive a penny”.[60]

Apart from auctioning art that was to be purged from Germany’s collection, Germany’s art that was considered asespecially favourable by Hitler were to be combined to create a massive art museum in Hitler’s hometown of Linz,Austria for his own personal collection. The museum to-be by 1945 had thousands of pieces of furniture, paintings,sculptures and several other forms of fine craft. The museum was to be known as the “Führermuseum”. By the latespring of 1940 art collectors and museum curators were in a race against time; a race to move thousands of pieces ofcollectables into hiding, or out of soon to be occupied territory that would be vulnerable to confiscation fromGerman officials; either for themselves, or to the Führer. On June 5, a particularly unique movement of thousands ofpaintings occurred; which included the Mona Lisa, and all were hidden in the Loc-Dieu Abbey located near Martielduring the chaos of invasion by German forces. Art dealers did their best to hide artwork in the best places possible.One collector in particular was Paul Rosenberg. He managed to move over 150 great pieces to a Libourne bank,which included works from great names such as Monet, Matisse, Picasso, and Van gogh, to name a portion of thisvaluable collection. Other collectors did whatever they could to remove Frances artistic treasures to the safestlocations feasible at the time; filling cars, or large crates en route to Vichy, or south through France and into Spain toreach transport by boat. Art Dealer Martin Fabiani moved mass quantities of pictures: drawings and paintings to beboarded onto a ship so that the prized possessions were to be in safer keeping on British soil in Bermuda, howeverwhen the ships contents arrived, complications arose over proof of ownership of foreign assets from France. Britishconsuls were weary of exports and carefully inspected shipments from France; after which Fabiani’s assets wererelocated to Canada, in the charge of the Registrar of the Exchequer Court of Canada where they were to remainuntil the end of the war. Similar shipments landed in New York; all of which were in effort to protect artistictreasures from confiscation, theft, and destruction.[61] By the end of June, Hitler controlled most of the Europeancontinent. As people were detained, their possessions were confiscated, or if they were lucky enough to escape: theirbelongings left behind or in storage became the property of Germany. By the end of August, officials of the Reichwere granted permission to access any shipping containers and remove any desirable items inside. As well as lootinggoods that were to be shipped out of occupied territories, Arthur Seyss-Inquart authorized the removal of any objectsfound in houses during the invasion; after which a long and thorough search was in effect for European treasures.[62]

Artwork became an important commodity in the German economy: no one in German or axis-controlled countriesallowed to invest outside of the new Germanic controlled territory, which in turn created a self-contained market.With few options available for investments, art was of great importance to anyone with cash, including the Führerhimself, as a safe form of investment, and even in trade for the lives of others: At the height of trading in 1943, artwas even used by Pieter de Boers, who was the head of Dutch association of Art Dealers, and the largest seller toGermans in Holland, in the exchange of the release of his Jewish employee. Demand began to increase dramatically,forcing prices to rise; and only furthering the desire to discover hidden treasures within occupied territory.[63]

As exploration continued within occupied France, and by order of the Führer, a list was created which included all ofthe great works of art in France, as well, the German Currency Unit began to open private bank units whichcontained countless collectors property and possible items on the list. The owner of the vault was required to bepresent. One particular investigation of a vault was that of Pablo Picasso; he chose a rather clever tactic whensoldiers searched the contents of his vault. He packed his own works of art with countless other artists’ work of hiscollection in a much unorganized matter: and consequently confused the investigators to think that nothing in thecollection was significant, resulting in nothing being taken..[64]

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As confiscations began to pile up in massive quantities, the items filled the Louvre, and forced Reich officials to usethe Jeu de Paume, a small museum, for additional space, and for proper viewing of the collection. The grandstockpile of art was ready for Hitler to choose from: the Führer had first choice for his own collection; second wereobjects that would complete collections of the Reichsmarschall; third was intended for whatever was useful tosupport Nazi ideology; a fourth category was created for German museums. Everything was supposed to beappraised and paid for, with proceeds being directed to French war-orphans..[65]

Another major influence on search and seizure of artwork in France came when orders from Hitler arrived of theconfiscation of French works of art owned by the state, and by the cities. Reich officials decided what was to stay inFrance, and what was to be sent to Linz. Further orders from the Führer also included the return of art that werelooted by Napoleon from Germany in the past. Napoleon is considered the unquestioned record holder in the act ofconfiscating art.[66]

Individual artistsIn September 1944 the Ministry of Public Enlightenment and Propaganda prepared a list of 1,041 artists consideredcrucial to National Socialist culture, and therefore exempt from war service. This Gottbegnadeten list provides awell-documented index to the painters, sculptors, architects and filmmakers who were regarded by the Nazis aspolitically sympathetic, culturally valuable, and still residing in Germany at this late stage of the war.

Painting• Thomas Baumgartner (1892–1962)• Fritz Erler (1868–1940)• Sepp Hilz (1906–1967)• Walther Hoeck (1885–1956)• Conrad Hommel (1883–1971)•• Trude Hoppe-Arendt• Julius Paul Junghanns (1876–1953)• Hubert Lanzinger (1880–1950), painter of "Adolf Hitler as Standard Bearer"[67]

•• Georg Lebrecht• Ernst Liebermann (1869–1960)• Oskar Martin-Amorbach (1897–1987)• Paul Mathias Padua (1903–1981)• Gisbert Palmie (1897–1984)• Werner Peiner (1897–1984)• Ivo Saliger (1894–1987)• Leopold Schmutzler (1864–1940)• Georg Sluyterman von Langeweyde (1903–1978)• Edmund Steppes (1873–1968)• Karl Truppe (1887–1952)•• Udo Wendel• Wolfgang Willrich (1897–1948)• Adolf Wissel (1894–1973)• Adolf Ziegler (1892–1959)

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Sculpture•• Karl Albiker•• Arno Breker•• Fritz Klimsch•• Fritz Koelle•• Georg Kolbe•• Ferdinand Liebermann•• Willy Meller•• Richard Scheibe•• Walter Lab•• Adolf Wamper•• Josef Thorak•• Franz Nagy•• Karl Diebitsch•• Prof. Theodor Karner

Music•• Werner Egk•• Hans Pfitzner•• Carl Orff•• Richard Strauss

Notes[1][1] Adam 1992, p. 29[2][2] Adam 1992, p. 110[3][3] Barron 1991, p.10[4][4] Grosshans 1983, p. 87[5] Richard Overy, The Dictators: Hitler's Germany, Stalin's Russia, p335 ISBN 0-393-02030-4[6][6] Grosshans 1983, p. 86[7][7] Barron 1991, p.83[8] Frederic Spotts, Hitler and the Power of Aesthetics, p 161 ISBN 1-58567-345-5[9] Richard Overy, The Dictators: Hitler's Germany, Stalin's Russia, p358 ISBN 0-393-02030-4[10][10] Barron 1991, p.26[11][11] Adam 1992, pp.23-24[12][12] Adam 1992, p. 29-32.[13][13] Grunberger 1971, p. 423[14][14] Adam 1992, p.52[15] Richard Overy, The Dictators: Hitler's Germany, Stalin's Russia, p361 ISBN 0-393-02030-4[16][16] Adam 1992, p.53[17][17] Adam 1992, p.56[18][18] Grosshans 1983, p. 73-74[19][19] Adam 1992, pp. 121-122[20][20] Adam 1992, pp.124-125[21] Frederic Spotts, Hitler and the Power of Aesthetics, p 176 ISBN 1-58567-345-5[22][22] Adam 1992, p. 130[23][23] Adam 1992, p. 132[24][24] Adam 1992, p. 133[25][25] Adam 1992, p. 134[26] Richard Grunberger, The 12-Year Reich, p 427, ISBN 03-076435-1[27][27] Adam 1992, p. 138[28][28] Adam 1992, p. 150[29] Susan Sontag", Fascinating Fascism (http:/ / www. nybooks. com/ articles/ archives/ 1975/ feb/ 06/ fascinating-fascism/ ?page=3)"

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[30][30] Adam 1992, p. 172[31] The Greater German Art Exhibitions (http:/ / thecensureofdemocracy. 150m. com/ art5. htm)[32][32] Adam 1992, p. 157[33][33] Adam 1992, p. 162[34] Frederic Spotts, Hitler and the Power of Aesthetics, p 176-8 ISBN 1-58567-345-5[35][35] Adam 1992, p. 119[36][36] Adam 1992, p. 177[37][37] Adam 1992, p 178[38] Caroline Fetscher, "Why Mention Arno Breker Today?", The Atlantic Times, August, 2006. (http:/ / www. atlantic-times. com/

archive_detail. php?recordID=602)[39][39] Adam 1992, p. 188[40] " Art: Bigger Than Life (http:/ / www. time. com/ time/ magazine/ article/ 0,9171,821298,00. html)"[41] Eyerman & Jamison 1998[42][42] Levi 1994[43][43] Potter 1992[44][44] Kater 1999[45][45] Kater 2000[46] Newton, Gerald, 2003, "Deutsche Schrift: The Demise and Rise of German Black Letter", German Life and Letters, 56:2 (abstract). (http:/ /

www3. interscience. wiley. com/ tools/ citex?clienttype=1& subtype=1& mode=1& version=1& id=118830484& redirect=/ journal/118830484/ abstract/ )

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articles-and-papers/ symposium-papers/ conducting-research-art-looting. html) by Ernest Latham, US National Archives[56][56] Nicholas 1995,p,23[57][57] Nicholas 1995, p,10-23.[58][58] Nicholas 1995,p,3[59][59] Nicholas 1995,p,4[60][60] Nicholas 1995,p,5[61][61] Nicholas 1995,p,93[62][62] Nicholas 1995p.102,[63][63] Nicholas 1995p.103,[64][64] Nicholas 1995p.124,[65][65] Nicholas 1995p.125,126,128,129[66][66] Nicholas 1995p.120,[67] Documentary Nazis: The Occult Conspiracy, end credits.

References• Adam, Peter (1992). Art of the Third Reich. New York: Harry N. Abrams, Inc.. ISBN 0-8109-1912-5• Barron, Stephanie, ed. (1991). 'Degenerate Art:' The Fate of the Avant-Garde in Nazi Germany. New York: Harry

N. Abrams, Inc. ISBN 0-8109-3653-4•• Clinefelter, Joan L., (2005), Artists for the Reich: Culture and Race from Weimar to Nazi Germany, Oxford:Berg

Publishers•• Davidson, Mortimer G. (1991). Art in Germany 1933-1945: Painting•• Davidson, Mortimer G. (1992). Art in Germany 1933-1945: Sculpture•• Davidson, Mortimer G. (1995). Art in Germany 1933-1945: Architecture• Dennis, David D. (2002) Honor your german masters: The use and abuse of "classical" composers in nazi

propaganda. Loyola University Chicago: Journal of Political and Military sociology 273-295

Art of the Third Reich 11

• Eyerman, Ron and Andrew Jamison (1998). Music and Social Movements: Mobilizing Traditions of the TwentiethCentury. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

• Grosshans, Henry (1983). Hitler and the Artists. New York: Holmes & Meyer. ISBN 0-8419-0746-3• Grunberger, Richard (1971) The 12 Year Reich Holt, Reinhard, and Winston of Canada Ltd.•• Hansen, J."The Art and Sciences of Reading Faces: Strategies of Racist Cinema." An Interdisciplinary Hourna of

Jewish Studies Vol. 28, Issue 1 (2009):80-103.• Hollis, R. (2001). Graphic design: a concise history. World of art. New York: Thames & Hudson. ISBN

0-500-20347-4• Kater, Michael (1999). The Twisted Muse: Musicians and Their Music in the Third Reich. New York: Oxford

University Press.• Kater, Michael (2000). Composers of the Nazi Era: Eight Portraits. New York: Oxford University Press.• Kater, Michael and Albrecht Reithmuller, ed. (1992). Music and Nazism; Art under Tyranny. Berlin: Freie

Universitat Berlin. ISBN 3-89007-516-9• Laqueur, Walter (1996). Fascism: Past, Present, Future. New York: Oxford University Press. ISBN

0-19-509245-7• Levi, Erik (1994). Music in the Third Reich. New York: Palgrave Macmillan. ISBN 0-312-10381-6.• Meyer, Michael (1975). The nazi musicologist as myth maker in the third reich. Journal of Contemporary History.

10(4), p. 649-665• Michaud, Eric (2004). The Cult of Art in Nazi Germany, translated by Janet Lloyd. Stanford: Stanford University

Press. ISBN 0-8047-4327-4.• Nordau, Max (1998). Degeneration, introduction by George L. Mosse. New York: Howard Fertig. ISBN

0-8032-8367•• Nicholas,Lynn H. The Rape of Europa: The Fate of Europe's Treasures in the Third Reich and the Second World

War. New York: Vintage Books Print, 1995• Potter, Pamela (1992). "Strauss and the National Socialists: The Debate and Its Relevance". in Richard Strauss:

New Perspectives on the Composer and His Work (Sources of Music & Their Interpretation). ed. Bryan Gilliam.Durham: Duke University Press.

• Steinweis, Alan E. (1993). Art, Ideology, and Economics in Nazi Germany: The Reich Chambers of Music,Theater, and the Visual Arts. Chapel Hill: The University of North Carolina Press. ISBN 0-8078-4607-4

• Thoms, Robert: The Artists in the Great German Art Exhibition Munich 1937-1944, Volume I - painting andprinting. Berlin 2010, ISBN 978-3-937294-01-8.

• Thoms, Robert: The Artists in the Great German Art Exhibition Munich 1937-1944, Volume II - Sculpturing.Berlin 2011, ISBN 978-3-937294-02-5.

External links• Nazi Approved Art (http:/ / fcit. usf. edu/ holocaust/ arts/ artReich. htm)• Nationalsocialist Realism (http:/ / members. telering. at/ pat/ nat. htm)• Nazi Political Art (http:/ / www. calvin. edu/ academic/ cas/ gpa/ politart. htm)• Nazi War Art: 1940-1944 (http:/ / www. bytwerk. com/ gpa/ naziwarart. htm)• Nazi Military Paintings (http:/ / www. thirdreichruins. com/ kunsthaus3. htm)• Hitler's Ideals Regarding Art (http:/ / www. owlnet. rice. edu/ ~laylaa/ newfile_10. html)• Nazi & Soviet Art (http:/ / www. goodart. org/ artofnz. htm)• Works of Art from Nazi Germany (http:/ / www. skidmore. edu/ academics/ fll/ german/ enemy/ Naziart/ workart.

html)• Presentation of many paintings of the era (http:/ / thecensureofdemocracy. 150m. com/ art7. htm)

Article Sources and Contributors 12

Article Sources and ContributorsArt of the Third Reich  Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=523277732  Contributors: Arthena, Bloodofox, Cerejota, Chris the speller, CommonsDelinker, Epinette M, Ewulp,Fastilysock, Gasta220, Gilliam, Goldenrowley, Goldfritha, Gonzalo84, Good Olfactory, Ground Zero, Hemlock Martinis, Janet Irma, JedJaren, Johnbod, Jovianeye, Jrtayloriv, KConWiki,KTo288, Keraunos, Lebewohl, LilHelpa, Liliomere, Lockley, Mandarax, MegX, Michaelmas1957, Nicholasweed, Noclevername, Olegwiki, Parousie, Pbrower2a, Petropoxy (Lithoderm Proxy),R'n'B, Rich Farmbrough, Rigaudon, Roscelese, Sabailey223, Shaliya waya, Sparkit, StAnselm, Staatsfeind 89, SummerWithMorons, Szczebrzeszynski, Tapir Terrific, Tgwitty, The Anome,Trdueweke, Tuspm, Vanished User 03, Vanished188, Varlaam, 51 anonymous edits

Image Sources, Licenses and ContributorsFile:ArnoBrekerDiePartei.jpg  Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:ArnoBrekerDiePartei.jpg  License: GNU Free Documentation License  Contributors: Co-flens, G.dallorto,Gerardus, JuTa, Lotse, Mutter Erde, Viborg, 1 anonymous editsFile:Hausderkunst.jpg  Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:Hausderkunst.jpg  License: GNU Free Documentation License  Contributors: Matthias Kern

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