Chaos and Classicism at the Guggenheim

Today my dad and I went to see Chaos and Classicism: Art in France, Italy, and Germany, 1918-1936 at the Guggenheim Museum. Exhibited mostly in the spiraling halls of the Guggenheim, it presented art from three European countries in the time between the two World Wars. While artists were recovering from the  trauma of World War I, they looked to classical ideals and reinvented them in an attempt to re-establish order amidst chaos. However, as fascist regimes took power in Italy and Germany, art fell more and more under the control of the dictatorships, and artists were limited to presenting only fascist propaganda and political ideals by the time the mid-1930s rolled around, bringing with it the start of World War II.

Some images from the exhibit:

Picasso - combines classical Roman ideals and visual elements

Balthus - seemingly a happy street seen, but at closer glance, everyone looks slightly tense and permanently frozen. Very disconcerting scene.

This one, from the last room of the exhibit called "The Dark Side of Classicism," encompasses all of Hitler's master race ideals, and actually hung in his living room. *Shudder.*

The exhibit is on view until January 9th - check it out if you can! You also get a free audioguide at the Guggenheim which I thought contributed a lot to the exhibit. Click here to go to the really cool exhibition website.