Otto Dix and France, France and Otto Dix, 1920s- 1970s

Abstract

Only a few of Otto Dix' works could be seen in Paris during the interwar period and they suffered from the same prejudices as the rest of German art during the twenties. This is the reason why it was necessary to wait until 1961 and the purchase of the Portrait of Sylvia von Harden by the Musee national d'art moderne directly from the artist so that french museums would be interested by Otto Dix' work. However even if the French curator Maurice Besset wanted to gather a real German gallery, he could never afford to do so. Therefore, in 1971, Dix is introduced to the French public as an unknown in an exhibition at Musee d'art moderne de la ville de Paris, co-organized by Eugen Keueleber for the Galerie der Stadt of Stuttgart and Jacques Lassaigne in Paris. Overall, the event was well received and it also demontrated a new approach of Dix' art, from expressionism to New Objectivity.