Franz Marc
1880 – 1916
Franz Marc (February 8, 1880, Munich – March 4, 1916, Battle of Verdun) was a German painter, one of the key figures of German Expressionism. Marc actively participated in co-founding and organizing Der Blaue Reiter (The Blue Rider) circle of artists together with Wassily Kandinsky and August Macke.
His father was a professional landscape painter and Franz followed in his father’s footsteps and in 1900 he entered the Academy of Fine Arts in Munich. After graduation he spent some time in Paris where he studied and copied great masters of the past, struck up new acquaintances, and on the whole immersed himself deeply into the art life of Paris together with many other artists whose discoveries would determine the development of the avant-garde. In 1906 Franz traveled across Greece together with his elder brother.
In 1910 he met August Macke and in the same year he joined the New Artists’ Association, Munich (Neue Künstlervereinigung, or NKVM). But already in 1911 Franz Marc split off from NKVM together with Macke, Kandinsky and other artists in order to take part in creating something completely new. The Blue Rider circle of artists becames the flagship, bringing a new meaning to the art of the new century.
In his creative work Franz Marc was always drawn to portraying animals in natural surroundings. The basis of his emotional painting was bright, consistent primary colors, simplified cubist shapes. Besides, the painter characterized the main colors he used: blue represented masculinity and spirituality, yellow represented female joy, red was the sound of violence, etc.
In 1914 Franz Marc volunteered for military service and used his talent on the front line where he camouflaged military tarpaulins in pointillist style. In 1916 the German Headquarters drew up lists of well-known artists to be withdrawn from combat. Franz Marc was also included on these lists but the respective order did not arrive in time. He was killed by a shell fragment on March 4, 1916 in the Battle of Verdun.
"Blue Horse", 1911
"Foxes", 1913
