German Expressionism: Primitivism and Modernity

Library Journal

Good writing on this subject has long been confined to exhibition catalog essays and works in the German language. Lloyd's monograph redresses this situation. However--a word to the wise--this book is really intended for the specialist. While the author takes great pains to make her points as salient as possible, the interconnections make complicated reading. Lloyd uses an interdisciplinary approach to treating the politics inherent in German expressionist art. Her richest arguments, backed by a fine choice of illustrations, center on the concept of Primitivism as a means of artistic communication. Prompted by new research in the last decade, the author has created a scholarly reinterpretation of the motives behind one of Europe's most dynamic modern art movements. This is a revelatory acquisition for research and academic libraries, but general collections might want to stick to Donald Gordon's Expressionism: Art and Idea (Yale Univ. Pr., 1987).-- Paula A. Baxter, NYPL