At the Dawn of a New Age: Early Twentieth-Century American Modernism

May 7, 2022–Feb 26, 2023

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Born 1882 in St. Louis, MO
Died 1961 in Lawrence, KS

In Mountain, Albert Bloch uses intense color, the faceted forms of Cubism, and the image of a solitary figure walking up a hill toward a distant church to symbolize humanity’s journey to a higher, spiritual realm of consciousness. In deciding to forgo realism in favor of employing nonnaturalistic forms and colors to communicate his feelings, Bloch aligned with the artists Wassily Kandinsky and Franz Marc, whom he had met soon after moving to Munich in 1909. When these artists founded the German Expressionist Blaue Reiter (Blue Rider) group in 1911, they asked Bloch to join. He participated in the group’s debut exhibition that December and in every subsequent Blaue Reiter presentation, making him the only American member of that legendary group. Bloch continued to create opulently colored, symbolic work until 1921, when he left Munich and returned to the United States.

A vibrant expressionist painting depicting a mountainous landscape with a figure in the foreground. The scene is characterized by bold, swirling colors and dynamic brushstrokes, creating a sense of movement and energy. Snow-capped peaks rise in the background, while colorful, undulating hills and valleys dominate the foreground. A small village with a church steeple is nestled among the hills on the right.

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At the Dawn of a New Age: Early Twentieth-Century American Modernism

Albert Bloch

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Mountain, 1916

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On the Hour

At the Dawn of a New Age: Early Twentieth-Century American Modernism

Albert Bloch

2

Mountain, 1916

Artists

Explore works from this exhibition in the Whitney's collection

Explore works from this exhibition
in the Whitney's collection