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Tuesday, 06 May 2014 12:42

Exhibition at Neue Galerie Highlights Degenerate Art and the Attack on Modernism

Max Beckmann's 'Departure,' 1932-35. Max Beckmann's 'Departure,' 1932-35. The Museum of Modern Art/Licensed by SCALA/Art Resource, NY © 2014 Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/VG Bild-Kunst, Bonn

"Degenerate Art" is the term Adolf Hitler and his henchmen used to describe works they simply did not like. The Nazis are long gone. Much of the art they denounced has survived, and is now on view. Here's Erin Moriarty of "48 Hours":

In the cultural capital that was Berlin in the early 1930s, art and politics often clashed, with modern artists like George Grosz leading the charge.

"Grosz was fearless, and whether it was his art or politics, he spoke his mind," said Jonathan Petropoulos, a history professor at Claremont McKenna College in California. "He was probably the most famous Communist artist in Germany at the time, and he used his art as a weapon."

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