Gothic Modern

ALBERTINA MUSEUM, VIENNA

Modernism is commonly understood as a fundamental break with tradition. Yet one crucial aspect has remained largely unexplored: that the reinvention of art around 1900 was, in fact, deeply informed by a deliberate return to the distant past of the late Middle Ages. The exhibition Gothic Modern at the ALBERTINA Museum sheds light on the period from 1870 to 1920, during which artists such as Edvard Munch, Vincent van Gogh, Käthe Kollwitz, Max Beckmann, and Otto Dix consciously drew inspiration from the emotionally charged works of Holbein, Dürer, Cranach, and Baldung Grien. Encounters with medieval aesthetics stirred profound emotions and opened new artistic pathways for engaging with life’s fundamental questions. In a unique curatorial approach, the ALBERTINA Museum brings together masterworks of Modernism and key works from the 15th and early 16th centuries.

At the turn of the 20th century, there was a growing interest in Gothic art as a source of inspiration for new forms of artistic expression. While Modernism often defined itself in opposition to academic tradition, impulses from medieval art—along with direct references to it—played a vital role in reshaping artistic directions, from Symbolism to Expressionism. This renewed engagement with Gothic aesthetics was particularly pronounced in German-speaking and Nordic countries, where it became an integral part of contemporary artistic discourse. Gothic Modern seeks to offer a fresh perspective on Modernist art, placing a deliberate focus on the significance of Gothic art in its development.

In contrast to the nostalgic backward gaze of Romanticism or the antiquarian reconstructions of Historicism—approaches often shaped by political or national agendas—artists of the Modern era were drawn to the intrinsic aesthetic qualities of medieval art. What fascinated them most was the emotional expressiveness they perceived in Gothic works.

Around 1900, artists increasingly saw it as their task to make states of mind visible and to artistically explore existential crises. In their search for a raw, unfiltered visual language, they found inspiration in Gothic art. Religious depictions of existential themes—such as life and death—offered profound expressions of love, suffering, and grief that served as models for their own artistic explorations.

They were equally fascinated by the techniques of the time—woodcuts, book art, stained glass, and tapestries—many of which were rediscovered and reintegrated into contemporary artistic production. At the beginning of the 20th century, the focus shifted from the applied arts to the formal intensification of expression.

As a major center of Modernism, Vienna around 1900 became a melting pot for these innovative artistic currents and played a key role in the international network of artists. Akseli Gallen-Kallela, Käthe Kollwitz, and Edvard Munch, for example, exhibited at the Vienna Secession and entered into dynamic exchanges with the local art scene. Max Beckmann and Helene Schjerfbeck also sought inspiration in Vienna.

The exhibition is on view from 19 September 2025 until 11 January 2026.