Zwei Mädchen Mit Pudel 

Otto Mueller’s ‘Two Girls With Poodle’ is made with distemper on canvas, a technique where pigment is mixed with glue or egg yolk. It’s less durable than oil paint, and has a matte finish which mutes the color and softens the scene. Mueller was part of the German Expressionist group Die Brücke, who embraced non-traditional techniques and media. ‘Two Girls With Poodle’ has a deliberately rough, unfinished quality that was part of their aesthetic. The girls and their canine companion blend into an Edenic landscape, sketched with broad, simple brushstrokes. Distemper was more commonly used for decorative arts, like stage sets, rather than high art. Its ephemeral quality suited Die Brücke's desire to challenge bourgeois values. They wanted to create art that spoke to everyday experience, rather than immortalizing their subjects. By choosing humbler materials, Mueller democratized the artistic process, bringing it closer to the realm of craft and the street.