Zwei Badende Mädchen 1925

Otto Mueller made this pastel drawing, Two Bathing Girls, with pastel on paper. Drawn sometime in the first three decades of the 20th century in Germany, Two Bathing Girls may at first seem like a simple nude study, but it reveals a great deal about how German artists were re-evaluating their place in a rapidly changing society. Mueller belonged to Die Brücke, a group of expressionist artists who sought a more authentic mode of existence. Here, the loose application of pastel gives the artwork a modern, primitive, and sensual appearance. Considered alongside paintings of nudes by artists such as Kirchner and Heckel, Mueller's drawing reflects a broader urge to imagine what a return to the primitive might look like. These paintings offer an alternative to Germany's burgeoning industrial capitalism. To more fully understand the meaning of this drawing, art historians consult sources like exhibition reviews, artists’ letters, and the writings of contemporary social critics. This art both reflects and critiques the complex social world in which it was made.