Art of the Third Reich
The Art of the Third Reich, the officially approved art produced in Nazi Germany between 1933 and 1945, was characterized by a style ofRomantic realism based on classical models. While banning modern styles as degenerate, the Nazis promoted paintings and sculptures that were narrowly traditional in manner and that exalted the “blood and soil” values of racial purity, militarism, and obedience. Other popular themes for Nazi art were the Volk at work in the fields, a return to the simple virtues of Heimat (love of homeland), the manly virtues of the National Socialist struggle, and the lauding of the female activities of child bearing and raising (Kinder, Küche, Kirche). Similarly, music was expected to be tonal and free of jazz influence; films and plays were censored. Nazi art bears a close similarity to…