Erotic Art in Modern Germany
Visual Cultures of Sex, 1871-1945
Erotic Art in Modern Germany
Visual Cultures of Sex, 1871-1945
Description
In what ways can erotica chart the story of a nation in transition? What can it reveal about the discontinuities – and uncomfortable parallels – between the periods of political and economic turmoil that characterize modern German history?
The rapid modernization of the German Empire in 1871 led to large-scale transformations in the cultural, social, and political spheres. Exploring a rich diversity of erotic visual art – from paintings and photographs, to postcards and graphic folios – this volume reveals the impact of these changes on the erotic interests of the nation.
Across diverse forms of artistic production, reception, and circulation, Erotic Art in Modern Germany argues for the significance and cultural value of erotica. It presents work by both highly regarded and lesser-known artists and examines themes such as legal cultures and the impact of censorship, sexuality and sexual reform, and changing political frameworks, from imperialism to fascism. 10 chapters study diverse topics that engage with philological and ethnographic approaches to erotic art, demonstrate how scientific developments shape erotica, and investigate the ways in which works intersect with debates on gender and sexuality.
With its holistic, cross-disciplinary approach-drawing from the fields of anthropology, film theory, Marxism, feminism, and trans- and queer theories – the book complicates simplistic understandings of 'modern' erotica and powerfully underlines its enduring significance as a site of dissent and experimentation.
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Table of Contents
List of Contributors
Acknowledgements
Series Editor Introduction, Thomas O. Haakenson
Introduction, Camilla Smith and Ty Vanover
Part One: Locating Eroticism: Centres and Periphery
1. “Hans Licht”: Bringing Homosexuality into the Light, Whitney Davis (University of California, Berkeley, USA; NOMIS Foundation, Zürich, Switzerland)
2. Kirchner's Kama-sutra: Indian Erotica and Orientalist Fantasies in Imperial Germany, Sol Izquierdo de la Viña (Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Spain)
3. Rudolf Wacker's Drawings of Sexual Graffiti as Intimate Ethnology, Änne Söll (Ruhr Universität Bochum, Germany)
Part Two: Queer Desire and Gender Non-Conformity
4. Fantasies of Lesbian Desire in Max Klinger's Zelt (Pavilion; 1916), Clare I. Rogan (Detroit Institute of Arts, USA)
5. Charlotte Berend-Corinth, Anita Berber, and Female Erotica in the Weimar Republic, Abbey Rees-Hales (University of Birmingham, UK)
6. Hiding in the Surface: Platonic Eros and the Work of Sascha Schneider, Christiane Starck (Philipps-Universität Marburg, Germany)
7. Spiritualism Homoeroticism: The Sexual Utopia of Elisàr von Kupffer and Eduard von Mayer, Damien Delille (Université Lumière Lyon 2, France)
Part Three: Body Politics: Possibilities and Foreclosures
8. Otto Dix's Soldier and Nun (Rape) (1924): A Testimony to War or Sexual Violence?, Marie Gispert (Université Grenoble Alpes, France)
9. Eros, Architecture, and Photography: Heinz Hajek-Halke and German Surrealism, Camilla Smith (University of Birmingham, UK)
10. The Allure of the Ideal: Homoerotic Art for the Third Reich, Ty Vanover (Dickinson College, USA)
Index
Product details
| Published | 19 Feb 2026 |
|---|---|
| Format | Ebook (Epub & Mobi) |
| Edition | 1st |
| Pages | 288 |
| ISBN | 9781350540194 |
| Imprint | Bloomsbury Visual Arts |
| Illustrations | 73 bw illus |
| Series | Visual Cultures and German Contexts |
| Publisher | Bloomsbury Publishing |
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