August Macke and Franz Marc: Soulmates of Painting
A great friendship that simultaneously became a lucky coincidence for art: in 1910, August Macke (1887-1914) and Franz Marc (1880-1916), two outstanding personalities of Expressionism, got to know each other. A warm friendship and close artistic collaboration developed between the two, which had a lasting influence on the modernist art scene.
Despite their great personality differences - the younger Macke was cosmopolitan, spontaneous and fun-loving, while Marc was thoughtful, introverted and critical - the two were highly productive as a team. They grappled with the art movements of their time and developed them further. In addition, they were both members of the artists' group "Der Blaue Reiter". As the culmination of their joint work, they painted the mural "Paradise" in 1912, measuring 4 by 2 metres. Above all, however, there was an intimate friendship and great respect for each other: "Before all of us, he gave colour the brightest and purest sound," Marc once praised his friend.
