The Twenties - The women’s decade

A two part series from André Meier | 2021 | rbb | mdr | arte

The end of WWI is also a turning point for women in the arts. They have the chance to step out of the shadow of men and be more than just a muse or an artist’s wife. They now create decidedly feminine works of art in their studios.

This new kind of art is represented by American painter Georgia O´Keeffe, Polish artist Tamara de Lempicka, who lives in Paris, as well as the Berliner Dadaist Hannah Höch and the Russian sculptor Vera Mukhina. The lives and works of these four artists reflect the entire spectrum of artistic possibilities presented to women in the 20s – including political involvement, tormenting self-questioning, offensive self-marketing and demonstrative renunciation of the world.

The Arte documentary introduces the unique body of work of these four very diverse women. It searches for traces of their work in New York, Berlin, Moscow and Paris and looks back at these exceptional artists’ lives, including very intimate personal accounts.

The film will show how this exciting era between two world wars, did not only offer new opportunities to women, but also demanded great personal sacrifices on the path to economic independence and artistic self-realization.

Today, the questions raised by these artists, about the role of women in society and femininity in the arts, are once again discussed with verve.