Old Factory

Old Factory from 1900, at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, is an unusual subject for Paula Modersohn-Becker, who more typically painted rural figures and landscapes around the artist colony at Worpswede. The factory introduces an industrial note into her predominantly pastoral work, reflecting Germany's transformation at the turn of the century. Modersohn-Becker was committed to finding a visual language that could address modern experience without abandoning the connection to the earth that defined her approach. The NGA holds this as part of its representation of German Expressionism and its precursors.

The industrial subject is treated with the same simplified, expressive approach Modersohn-Becker brought to her figure paintings — forms are reduced to essential masses, color is applied in broad areas rather than broken into Impressionist touches, and the architecture has a monumental solidity.