"Trench Warfare," Otto Dix, 1932
Born in Untermhaus, Germany in 1891 to a father who was an iron worker and a mother who was a seamstress. Otto Dix was exposed to the world of art by his cousin Fritz Amann, where Otto spent many hours in his studio. In 1910 Otto entered Kunstgewerbeschule in Dresden a school for applied art. When World War I broke out Otto joined the German army and fought for them until he was wounded in 1918 and was discharged. Otto was a decorated soldier and fought in many battles such as the Battle of the Somme and earned an Iron Cross. After he was discharged the weight of seeing so much death during war effected Otto greatly and is shown in many of his works.
Otto shows the true view of war through a soldiers' point of war, not one which the government want to show its people in order for them to join the military. He shows death and destruction all around him. The soldier in the picture is so in gross by what is around him that there is no escape and he is forced to sleep in it. An example of a picture of war that the government likes, since it shows glory and pride is shown below. Otto uses bleak colors to show the darker side of war, while the photo below uses more vibrant colors to try to make people happier about war and wanting to join in to help their country.
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