Do You Know the Artwork 'Tyrol' by Franz Marc?
- Loïse Pannier
- Feb 15
- 3 min read
Franz Marc and Tyrol: A Dive into Art in Transition
Franz Marc, a German painter born in 1880 and deceased in 1916, is renowned today for his vibrant works often depicting animals. However, in 1914, with his painting Tyrol, he embarked on a new artistic approach, influenced by the Cubist and Futurist movements. This shift marked a significant evolution in his career, where abstraction took on a predominant role.
A Break from His Usual Style
At first glance, Tyrol is surprising. Unlike the peaceful scenes populated with horses or foxes that Marc had accustomed us to, this painting presents a chaotic and tormented landscape. A rectilinear shape, revealed to be a dead tree, cuts through the composition from bottom to top, while the mountains appear shattered, evoking an apocalyptic setting. Far from the softness of his previous works, this painting exudes dramatic tension, heightened by an intense color palette.
Marc, a great admirer of French art, was well acquainted with the work of late 19th-century Impressionist artists. The atmosphere of the work recalls less the serenity of Cézanne and more the dramatic power of Van Gogh. This break from his usual style reflects a desire for artistic and philosophical exploration.
The Fox, Franz Marc, 1911, oil on canvas, Von der Heydt Museum, Wuppertal / Blue Horse, Franz Marc, 1914, oil on canvas, Bernhard Koehler Collection
The Influence of Cubism and Futurism
The year 1913 was a pivotal moment for modern art: the Die Brücke movement in Germany dissolved, while Cubism and Futurism experienced a rapid rise. Franz Marc was not immune to these new influences. After meeting Robert Delaunay that same year, he incorporated geometric forms and fragmented perspectives, characteristic of Cubism, into his art.
In Tyrol, the mountains, sky, and houses are fragmented into interlocking triangles and circles, reinforcing the impression of disorder and transformation.
However, unlike the Cubists who favored subdued tones, Marc retained vivid and expressive colors, inherited from Fauvism. He assigned symbolic meaning to each hue: blue represents strength and spirituality, red symbolizes danger and aggression, while yellow evokes light and femininity. In Tyrol, these colors appear in conflict, conveying an inner struggle or a world in upheaval.
A Spiritual and Abstract Quest
Marc was a profoundly spiritual artist. Convinced that humans had lost their purity, he turned to depicting animals, which he saw as bearers of essential truth. However, Tyrol is an exception: no animals appear. This absence is far from trivial—it may reflect a more radical awareness, where the chaos of the world no longer allows for natural harmony. Likely deeply affected by the horrors of the impending war, the artist's work was inevitably influenced by the grim global events of the early 20th century.
This painting also marks a step towards abstraction. The forms are no longer clearly identifiable elements but rather impressions, energies in motion. The many circles and suns punctuating the composition evoke a timeless world, detached from immediate reality. In this sense, Tyrol foreshadows Marc’s final works, such as Fighting Forms (1914), where abstraction becomes complete.
A Foretelling Work
With Tyrol, Franz Marc took a decisive step in his artistic evolution. Influenced by his contemporaries, he gradually abandoned figuration in favor of a more abstract and spiritual language. This change was accompanied by a newfound emotional intensity, where chaos and destruction seemed to pave the way for rebirth.
Unfortunately, the war abruptly interrupted this quest. Mobilized in 1914, Franz Marc died on the battlefield in 1916, leaving behind an art in full transformation. Tyrol thus remains a valuable testament to this transition, a key work for understanding his artistic and philosophical journey.
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