Early 20th century Germany produced art which was disturbing, shocking and tough. No niceties.
It also had tremendous political and social relevance, and unerringly presaged the horrors to come.
Like all great art, it also transcends its time. Today, eighty years later, these works are as powerful
and as relevant as ever. It therefore seems like an appropriate moment to organize an exhibition around one of my long time passions.

Why lonely prophets? They were forerunners of their culture, with the knowledge that their vision
was not just local but also universal. At first they were backed by the establishment, the museums,
the art dealers, the international and local public. Then, suddenly, seemingly overnight, they were outcasts. Some were persecuted, some murdered, some were left abandoned; even those who
survived physically could no longer survive artistically. Thus they became, against their wish, tragic heroes and lonely prophets whose names even after 80 years are still relatively unknown to the general public. In recent years, institutions such as the Neue Gallery, New York, The Metropolitan Museum of Art (particularly with the fantastic show earlier this year 'Glitter and Doom' curated by Sabine Rewald),
and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (with shows curated by Stephanie Baron) have opened
doors to that glorious past, a period in which Berlin was the most cosmopolitan and avant-garde
city in the world, where politics and art went together in a way never seen since.

The exhibition includes examples of German Expressionism and Die Pathetiker movement, paintings
and objects of the Bauhaus and works of the Neue Sachlichkeit. It seemed important to me to concentrate on the importance of each artist as a unique and personal individual, as well as their
shared historic fate which forced them to participate in the shameful 'Degenerate Art' exhibition.
This exhibition, which travelled through Germany in 1937, constitutes their personal medal of honour.

I could not have done this without the help of Michael Hasenclever from Munich whose knowledge, history and commitment to these artists is unique. Our friendship and the deep belief we share,
that Art really matters, made the pursuit of these works possible.

The mounting of this exhibition was made possible by the enthusiasm and generous hospitality
of Julian Agnew and his daughter Gina, and by my friends and collectors in Germany,
Italy, Switzerland and New York.

Daniella Luxembourg