GSA 2023 conference panel: German Inflation (1914–1923) and the Avant-Garde, Montréal (10.3.2023)

One hundred years ago, in the fall of 1923, German inflation reached its peak. The collapse of the financial system traumatized generations to come and remains deeply embedded in the German cultural memory. As the currency dwindled, the entire society found itself gripped by the effects of devaluation. Workers and employees were deprived of their wages and lost their savings overnight. A growing army of the poor joined those who felt worthless because of the war: the maimed, the mentally ill, returning prisoners of war, and anyone who had lost a family member or friend.

At the same time, black markets flourished, where every conceivable commodity could be obtained in exchange for hard currency or other goods missing from the store shelves. The “winners” from inflation fueled the notion of the “golden twenties”: land and factory owners who saw their fortunes grow; the heavily indebted who watched their debts shrink; the gamblers and opportunists who exploited the markets; the “inflation saints” who rallied their followers; and the political extremists who imposed their agendas by force.

Artists observed the decline of social structures and economic certainties with a mix of horror and fascination. Inflation became a source of inspiration for their creative work in various formats. For example: The film industry grew thanks to import stops and produced iconic movies such as Fritz Lang’s Dr. Mabuse, the Gambler (1921/22), a portrayal of the ruthless, megalomaniac inflation profiteer. Bertolt Brecht mirrored the disillusioning effect of inflation on the belief in monetary values in his theory of the “epic theater” (1926), which sought to break through the fiction of dramatic scenes. The founders of Dada in Zurich with their sound poems, performances, and artworks responded not only to the senselessness of war but also to the loss of meaning in language and cultural convention. Hannah Höch’s collages questioned the ideational values of the era along with the perception of reality itself. And in his “Merzkunst,” Kurt Schwitters recycled and re-evaluated the broken found objects of his time.

This panel is suited for proposals on the impact of inflation on the rise of avant-garde movements in literature, film, theater, visual arts, and photography. In what ways did economics become a subject of artistic representation? What works of art were created by members of avant-garde groups in the course of the inflationary economy between 1914 and 1923 and why? How did gender-related topics intersect with economic questions in avant-garde movements’ aesthetic production? In what ways do semantic ambiguity and economic devaluation converge in such works?  In what ways do the memoirs, autobiographies, and letters of avant-garde artists depict the German inflation in retrospect?

Please send a brief abstract of about 350 words and a short bio to Christoph Zeller (christoph.zeller@vanderbilt.edu) by March 10, 2023.