he group's emblem and carved the association's manifesto into wood, Their creed called for "a new generation of creators ... who shall create for ourselves elbowroom and freedom of life ..." (Ibid. 11). They lived and worked in bohemian studios decorated with colorful wall hangings and handcarved furniture. Their frenzied work alternated with discussions of the work of Nietzsche, Dostoevsky and Walt Whitman. An intense group spirit resulted in certain similarities among their work (Ibid. 11).
The goal of the Brncke was to create a collective identity based on a chosen artistic style and continuous exploration of new emotional and perceptual concepts. Some of their work became distinctly erotic, imbuing natural beauty with sexuality. The Brncke artists embraced the medium of the woodcut because of its association with traditional German woodcraft and printing, an aesthetic and political link to their national heritage. Woodcuts conveyed the primitive crudeness sought to extol the unaffected type of sensibility (Moser 65).
...