The apocalyptic landscapes of Ludwig Meidner

Published in 1989 by Prestel, this volume serves as a critical survey of the apocalyptic landscapes created by German Expressionist painter Ludwig Meidner. Produced during the late 1980s, the book highlights works primarily from the years leading up to the First World War, capturing a moment when Meidner’s premonitions of urban destruction and cosmic collapse were at their most intense.

The volume examines Meidner's role as a founding member of the Pathetiker group, documenting his visceral, jagged aesthetic that sought to express the anxieties of modernity and societal decay. By compiling these specific landscapes, the publication provides a scholarly look at how the artist moved away from traditional Impressionism toward a frantic, subjective style that remains a definitive example of early 20th-century German avant-garde art.