Otto Dix's Experience Of The Skat Players By Otto Dix

Otto dix was a war veteran who was deeply traumatized and affected by the sight of war. He described his experience of WW I as a recurring nightmare. Post WWI Dix expressed his disdain of the Weimar society through his paintings which depicted the harsh and brutal reality of a post war society. His paintings were responsible for the new objective movement in Germany, the movement was against the ideas of expressionism and believed in presenting ‘truths as it was’. One such painting of his which left a lasting impact on me is the Skat players. It is the most detailed and horrifying depiction of injuries caused by artillery fire. It is the only painting located indoors, away from the brutality of street life. Three war veterans play cards at a café located in Dresden, as it is indicated by the newspapers’ headlines on the background. Their bodies are thoroughly destroyed and their wooden legs are hardly discernible from the legs of the chairs and table. One holds his cards with his toes, another with his teeth, and the third one with his only remaining

This Friday was my grandmother’s 75th birthday, I couldn’t attend it due to other commitments, I was so exhausted and tired that even calling them to wish them seemed like a struggle. I later realised neither my mother or my uncle visited her. My grandmother and grandfather are positive human beings but human pain and misery have got the better of them. Their house is surrounded with medicines and machines which help them survive and there is a 24-7 nurse at their disposal. Their home screams of loneliness and depression. This painting has stayed on with me, I can visualise my grandmother’s birthday, two old souls using each other as their last strand of support reminiscing the past. This painting has helped me connect with them and view them in a different light. I want to hug them and give them all the love they