degenerate art
on textbook fascism and the national endowment for the arts.
one.
On July 19, 1937, an art exhibition opened in Munich entitled Entartete Kunst.
In translation, Degenerate Art.
Degenerate art, according to Germany’s ruling administration at the time, was somewhat nebulously defined as “works that insult German feeling, or destroy or confuse natural form, or simply reveal an absence of adequate manual and artistic skill.”
The exhibition presented 650 works of art confiscated from German galleries and museums, many of which were displayed without frames, tilted at an angle, or partially covered with derogatory slogans. The venue, the Institute of Archaeology, was specifically chosen for its dark and narrow rooms. While the majority of the featured artists were German—Grosz, Klee, Lehmbruck—there were also works by Picasso, Kandinsky, and Chagall, to name a few. Manifestos of the Dadaist and Surrealist movements were featured within the exhibit, along with labels indicating how much money a museum had spent to acquire a particular piece of art. Several rooms were grouped by theme: Works that demeaned religion. Works considered insulting to the women, soldiers, and farmers of Germany. Works by Jewish artists.
Some of the slogans painted on the walls included:
Insolent mockery of the Divine under Centrist rule
Revelation of the Jewish racial soul
An insult to German womanhood
Deliberate sabotage of national defense
The Jewish longing for the wilderness reveals itself—in Germany the Negro becomes the racial ideal of a degenerate art
Madness becomes method
Nature as seen by sick minds
Even museum bigwigs called this the "art of the German people"
The day before the exhibition opened, the country’s then-chancellor delivered a speech declaring "merciless war" on cultural disintegration.
Obviously you know the lede I’ve buried here. This exhibition was organized by the Nazi party. That speech was given by Adolf Hitler.
The Nazi government considered the culturally liberal Weimar mores of the 1920s to be obscene and antithetical to traditional German values, and that included avant-gardism art. But this wasn’t just a question of modernity and style—anything that didn’t align with the Nazi values of militarism, racial purity, and heroism had to go.
two.
Dear Adam Levy,
This is to inform you that the above referenced National Endowment for the Arts award has been terminated, effective May 31, 2025.
The NEA is updating its grantmaking policy priorities to focus funding on projects that reflect the nation’s rich artistic heritage and creativity as prioritized by the President. Consequently, we are terminating awards that fall outside these new priorities. The NEA will now prioritize projects that elevate the Nation’s HBCUs and Hispanic Serving Institutions, celebrate the 250th anniversary of American independence, foster AI competency, empower houses of worship to serve communities, assist with disaster recovery, foster skilled trade jobs, make America healthy again, support the military and veterans, support Tribal communities, make the District of Columbia safe and beautiful, and support the economic development of Asian American communities. Funding is being allocated in a new direction in furtherance of the Administration’s agenda. Your project, as noted below, unfortunately does not align with these priorities.
Project: Transit Books
Transit Books is a nonprofit publisher of international and American literature, committed to the discovery and promotion of enduring works that carry readers across borders and communities. Transit Books publishes a carefully curated list of award-winning literary fiction, narrative nonfiction, essay, and literature for children. Transit authors have received the Nobel Prize in Literature, a National Book Critics Circle Award, and the PEN Translation Prize, and have been finalists for the National Book Award, the International Booker Prize, the National Translation Award, and more.
Dear Rose Oser,
Pursuant to the Offer letter, the tentative funding recommendation for the following application is Withdrawn by the Agency and the National Endowment for the Arts will no longer offer award funding for the project.
The NEA is updating its grantmaking policy priorities to focus funding on projects that reflect the nation’s rich artistic heritage and creativity as prioritized by the President. Consequently, we are terminating awards that fall outside these new priorities. The NEA will now prioritize projects that elevate the Nation’s HBCUs and Hispanic Serving Institutions, celebrate the 250th anniversary of American independence, foster AI competency, empower houses of worship to serve communities, assist with disaster recovery, foster skilled trade jobs, make America healthy again, support the military and veterans, support Tribal communities, make the District of Columbia safe and beautiful, and support the economic development of Asian American communities. Funding is being allocated in a new direction in furtherance of the Administration’s agenda. Your project, as noted below, unfortunately does not align with these priorities.
Applicant: National Queer Theater
National Queer Theater is an innovative theater collective dedicated to celebrating the brilliance of generations of LGBTQ+ artists and providing a home for unheard storytellers and activists. By serving our elders, youth, and working professionals, NQT creates a more just future through radical and evocative theater experiences and free community classes.
three.
I first learned about Degenerate Art in the 9th grade, from a documentary shown by our director during rehearsals for my high school production of Cabaret. The documentary, for the record, was insanely boring. But clearly it stuck. Or maybe the rise of fascism that followed me into adulthood just wouldn’t let me forget about it, because I’m an artist and fascists always come for the arts eventually.
On May 2nd, 2025, following a proposed budget cut from Donald Trump’s executive office, the National Endowment for the Arts announced the cancellation and withdrawal of both current and proposed grants to thousands of artistic institutions across the country. According to the emails sent out to these organizations by the NEA, this move was made in order to focus funding on projects that reflect the nation’s rich artistic heritage and creativity as prioritized by the President.