Hans Richter - Rhytmus 21 (1921)

Painter, graphic artist, avant-gardist, film-experimenter and producer. First contacts with modern art in 1912 through the "Blauen Reiter" and in 1913 through the "Erster Deutsche Herbstsalon" gallery "Der Sturm", Berlin. In 1914 he was influenced by cubism. Contributed to the periodical "Die Aktion" in Berlin. First exhibition in Munich, 1916. "Die Aktion" published as a special edition about Hans Richter. In the same year he went to Zürich and joined the Dada movement. Richter propounded the thesis that the artist's duty was to be actively political, opposing war and supporting the revolution. First abstract works in 1917. Friendship with Viking Eggeling in 1918, the two experimented together in Film. Was co-founder, in 1919, of the Association of Revolutionary Artists ("Artistes Radicaux") at Zürich. In the same year he created his first "Prélude" (orchestration of a theme developed in eleven drawings). In 1920 he was a member of the November group in Berlin and contributed to the Dutch periodical "De Stijl." In 1921 he made the first abstract film, "Rhythme 21," which today is considered a classic among avant-garde films.