A style of his own: The colourful work of a truly avant-garde painter. In the course of his short life, German painter August Macke (1887--1914) combined inspirations from extremely different sources into a unique and personal style. Macke was engaged with the world, closely following the development of abstract art and at the same time feeling tied to the Blauer Reiter movement of Munich. Macke developed a "flat" yet ornamental style but always remained true to objective representation.

His cheerful scenes of parks, zoos, and promenades with shop windows are filled with bold yet harmonious colours. Their brilliance reached its zenith in 1914 when he travelled with Klee and Moilliet to Tunis and became acquainted with the light of the African sun.

About the series: Each book in TASCHEN's Basic Art series features: a detailed chronological summary of the life and oeuvre of the artist, covering his or her cultural and historical importance a concise biography approximately 100 illustrations with explanatory captions