Escaping city life became the goal. In such a spirit, the colony of Worpswede was formed in Lower Saxony. Becker followed her future husband Otto Modersohn there, where writers and poets such as Thomas Mann and Rainer Maria Rilke, accompanied by his wife, the sculptor Clara Westhoff, were frequent residents.

Kirchner’s move to Berlin in 1911 allows his signature style full play and is never more evident than in his Berlin Street Scene (1913-14).  The placement of his prostitutes with their plumed hats and furs shows a mastery of perspective.  The artist has thrust the women and their male partners in a rhythmic march towards the foreground, creating an inescapable tension. The action comes to an abrupt stop with a male subject front and center with his back to the viewer.  This painting was co-acquired in 2006 and Director Renee Price sees it as a work of “pointed social critique,” one that’s central to their mission.