Today was just a regular day: art school in the morning, being misunderstood at night. I find it hard to live in Berlin during such a culturally innovative and fast paced time. A young 20 something year old,  I feel as though sometimes it is too late for me to truly express myself. My parents are the ones who got me into art in the first place; however, like many other residents in Berlin, they always fall and lean in more to the trends. . . like the New Objectivity movement.s. Growing up, I often felt the weight of my parents’ expectations and the need to live up to their success. There was an underlying tension between my desire to forge his own path and the desire to fulfill my family’s hopes for me. As its name suggests, this movement offered a return to unsentimental reality and a focus on the objective world, as opposed to the more abstract, romantic, or idealistic tendencies of Expressionism. It was a complete challenge to Expressionism– therefore me and my parents had opposing views. I guess you could say that I’m a naive architecture student (no matter how many times I deny myself), eager to make my mark on the world. But as I delved deeper into the heart of the city, I soon discovered that beneath its glamorous facade, Berlin harbored secrets and shadows that would shape the course of my life. As I look in the mirror I see Otto Dix’s self-portrait in my reflection. Maybe tomorrow I can come a little closer to breaking down my boundaries and letting the inner artist shine through.

I chose these details to describe Richard Blunck as he is living during a time of great political and cultural change. As such a young man and especially an artist I chose to make him experience that tension of wanting to fit in but also follow what you believe in. I also think that this character has a lot of potential and there is a lot of room to further develop his story and map out the events of his life. I think the fact that he is an art student and looks like Otto Dix will definitely be key factors in watching him navigate life in 1920s Berlin.  

“German Expressionism.” MoMA, www.moma.org/s/ge/curated_ge/styles/new_objectivity.html#:~:text=
The%20New%20Objectivity%20(Neue%20Sachlichkeit,or%20idealistic%
20tendencies%20of%20Expressionism. Accessed 2 June 2023.