Franz Marc (1880–1916), Die Wölfe (Balkankrieg), 1913

Franz Marc (1880–1916) completed the painting The Wolves (Balkan War) one year before the outbreak of the First World War as a visual reaction to the conflict between the Balkan League and the Ottoman Empire. The painting shows three wolves (black, red and brown) approaching from the righthand side, another wolf is lying on the left looking towards them. Characterised by jagged and sharp-edged shapes in dramatic colours, the antagonistic composition conveys the escalating conflict. Only a few wilting pink petals at the lower right edge of the picture seem to point to a more peaceful world, which is, however, in the process of vanishing.

Franz Marc (1880–1916), Die Wölfe (Balkankrieg), oil on canvas, 70,8 cm x 139,7 cm, 1913; source: Albright-Knox Art Gallery, https://www.albrightknox.org/artworks/19511-die-wölfe-balkankrieg-wolves-balkan-war, public domain.