Seeking Revelation: German Romantic Prints and Drawings — Nikki Otten

During the German Romantic movement (ca. 1770–1850), many artists attempted to gain a deeper understanding of universal questions through the process of making. Decades of upheaval caused by the French Revolution, Napoleon’s invasion of Germany, and challenges to the Enlightenment’s emphasis on reason led them to reconsider their national identity and sense of self, as well as nature and the divine. Through works drawn from the Milwaukee Art Museum’s collection, this upcoming exhibition (Spring 2026) will examine the importance of seeking in German Romantic art, and demonstrate that even when it did not reveal answers, the act of seeking offered its own reward.

Nikki Otten is associate curator of prints and drawings at the Milwaukee Art Museum, where she is responsible for a collection of works on paper that spans the 15th to the 21st century. Since being appointed to her role in 2018, she has curated the major exhibitions Currents 39: LaToya M. Hobbs, Carving Out Time; Always New: The Posters of Jules Chéret; and Landfall Press: Five Decades of Printmaking.