Max Pechstein studied at the School for Decorative Arts in Dresden in 1900. In 1906 he met Heckel and Kirchner and became a member of Die Brücke, from which he was expelled in 1910 for having become a member of Neue Sezession in Berlin. In 1907 he visited the Ethnographic Museum in Dresden and became enchanted by African sculpture and South Seas carvings.

Much of Pechstein’s work suggest hasty execution with its calculated repetitions and obvious decorative effects. He stressed rhythms with parallel movements and gestures.