The dispute within the Berlin art scene about the right path to modernism led to the second split of a group of artists from the Berlin Secession in 1914. In clear dissociation from the views of art that were no longer considered contemporary, the Free Secession was formed under the leadership of Max Liebermann and lasted until 1924. In contrast to the Berlin Secession, the group felt more open to further steps in the direction of modernism and felt the need to express their new aesthetic positions without restriction.
