henri le fauconnier had already in 1912 become a member of the amsterdam "moderne kunstkring" (modern art circle), together with fernand léger and piet mondriaan. a few years after the formation of the bergense school in groningen another school was formed in 1917-1918, called de ploeg. jan wiegers was its central figure. "de ploeg" also worked in an expressionist style, but its use of colour was much more exuberant. the group was notably influenced by the german expressionism of ernst kirchner and its social outlook was influenced by the upcoming socialism.