Kathe Kollwitz

Kathe Schmidt Kollwitz (July 8, 1867 – April 22, 1945) was a German painter, print maker, and sculptor whose work offered an eloquent and often searing account of the human condition in the first half of the 20th century. (Wikipedia)

Review of Work:
http://www.boston.com/ae/theater_arts/articles/2007/05/14/desperation_rage_and_the_ravages_of_war/

Shown In:
National Gallery of Art, D.C.
Portland Museum of Art

Much of Kollwitz's work deals with war, poverty, and political uprising. What struck me most about her work, was the way in which she commented on these subjects. They are not strictly political pieces, there is another element in her work. Her drawings and prints are intimate and personal. She depicts the private moments of desperation between mothers, fathers, and children who were affected by war, poverty, and politics.
Her images are horrifying in that they show humans at their most fearful and dark states. These are images that reach out and have a strong emotional affect on the viewer. One can see the worry and trauma in the faces and body language of the subjects in her drawings, paintings, and prints.
Much of her work was influenced by the expressionist movement. Her quick strokes and sketchy lines provoke a sense of immediacy in getting the image and information down. The emotions present at the time are not only visible in the faces of those in the pictures, but also in the hand of the artist.
I am interested in studying Kollwitz's work because of the real, raw human emotion that she provokes with her style. As with Cassatt, I am also interested in the way she uses expressionism in many of her pieces.