Looking at Art and Racism: Changing people's belief of the world using Art, Series One Day Two

                       

                       Kaethe Kollwitz "Bread" 1924

Day 2 Kaethe Kollwitz

charcoal drawing " Bread"

Kaethe Kollwitz is another favorite artist of mine. She was born in Prussia in 1867. Her father was a

radical social democrat and a house builder, Her grandfather on her mother's side was a Lutheran

pastor who was expelled from the official Evangelical State Church and founded an independent

congregation. Kollwitz was greatly influenced by their socialist views.

Germany after WW1.

In 1888 she went to study in Munich at the women's art school. In 1890 she moved to Munich

permanently and a year later married her husband who was a doctor. Kollwitz suffered two major

tragedies in her life the death of her brother as a child and the death of her son in WW1. I believe

these two tragedies gave her a deeper understanding of the utter desperation of the people of

Germany after WW1.

Kaethe Kollwitz " unemployed 1925

.

I show her work to students because I think it gives a better understanding of how Hitler was able

to so easily rise to power, I chose to share it with adults in my challenge, I chose to share it with

adults in my challenge, not just because of her incredibly powerful images, and her exceptional use

of expressive line. But also because, like so many things in history, there are so many lessons to be

learned.

Germany was literally on its knees, with mass unemployment and thousands of the poor starving.

Her wonderful charcoal drawings and etchings, so clearly express the agony of that moment in time

incredibly powerful images, and her exceptional use of expressive line and change of value. But also

because, like so many things in history, there are so many lessons to be learned.

We live in a world, like then, where there is a huge divide between rich and poor, which continues

to get ever wider. There are many people, particularly the marginalized in our society, that are still

food-deprived and that includes children. Unemployment and workers living below the poverty

line, was an issue then, as it is now. When you are living under those conditions for too long, you

reach a crisis point, which we find ourselves in now! An evil person, with evil intent, was able to rise

to power because of this crisis. I believe it was in part because of desperation that we find ourselves

with Trump as President now.

I chose this picture for my sister in law's challenge, before George Floyd, but African Americans

suffer most, the hardships mentioned because they have been marginalized ever since their

ancestors were brought to this country. So what is the solution? Step one is not reelecting Donald

Trump, step two is doing everything that's within our power to achieve racial equality.

I chose Kaethe Kollwitz for these reasons, But also because she is not well known because of her

subject matter and because she was a woman. I had intended to choose the second picture, I have

included which I photographed from a book because it is one of my favorite of her drawings, but

could not find it online. It is called "unemployed" and shows so clearly the desperation of the man,

again with her use of expressive lines. I hope you will be encouraged to find out more about this

artist?