Artist Investigation Project: Kathe Kollwitz by Adrian Vance

Kathe KollwitzThe Mothers1921pen and brushBoston Museum of Fine Arts


Kathe KollwitzNever Again War1924charcoal on laid paperPrivate Collection




Kathe KollwitzThe Volunteers1920etchingPrivate Collection




Kathe KollwitzUprising1899graphite, pen and colored inkStaatliche Museen zu Berlin




Kathe KollwitzCall of Death1934charcoal on laid paperPrivate Collection




Kathe KollwitzWoman with Dead Child1903etchingNational Gallery of Art, DC

ARTWORKS: Kathe Kollwitz


BIOGRAPHY: Kathe Kollwitz

The daughter of a well to do mason, Kathe Schmidt was born in East Prussia. Her father encouraged her to draw and when she was 14 years old she began art lessons. She attended The Berlin School of Art in 1884 and later went to study in Munich. After her marriage to Dr. Karl Kollwitz in 1891, the couple settled in Berlin living in one of the poorest sections of the city. It was here that Kollwitz developed her strong social conscious which is so fiercely reflected in her work. Her art features dark, oppressive subject matter depicting the revolts and uprisings of contemporary relevance. Images of death, war and injustice dominate her work. Kollwitz was influenced by Max Klinger and the realist writings of Zola and she worked with a variety of media including sculpture, and lithography. It may be argued that her work was an expression of her tumultuous life. She came into contact with some of the cities neediest people and was exposed to great suffering due to the nature of her husband's work. Her personal life was marred by hardship and heartache. She lost her son to World War I and her grandson to World War II and these losses contributed to her political sympathies. Kathe Kollwitz became the first woman elected to the Prussian Academy but because of her beliefs, and her art, she was expelled from the academy in 1933. Harassed by the Nazi regime, Kollwitz's home was bombed in 1943. She was forbidden to exhibit, and her art was classified as "degenerate." Despite these events, Kollwitz remained in Berlin unlike artists such as Max Beckman and George Grosz who fled the country.

THEME & STYLE: Kathe Kollwitz

Kathe Kollwitz's imagery is marked by poverty stricken, sickly women who are barely able to care for or nourish their children. Kollwitz's art resounds with compassion as she makes appeals on behalf of the working poor, the suffering and the sick. Her work serves as an indictment of the social conditions in Germany during the late 19th and early 20th century. Her style is very bold and graphic, demanding attention. Her work has a "pain" factor to it......it comes to life from sufferage.

ANALYSIS: Kathe Kollwitz: Woman with Dead Child1903 etching, National Gallery of Art, DC

This piece is at the heart of her work. Because her son and grandson were both killed as a result of war, this speaks to that pain she endured. She uses scratchy, expressive lines that merge the two bodies together in perfect harmony. She has used dark lines as well to reinforce the power of the message. It is impressive in many ways. She is successful in conveying a sense of tragedy and she makes the viewer see the pain by the way she has depicted the human bodies (the mother figure strong but destroyed and the limp, lifeless child figure).

PERSONAL RESPONSE: Kathe Kollwitz

A lifelong commitment to championing the rights of underprivileged people and an extraordinary ability to express human suffering in artistic terms characterize the work of Käthe Kollwitz. As an artist myself I strive to communicate or speak out for issues that I have a strong belief in. Though my "cause" is for the care and protection of the Earth, I believe ours is one in the same and that is why I am drawn to her work. I truly admire artists who work with a purpose, because I believe they live for a purpose, and I wish there were more humans out there who would do that. It seems like we are not concerned with the larger picture, or the larger issues. Perhaps we do not believe we can make a difference. Here work is so dramatic and emotion-filled. Her figures have so much heart.........they carry their souls on their shoulders. I think I admire her life and work as one. I commend her for what she endured as a human being and I commend her for taking it and using it to make social statements about injustices. To me, that is what art should be doing.