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The Widow I (Die Witwe I)
European Art
Käthe Kollwitz explored the physical and spiritual dimensions of the human condition through printmaking, a medium that resonated for German artists eager to renew the tradition of Northern Renaissance masters such as Albrecht Dürer. After losing one of her sons in World War I, Kollwitz produced a portfolio of seven stark and emotionally raw woodcuts about the brutality of war and its consequent grief and devastation. The Volunteers depicts a line of young soldiers, including her own son Peter, marching behind the skeletal figure of Death playing a war drum. In The Widow, the harsh texture of the woodcut intensifies the visceral sensation of the woman’s anguish. With no narrative details to place her figure in a particular time or place, the work stands as a universal image of loss and mourning.
Titus Kaphar: Historically, we look at the world from one perspective. When we look even at the politics of the time, the victors get to tell that story. We don’t look at the perspective of the folks who are dying on the battlefield. We look at the perspective of the folks who won that particular war because they wrote that history. I think what it is to be in this moment right now is to know that ultimately there are many perspectives. . . . To some degree, it’s about making space to hear those other voices and in other cases correcting the record by going back in time and saying, “Wait, actually, there were some folks who were saying stuff. . .” We have to acknowledge that there were folks who existed, who resisted, who said, “No, I’m not going to fall into that same trap.” I think it behooves us to highlight those people more. These are powerful.
Titus Kaphar: Historically, we look at the world from one perspective. When we look even at the politics of the time, the victors get to tell that story. We don’t look at the perspective of the folks who are dying on the battlefield. We look at the perspective of the folks who won that particular war because they wrote that history. I think what it is to be in this moment right now is to know that ultimately there are many perspectives. . . . To some degree, it’s about making space to hear those other voices and in other cases correcting the record by going back in time and saying, “Wait, actually, there were some folks who were saying stuff. . .” We have to acknowledge that there were folks who existed, who resisted, who said, “No, I’m not going to fall into that same trap.” I think it behooves us to highlight those people more. These are powerful.
PORTFOLIO/SERIES
Krieg, Plate 4
PUBLISHER
Emil Richter, Dresden
MEDIUM
Woodcut in black ink on wove paper
DATES
1922–1923
DIMENSIONS
image: 18 3/4 × 14 9/16 in. (47.6 × 37 cm)
sheet: 26 x 18 11/16 in. (66 x 47.5 cm) (show scale)
SIGNATURE
Signed, "Kathe Kollowitz" in pencil, lower right margin
INSCRIPTIONS
Lower left in graphite: "88/100"; lower right in graphite: "Bl. 4 zn Folge: Krieg/Die Witwe"; lower right in pencil: "Käthe Kollwitz"
COLLECTIONS
European Art
ACCESSION NUMBER
44.201.4
CREDIT LINE
Carll H. de Silver Fund
EXHIBITIONS
MUSEUM LOCATION
This item is not on view
CAPTION
Käthe Kollwitz (German, 1867–1945). The Widow I (Die Witwe I), 1922–1923. Woodcut in black ink on wove paper, image: 18 3/4 × 14 9/16 in. (47.6 × 37 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Carll H. de Silver Fund, 44.201.4. © artist or artist's estate (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 44.201.4_SL3.jpg)
STATE
Vb/Vd
EDITION
Edition: 88/100
IMAGE
overall, 44.201.4_SL3.jpg. Brooklyn Museum photograph
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RIGHTS STATEMENT
© artist or artist's estate
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