From Publishers Weekly
Grosz's savage satire of Weimar Germany's bloated politicians, military profiteers, Nazi thugs and lower-middle class are showcased in nearly 200 color reproductions of sketches, oils and watercolors which make up the bulk of this volume. Short prefatory essays provide a kaleidoscopic portrait of Grosz. Sabarsky's mild, laudatory introduction seems written for viewers who are unfamiliar with Grosz's work or who might be offended by it. Lothar Fischer traces Grosz's metamorphosis from Germany's most popular book illustrator to prophet of impending doom. Achille Bonita Oliva's pedantic essay scans the artist's acid depiction of a "loveless crowd." Uwe Schneede fills in incidents of Grosz's life in Germany, where World War I radically changed his art, and in the U.S., where he adapted to life in exile. The artist's son, Marty Grosz, remembers that his father outwitted Nazi "goons" who had come to beat him.
Copyright 1986 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 1986 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From Library Journal
This book focuses on the work of the German expressionist George Grosz from 1915 to 1931. Paintings and drawings vividly evoke a lost war, corruption, prostitution, disease, and terror. Similar in format to Sabarsky's recent Egon Schiele ( LJ 3/1/86), the book has several brief essays up front, followed by a large full-color portfolio of plates. The text includes fond reminiscences by Marty Grosz, the artist's son, and an 11-page documentary of the 1920s in Germany's history, with pertinent photographs. There is a great deal of recently published material on German Expressionism; this book is an attractive, but slight, contribution to the literature. Hara L. Seltzer, NYPL
Copyright 1986 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 1986 Reed Business Information, Inc.
