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George Grosz

German, 1893-1959

George Grosz was a German artist known especially for his caricatural drawings and paintings of Berlin life in the 1920s. He was a prominent member of the Berlin Dada and New Objectivity group during the Weimar Republic. Grosz studied drawing at the Dresden Academy (1909–11) and at the School of Arts and Crafts in Berlin (1912–14). He was in the army from 1914–15, and again for a short time in 1917, but spent the rest of the war in Berlin, where he made violently anti-war drawings, in which his main focus was attacking the social corruption of Germany (capitalists, prostitutes, the Prussian military caste, the middle class). His artworks had great impact in the Berlin Dada movement, 1917–20, and collaborated with John Heartfield and Raoul Hausmann in the invention of photomontage. 

Many of Grosz’s drawings were published in albums (Gott mit uns, Ecce Homo, Der Spiesser-Spiegel, etc.), and he was subject to prosecutions for insulting the army and blasphemy. He visited the United States in 1932 to teach at the Art Students League, New York, and settled there in 1933. In the latter part of his career, he tried to establish himself as a pure painter of landscapes and still life, but also painted many compositions of an apocalyptic and deeply pessimistic kind. His role in the Berlin Dada movement affected political outlooks and artistic developments not only in Germany, but also in Russia, the Balkan nations, and parts of France. 

Grosz's penetrating, darkly humorous style of drawing and his use of satire as a weapon left a deep impression on the work of his contemporaries and the artists of the next generation. Some of his works from the early 1940s, particularly during World War II, do present an allegorical and dramatic representation of Grosz's moral perspective regarding war. Additionally, some of his last pieces from 1958 were photomontages, and hearken back to his earlier Dadaist aesthetic and message, passing judgment upon consumerism and suggesting that his absorption with American culture had ended in disappointment. In 1959, Grosz sold his house and moved back to Berlin. He died shortly after his return, after a fall down the stairs.

"He Made Fun of Hindenburg" original lithograph
By George Grosz
Located in Henderson, NV
Medium: original lithograph. Printed in 1920 on smooth wove paper for the Deutsche Graphiker der Gegenwart portfolio, and published in Leipzig by Klinkhardt & Biermann in an edition ...
Category

1920s Expressionist George Grosz

Materials

Lithograph

A Post-war Museum - Rare Book illustrated by George Grosz - 1931
By George Grosz
Located in Roma, IT
A Post-war Museum is an original modern rare book illustrated by George Grosz (Berlin, 1823 - 1959, Berlin) in 1941. Original First Edition. Published by Faber & Faber, London. Format: small 8°. The book includes 32 unumbered pages with 28 full page original drawings. Mint conditions. George Grosz (Berlin, 1823 - 1959, Berlin). By the war’s end in 1918, Grosz had developed an unmistakable graphic style that combined a highly expressive use of line with ferocious social caricature. Out of his wartime experiences and his observations of chaotic postwar Germany grew a series of drawings savagely attacking militarism, war profiteering, the gulf between rich and poor, social decadence, and Nazism. In drawing collections such as The Face of the Ruling Class (1921) and Ecce Homo (1922), Grosz depicts fat Junkers, greedy capitalists, smug bourgeoisie, drinkers, and lechers—as well as hollow-faced factory labourers, the poor, and the unemployed. At this time Grosz belonged to the Berlin Dada art movement, having befriended the German Dadaist brothers Wieland Herzfelde and John Heartfield...
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1930s Expressionist George Grosz

Materials

Paper

1936 Lithograph Interregnum Street Riot Protest Small Edition Weimar Germany
By George Grosz
Located in Surfside, FL
Hand lithography on BFK Rives French hand moulded paper Style: German New Objectivity (Neue Sachlichkeit) According to the frontis these were produced by Hand Lithography. According...
Category

1930s Modern George Grosz

Materials

Lithograph

1936 Lithograph Interregnum, Cigar, Kid w Toy Gun, Small Edition Weimar Germany
By George Grosz
Located in Surfside, FL
Hand lithography on BFK Rives French hand moulded paper Style: German New Objectivity (Neue Sachlichkeit) According to the frontis these were produced by Hand Lithography. According...
Category

1930s Modern George Grosz

Materials

Lithograph

1936 Lithograph Interregnum Portfolio Windblown Man Small Edition Weimar Germany
By George Grosz
Located in Surfside, FL
Hand lithography on BFK Rives French hand moulded paper Style: German New Objectivity (Neue Sachlichkeit) According to the frontis these were produced by Hand Lithography. According...
Category

1930s Modern George Grosz

Materials

Lithograph

1936 Lithograph Interregnum portfolio Artist Studio small edition Weimar Germany
By George Grosz
Located in Surfside, FL
Hand lithography on BFK Rives French hand moulded paper Style: German New Objectivity (Neue Sachlichkeit) According to the frontis these were produced by Hand Lithography. According...
Category

1930s Modern George Grosz

Materials

Lithograph

1936 Lithograph Interregnum Portfolio Butcher Shop Small Edition Weimar Germany
By George Grosz
Located in Surfside, FL
Hand lithography on BFK Rives French hand moulded paper Style: German New Objectivity (Neue Sachlichkeit) According to the frontis these were produced by Hand Lithography. According...
Category

1930s Modern George Grosz

Materials

Lithograph

Large George Grosz 1923 Lithograph Die Rauber German Expressionism WPA Realism
By George Grosz
Located in Surfside, FL
From The robbers. lithographs by George Grosz for the drama of the same name. photolithography on watermarked paper. 19 X 25.5 inches (sheet size). This is not hand signed or numbe...
Category

1930s American Modern George Grosz

Materials

Lithograph

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Find a wide variety of authentic George Grosz art available for sale on 1stDibs. If you’re browsing the collection of art to introduce a pop of color in a neutral corner of your living room or bedroom, you can find work that includes elements of orange and other colors. You can also browse by medium to find art by George Grosz in lithograph, offset print, paper and more. Much of the original work by this artist or collective was created during the 20th century and is mostly associated with the Expressionist style. Not every interior allows for large George Grosz art, so small editions measuring 3 inches across are available. Customers who are interested in this artist might also find the work of Walter Schnackenberg, Max Pechstein, and Lovis Corinth. George Grosz art prices can differ depending upon medium, time period and other attributes. On 1stDibs, the price for these items starts at $88 and tops out at $75,000, while the average work can sell for $444.
Questions About George Grosz
  • 1stDibs ExpertApril 5, 2022
    George Grosz was a German artist best known for his character drawings and his paintings of Berlin in the 1920s. His work was often very critical of the politics of the day and German society. In the 1930s, Grosz immigrated to the United States and gave up the style he had previously been known for and began teaching. Shop a selection of George Grosz pieces from some of the world’s top art dealers on 1stDibs.

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