Head of Ludwig Schames
1918
Ernst Ludwig Kirchner carved this intense portrait of his friend and art dealer Ludwig Schames in 1918, right in the middle of World War I. Notice the jagged, almost frantic lines that make up Schames's wild beard and hollow eyes—it's a perfect example of German Expressionism, where raw emotion beats realistic accuracy every time. Kirchner was a founding member of Die Brücke (The Bridge), a group that wanted to break away from traditional art, and you can feel that rebellious energy in every sharp cut of this woodblock print.
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