Dignitaries
(Hohe Herrschaften)
1921
Medium
woodcut
Measurements
28.7 × 23.0 cm (block) 36.6 × 30.2 cm (sheet)
Credit Line
National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne
Gift of Mrs Olive Hirschfeld, 1971
© Gerhard Marcks/VG Bild-Kunst, Bonn. Licensed by Copyright Agency, Australia Sydney
Gallery location
Not on display
About this work
On the surface, this appears to be an image of two clever cats catching rats, one using its banded tail to block a nest. However, in the hands of the German Expressionist artist Gerhard Marcks, the work becomes a critique of a political regime that he felt fostered corruption during the unstable period of Germany’s Weimar Republic. Cats were a popular vehicle for political satarists: the perception of them being cunning and sneaky was easily transposed onto their chosen targets. The title Dignitaries flags the work as satire, as does the contented smirk of the handsome striped cat who is toying with his victim before devouring it.
Artwork Details
Catalogue/s Raisonné
Lammek H 62
Inscription
inscribed in pencil below image l.l.: (...illeg.)
inscribed in pencil below image l.r.: G. Marcks 1921
Accession Number
P58-1971
Departments
International Prints / International Prints and Drawings
This digital record has been made available on NGV Collection Online through the generous support of the Joe White Bequest
Subjects (general)
Animals Cityscapes
Subjects (specific)
domestic cat (species) lines (artistic concept) mouse (animal) tunnels underground (positional attribute) urban areas
Movements
Bauhaus