All entries for Wednesday 13 June 2007

Frans Masereel's The City: A Vision in Woodcuts

Follow-up to Something I Was Going to do This Year But Changed My Mind About from Dance Dance

For the first 100 days of 2009 I am putting up the 100 woodcuts from Frans Masereel’s The City as my Facebook profile picture.

One page a day.

If it starts clogging your feed then do this:

Or, you know, this:

Otherwise, I hope you enjoy the pictures.

Why you’re interested:

This graphic novel by an Expressionist master offers a stunning depiction of urban Europe between the world wars. First published in Germany in 1925, it presents unforgettable images from the tense and dynamic Weimar period, rendered in 100 woodcuts of remarkable force and beauty.

A pacifist during World War I, Belgian-born Frans Masereel (1889-1972) sympathised with the struggles of the working classes and strived to make his art accessible to ordinary people. His evocative woodcuts convey scenes of work and leisure, wealth and deprivation, and joy and loneliness. Banned by the Nazis, Masereel’s works were championed in Communist countries; however, the artist steered clear of political affiliations. His clarity of vision transcends any propogandist use of the images, which stand as timeless indictments of oppression and injustice.

Thomas Mann described Masereel’s works as “so strangely compelling, do deeply felt, so rich in ideas that one never tires of looking at them.” Epic and unflinching in its scope, The City continues to influence modern fine and graphic art, while recapturing the mood of a vanished era.

James Miles : 13 Jun 2007 17:00 |  Tags: Art Facebook Frans Masereel Graphic Novels Literature The City |  Comments (0) |  Close comments |  Trackbacks (1) |  Report a problem