Harsh Realities: The Satirical Drawings of George Grosz

EXHIBITION OVERVIEW

This intimate installation in the Esther and Arthur Gelber Treasury features six drawings by the major 20th century German artist George Grosz.

German artist George Grosz drew incessantly from childhood. As a teenager he trained at art schools in Dresden and Paris before returning to his hometown of Berlin. There he became immersed in the life of the bars, cafés and brothels. The decadence and violence of the city, combined with Grosz’s traumatic experiences as a soldier in World War I, inspired his grim, satirical portrayals of society. Over the course of a long career, Grosz’s drawing style changed several times.

This installation includes characteristic multi-figured compositions using spare pen-and-ink lines, along with frank and unidealized pencil drawings of female subjects. The Art Gallery of Ontario is grateful to Albert and Shirley Taliano for the recent donation of this group of drawings.