Satirical ink drawing created by Karl Schwesig in February 1938 in Antwerp, depicting a woman standing next to a robot and cannon. It is part of a series of eight satirical drawings published in an illegal newspaper, the Kolner Rosenmontags-Zeitung (Cologne Rose Monday Newspaper). The newspaper was printed in Cologne and distributed at the Cologne Carnival on Rose Monday before Lent in early 1938. The printer was unable to smuggle the dangerous drawings out of Germany, so he kept them in his shop, where they were damaged by a fire during the war. After Hitler came to power in January 1933, Schwesig, a Communist, was arrested and imprisoned for 16 months. After his release in 1935, he lived in Antwerp, Belgium. On May 10, 1940, Germany invaded Belgium. Schwesig was arrested and sent to Vichy France, where he was held in St. Cyprien, Gurs, Noe, and Nexon internment camps. In 1943, he was sent to Ulmer Hoeh prison in Dusseldorf, where he was liberated by American forces in April 1945.
Satirical drawing by Karl Schwesig depicting Nazi followers as robots
No restrictions on access
The drawing was acquired by the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 1988.
overall: Height: 10.625 inches (26.988 cm) | Width: 14.125 inches (35.878 cm)
Drawing in ink on paper depicting a woman and a robot standing on a large rectangular float with 2 wheels. The woman is topless and wearing a grass skirt. She stands next to a cannon, holding a frying pan over the end. There is a white block in the pan, with a knife sticking out and the word Angriff written on the front. To the left is a large robot with arms made of a gun and sword and large cylindrical legs with flat rectangular feet. It says “Man n(?)ß sich nur zu helfen wissen!!!” In front of the woman is a small human skeleton, saying “Kanonen sind Kräftiger statt Butter!” In front of the robot are 2 human skulls, one saying “Blutt and Ehre.” Behind the woman is a cot with a teacup and saucer on the left and a pile of grenades on the right. On the ground is a container with the Gewehr Fett written on the front. Marching to the left of the float are 4 buckets with swastikas on their fronts, poles through the center with a cap on top, 2 thick poles for legs. They hold a sign with the text “S.A. Kartoffelschalen -Sammelsturm 3/175.” There are 3 men standing behind the float, 2 in military uniforms and 1 in a suit and top hat. There are 2 rockets behind them. The artwork title is written on the sides. front, lower center, pencil : Als front, upper left corner, red pencil : VI. front, lower left corner, pencil: L sp back, upper center, red pencil : VI. back, lower left corner, stamped, black ink : Nachlaß Karl Schwesig [Estate Karl Schwesig]
No restrictions on use
Karl Schwesig was born on June 19, 1898, in Gelsenkirchen, Germany. His father was a miner. From 1916 to 1918, Schwesig served in the German Army during the First World War (1914-1918). In 1918, Schwesig began studying at the Academy of Fine Arts in Dusseldorf. In 1921, he left the conservative academy and joined the Junge Rhineland artist group. In 1924, Schwesig cofounded the satirical magazine Die Peitsche (The Whip). The right wing Nazi Party was growing rapidly in popularity duirng the 1920s and Schwesig was an outspoken anti-Nazi. He joined the Communist Party in the late 1920’s. Hitler came to power in Germany in January 1933 and the country was soon ruled by a Nazi dictatorship. On July 11, 1933, Schwesig was arrested for his anti-Nazi commentary. He was detained by the SA and interrogated for the names of colleagues who also resisted the Nazis. He was sent to Ulmer Höhe prison in Dusseldorf. In 1934, he was convicted of treason and served his sentence in Bendahl prison in Wuppertal. After his release on November 18, 1934, Schwesig was granted political asylum in Belgium and lived in Antwerp. In 1937, his German citizenship was revoked and his property in Germany was confiscated by the Nazi regime. On May 10, 1940, Germany invaded Belgium. Schwesig was arrested and deported to St. Cyprien internment camp in Vichy France. In October, he was moved to Gurs internment camp after St. Cyprien was destroyed by flooding. In February 1941, he was transferred to Noé internment camp. In March 1943, he was sent to Nexon internment camp and classified as a politcal prisoner. In June, Schwesig was sent to Fort Romainville prison in Paris and in July to Ulmer Höhe prison in Dusseldorf. Throughout his imprisonment, Schwesig drew images of daily life in the camps. Schwesig was liberated in Ulmer Höhe after American forces captured Dusseldorf on April 17, 1945. The war ended when Germany surrendered on May 7. Schwesig stayed in Dusseldorf. He died, age 57, in 1955.