Hunger c. 1935 - 1939

Alexander Raoul Stavenitz made this print, called ‘Hunger’, at an unknown date. It’s a moody piece, isn’t it? Look at the way he uses a range of dark tones, creating a sort of gritty texture, all achieved through the process of etching. It makes me think about the physicality of printmaking, the way the artist’s hand presses and manipulates the plate to leave its mark. There's something so immediate and honest about that. The image itself is unsettling, a contrast between the haves and have-nots. You’ve got a gaunt woman, holding a baby, with two young children by her side. Then, lurking in the background, we see caricatures of people enjoying themselves in a horse-drawn carriage. The contrast is stark and unflinching. This feels linked to the work of artists like Kathe Kollwitz, another German artist concerned with bearing witness to the plight of the poor and dispossessed. Art is never just about what we see, but how it makes us feel.