India ink drawing on paper (with the blindstamp "Progress"). Signed and dated in the lower right, inscribed “6” by hand in the lower left. With a handwritten title, an estate stamp and further inscriptions by a hand other than that of the artist in the lower center on the reverse. 44.2 x 34 cm. , size of sheet.
With an ink figure sketch on the reverse. [AR].
- Tumult in der Großstadt (Big City Pandemonium): an early, apocalyptic drawing by George Grosz. - From his main creative period in Berlin during World War I. - Extensive exhibition history and with another figure sketch on the reverse. - Artistic breakthrough in 1916: Georg Ehrenfried Groß turns into George Grosz. The artist gains recognition in the art world through, among other things, an essay by Theodor Däubler and the publication of two drawings in the magazine "Neue Jugend". He began to work on the painting "Metropolis", which contains elements of our drawing.
Accompanied by a certificate (copy) from Ralph Jentsch, Berlin, dated January 25, 2010. The work will be included in the forthcoming catalogue raisonné of works on paper.
LITERATURE: Galerie Nierendorf (ed.), 1920-1970. Fünfzig Jahre Galerie Nierendorf. Rückblick, Dokumentation, Jubiläumsausstellung, Berlin 1970, cat. no. 336 (illustrated in b/w on p. 148). Peter-Klaus Schuster (ed.), George Grosz. Berlin-New York, exhibition catalog, Neue Nationalgalerie, Berlin 1995, p. 133 (illustrated in a b/w).

George Grosz 1893-1959, Akademie der Künste, Berlin, October 7 - December 30, 1962, cat. no. 145 (illustrated on p. 20). The Berlin of George Grosz: Drawings, Watercolors and Prints, 1912-1930, Royal Academy of Arts, London, March 20 - June 8, 1997, cat. no. 35 (illustrated in b/w on p. 72). George Grosz. Art as Social Criticism. Drawings, Watercolors and Prints, Saarlandmuseum Saarbrücken, November 24, 2007-February 17, 2008, cat. no. 3 (illustrated in color on p. 23). Fixsterne.100 Jahre Kunst auf Papier. Adolph Menzel bis Kiki Smith, Stiftung Schleswig Holsteinische Landesmuseen, Schloss Gottorf, May 31 - September 20, 2009, p. 39 (illustrated) Wunder auf Papier. Über 100 Jahre Zeichenkunst, Kunsthaus Villa Jauss, Oberstdorf, July 23 - October 3, 2010, no page (illustrated) George Grosz. Deutschland, ein Wintermärchen. Aquarelle, Zeichnungen, Collagen, Max Ernst Museum Brühl des LVR, September 11 - December 18, 2011; Stiftung Ahlers Pro Arte, Hanover, February 17 - May 28, 2012, pp. 74f (illustrated) 1914. Die Avantgarde im Kampf, Kunst- und Ausstellungshalle der Bundesrepublik Deutschland, Bonn, November 8, 2013 - February 23, 2014, pp. 196 (illustrated) and 384. Grosz, War, Grotesque, Buchheim Museum of the Imagination, Bernried, July 6 - November 2, 2014, p. 51 (illustrated in color). PAINTING still ALIVE... On the way to modernity, Centre of Contemporary Art, Torun, Poland, 11.11.2018-13.1.2019, p. 105 (with color ill.). Gross von Grosz. The Early Years, The Small Grosz Museum, Berlin, March 1 - October 24

From the artist's estate (1959). Private collection, Berlin. Galerie Nierendorf, Berlin. Private collection, Berlin. From an Swiss collection

Pandemonium in the Big City - Grosz the draftsman in 1916 Berlin Upon completing his first degree in Dresden, George Grosz came to Berlin in January 1912 and enrolled to study under Emil Orlik at the School of Applied Arts. With Orlik's support, he received a state-funded scholarship. His early artistic output was mainly drawings; his first known painting dates from 1915. Unfortunately, his education was suddenly interrupted when World War I broke out. In November 1914, George Grosz volunteered for military service. However, after a stay in a military hospital and an operation for a sinus infection, he was discharged as unfit for service as early as May 1915. Even though George Grosz was never deployed at the front, the war left deep scars that can also be seen in his art. In the years that followed, he addressed not only war scenes but also urban life in Berlin, where war's impact on society became increasingly visible. Apocalyptic street scenes and people scarred by war found their way into his drawings as protagonists of often tumultuous scenes. The present drawing “Tumult” was also created during this period. It is an impressive document of the artist's perception of social circumstances at the time and how he processed them in his art. Crowds of people converge in great simultaneity in a canyon of houses under a cloudy sky with a gloomy sun. The scene appears futuristic and expressive, with the fat faces in hats mostly turned towards the viewer and fists raised to the sky, interrupted by jagged lines and hatching. With the creation of drawings like this, George Grosz came to the art scene's attention. His friend Theodor Däubler published an article with several drawings in 1916, and two of Grosz's drawings were also printed in the magazine “Neue Jugend.” That same year, George Grosz began to work on his painting “Metropolis,” which contains elements of our drawing, such as the ominous, low sun above the crowded urban street canyons. However, the artist's position on the war is not only visible in his art in the year the drawing was created. In 1916, out of great dislike for how his home country was waging the war, he changed his German name, Georg Ehrenfried Groß, to the American version, George Grosz. [AR]

In good condition. The sheet edges are slightly irregular in places. A small backed defective spot in the upper center, probably caused by an old mounting, and two small marginal tears on the left, one of which has been professionally backed (approx. 0.2 and 0.5 cm). Small creases along the sheet edges are somewhat more pronounced in the lower center. There are also two or three small creases in the image, but these are not particularly prominent in the overall picture. A tiny pinhole is at the top center and in the four corners—very few small foxing spots. Considering the print's age, the overall appearance of the expressive drawing is extremely good, and the details mentioned are only slightly noticeable.