Kollwitz Harsh Reality Meaning

“An artwork may have a particular meaning or significance to the artist, but when it is displayed it becomes a public object… each spectator reacts according to their set of social experiences and conditions… the artwork may even change its significance and importance over time” This quote gives an exceptionally accurate description of the meaning of art and the changes in meaning over time. Through this reasoning, it is apparent that the name of an artwork may require alteration over time. Harsh reality in art can be defined as an artwork that conveys the crude actuality of life in relation to social, cultural and spiritual situations. The artwork can take any form, but it must have the element of a critique of reality. The idea of renaming

The large hands in the centre of the artwork show the protection of the orphaned children. The lack of small details depicts a sharpness and boldness of the ideas and message that the artwork portrays which is loss at the hands of war. The absence of eyes in the children and the adults shows their faces as blank and emotionless and can be interpreted as the subjects showing an expression of loss. The children in the artwork show sad expressions and the adults have neutral, almost angry expressions on their faces. The proximity of the elements of the artwork and the subjects is close which may suggest a synchronicity between the subjects. The elements of this artwork and the synthesis between them conveys a harsh depiction of the reality of life. The symbolism in the artwork such as; the hands and the expressions on the faces of the widows and orphans and the Harsh Reality of loss as a result of war that they allude to account for the renaming of this artwork to ‘Harsh

This artwork depicts the harsh reality of modern consumerism through its use of techniques and placement of objects. The sculpture shows an overflowing cart of shopping with labels still intact on all the grocery items. The colour used on all of the boxes can be symbolic of modern advertising, where each item is marketed to stand out on the shelf. The woman has her hair in rollers and is smoking a cigarette, which is representative of the middle class society (Overblog, 2009). The woman’s blank expression is symbolistic of modern consumerism and the blind following of it and the associated trends. Consumeristic trends such as instantly purchasing items/services from a company because of celebrity endorsements and advertising and preferring to purchase items for oneself rather than helping another person financially are commonly mentioned in arguments about the cons of consumerism (Becker, 2013). Through the characteristics of the artwork and the message of consumerism presented, a social comment about modern consumerism can be made. The contents of the shopping trolley reinforce this as they are all heavily branded items which are symbolistic of consumerism. Another element of this artwork that depicts a more actual reality is the body of the woman. The woman does not show an idealistic form of a woman, but a more realistic, unfiltered version of the human form. The artwork was