Today, Käthe Kollwitz (1867–1945), is recognized as a strong, empathetic voice at the intersection between art and activism. At a time when opportunities for women were extremely limited she fought for women’s rights and better living conditions for the poor, and became the first woman elected to the Berlin Academy of Art. Over a five decade career she developed powerful and emotional imagery based on her own experiences and her interactions with working-class women in Berlin. The exhibition offers a rare glimpse into her early prints and drawings, leading up to A Weavers’ Revolt, her first major print series.

This exhibition is the final of three installations of Kollwitz’s work and celebrates Dr. Brian McCrindle’s extraordinary donation to the AGO of 170 prints, drawings and sculptures by Kollwitz in 2015. This is one of the largest collections of the artist’s work outside Germany.