Käthe Kollwitz
The Prisoners
Sheet 7 from the cycle Peasants’ War
1908
Etching, line etching, drypoint, emery, and vernis mou
Käthe Kollwitz Museum Berlin
While the peasants, huddled together after their defeat, are primarily preoccupied with themselves in the upper composition drawing, the final version of the sheet shows a figure in the center that is particularly emphasized. She seems to be the only one staring intently at the viewer. With this figure, the artist invites us to empathize with the miserable situation of the prisoners.
It seems as if Käthe Kollwitz had the later viewer in mind when she created her design, as someone who could be addressed directly. Like the performers on stage, she was also aware that she had an audience to whom she wanted to communicate something.