John Heartfield
Encyclopedia
John Heartfield is the anglicized
name of the German photomontage
artist Helmut Herzfeld. He chose to call himself Heartfield in 1916, to criticize the rabid nationalism
and anti-British sentiment prevalent in Germany during World War I
.
group and the Communist Party of Germany
. He would turn out to be highly active in the Dada movement, organizing the First International Dada Fair in Berlin in 1920. In 1919, he was dismissed from the Reichswehr
film service on account of his support for the strike
that followed the assassination of Karl Liebknecht
and Rosa Luxemburg
. With George Grosz
, he founded Die Pleite
, a satirical magazine. After meeting Bertolt Brecht
in 1924, who was to have an influence on his art, Heartfield developed photomontage into a form of political and artistic expression. He worked for two communist publications: the daily Die Rote Fahne
and the weekly Arbeiter-Illustrierte-Zeitung
(AIZ), the latter of which published the works for which Heartfield is best remembered.
In 1933, after the National Socialists
came to power in Germany, Heartfield relocated to Czechoslovakia
, where he continued his photomontage work for the AIZ (which was published in exile); in 1938, fearing a German takeover of his host country, he left for England, living in Hampstead
. He settled in East Germany and Berlin
after World War II
, in 1954, and worked closely with theater directors such as Benno Besson
and Wolfgang Langhoff
at Berliner Ensemble
and Deutsches Theater
.
In 1967 he visited Britain and began preparing a retrospective exhibition of his work, "photomontages", which was subsequently completed by his widow Gertrude and the Deutsche Akademie der Künste, and shown at the ICA in London in 1969.
In 2005, Tate Britain
held an exhibition of his photomontage pieces.
and the Nazis often subverted Nazi symbols
such as the swastika
in order to undermine their propaganda
message.
One of his more famous pieces, made in 1935 entitled Hurrah, die Butter ist Alle! (Hurray, the butter is gone!) was published on the frontpage of the AIZ in 1935. A parody of the aesthetics of propaganda, the photomontage shows a family at a kitchen table, where a nearby portrait of Hitler hangs and the wallpaper is emblazoned with swastikas. The family — mother, father, old woman, young man, baby, and dog — are attempting to eat pieces of metal, such as chains, bicycle handlebars, and rifles. Below, the title is written in large letters, in addition to a quote by Hermann Göring
during food shortage. Translated, the quote reads: "Iron has always made a nation strong, butter and lard have only made the people fat".
" by Siouxsie and the Banshees; the song was re-recorded in German and released as a single with Heartfield's work as the cover art. The Swiss
darkwave band Mittageisen
(1981-1986) called themselves after this song title.
The band Blurt
recorded a song called "Hurrah! Die Butter Ist Alle" on their 1986 album "Poppycock".
The Heartfield piece The Hand has 5 Fingers with its original text: "5 fingers make a hand! With these 5 grab the enemy!", was referenced by alternative metal
band System of a Down
. A text printed on the back of the album System of a Down
reads: "The hand has five fingers, capable and powerful, with the ability to destroy as well as create". It should be noted however that this concept is not confined to Heartfield's work and is present, for example, in the symbolism of the raised fist
.
The British hardcore punk
band Discharge
used Heartfield's work "Peace and Fascism" for the cover artwork of their compilation "Never Again".
Laibach
, a Slovenian avant-garde
act, often admits being influenced by Heartfield's art. They have recorded the song Herzfelde, apparently named after him.
The image also appears on the 50th anniversary edition of The Gutenberg Galaxy by media theorist Marshall McLuhan
Anglicisation
Anglicisation, or anglicization , is the process of converting verbal or written elements of any other language into a form that is more comprehensible to an English speaker, or, more generally, of altering something such that it becomes English in form or character.The term most often refers to...
name of the German photomontage
Photomontage
Photomontage is the process and result of making a composite photograph by cutting and joining a number of other photographs. The composite picture was sometimes photographed so that the final image is converted back into a seamless photographic print. A similar method, although one that does not...
artist Helmut Herzfeld. He chose to call himself Heartfield in 1916, to criticize the rabid nationalism
Nationalism
Nationalism is a political ideology that involves a strong identification of a group of individuals with a political entity defined in national terms, i.e. a nation. In the 'modernist' image of the nation, it is nationalism that creates national identity. There are various definitions for what...
and anti-British sentiment prevalent in Germany during World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
.
Career
In 1918 Heartfield joined the Berlin DadaDada
Dada or Dadaism is a cultural movement that began in Zurich, Switzerland, during World War I and peaked from 1916 to 1922. The movement primarily involved visual arts, literature—poetry, art manifestoes, art theory—theatre, and graphic design, and concentrated its anti-war politics through a...
group and the Communist Party of Germany
Communist Party of Germany
The Communist Party of Germany was a major political party in Germany between 1918 and 1933, and a minor party in West Germany in the postwar period until it was banned in 1956...
. He would turn out to be highly active in the Dada movement, organizing the First International Dada Fair in Berlin in 1920. In 1919, he was dismissed from the Reichswehr
Reichswehr
The Reichswehr formed the military organisation of Germany from 1919 until 1935, when it was renamed the Wehrmacht ....
film service on account of his support for the strike
Strike action
Strike action, also called labour strike, on strike, greve , or simply strike, is a work stoppage caused by the mass refusal of employees to work. A strike usually takes place in response to employee grievances. Strikes became important during the industrial revolution, when mass labour became...
that followed the assassination of Karl Liebknecht
Karl Liebknecht
was a German socialist and a co-founder with Rosa Luxemburg of the Spartacist League and the Communist Party of Germany. He is best known for his opposition to World War I in the Reichstag and his role in the Spartacist uprising of 1919...
and Rosa Luxemburg
Rosa Luxemburg
Rosa Luxemburg was a Marxist theorist, philosopher, economist and activist of Polish Jewish descent who became a naturalized German citizen...
. With George Grosz
George Grosz
Georg Ehrenfried Groß was a German artist known especially for his savagely caricatural drawings of Berlin life in the 1920s...
, he founded Die Pleite
Die Pleite
Die Pleite was a German periodical founded and edited by George Grosz, Wieland Herzfelde, and John Heartfield, which ran from 1919 to 1924. The magazine was part of the Berlin Dada scene and was known for its ruthless critiques of the Weimar Republic, in addition to its prescient awareness of the...
, a satirical magazine. After meeting Bertolt Brecht
Bertolt Brecht
Bertolt Brecht was a German poet, playwright, and theatre director.An influential theatre practitioner of the 20th century, Brecht made equally significant contributions to dramaturgy and theatrical production, the latter particularly through the seismic impact of the tours undertaken by the...
in 1924, who was to have an influence on his art, Heartfield developed photomontage into a form of political and artistic expression. He worked for two communist publications: the daily Die Rote Fahne
Die Rote Fahne
The German newspaper Die Rote Fahne was created on 9 November 1918 by Karl Liebknecht and Rosa Luxemburg in Berlin, first as organ of the left wing revolutionary Spartakusbund. After the founding of the Communist Party of Germany on 1 January 1919 it became the central publication of the party,...
and the weekly Arbeiter-Illustrierte-Zeitung
Arbeiter-Illustrierte-Zeitung
Arbeiter-Illustrierte-Zeitung or AIZ was a weekly German illustrated magazine published between 1924 and 1938 in Berlin and later in Prague...
(AIZ), the latter of which published the works for which Heartfield is best remembered.
In 1933, after the National Socialists
National Socialist German Workers Party
The National Socialist German Workers' Party , commonly known in English as the Nazi Party, was a political party in Germany between 1920 and 1945. Its predecessor, the German Workers' Party , existed from 1919 to 1920...
came to power in Germany, Heartfield relocated to Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia or Czecho-Slovakia was a sovereign state in Central Europe which existed from October 1918, when it declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, until 1992...
, where he continued his photomontage work for the AIZ (which was published in exile); in 1938, fearing a German takeover of his host country, he left for England, living in Hampstead
Hampstead
Hampstead is an area of London, England, north-west of Charing Cross. Part of the London Borough of Camden in Inner London, it is known for its intellectual, liberal, artistic, musical and literary associations and for Hampstead Heath, a large, hilly expanse of parkland...
. He settled in East Germany and Berlin
East Berlin
East Berlin was the name given to the eastern part of Berlin between 1949 and 1990. It consisted of the Soviet sector of Berlin that was established in 1945. The American, British and French sectors became West Berlin, a part strongly associated with West Germany but a free city...
after World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, in 1954, and worked closely with theater directors such as Benno Besson
Benno Besson
Benno Besson was a Swiss actor and director. He had great success as director at Volksbühne Berlin, Deutsches Theater and Berliner Ensemble in East-Berlin, where he went by an invitation of Bertolt Brecht in 1949...
and Wolfgang Langhoff
Wolfgang Langhoff
Wolfgang Langhoff was a German theatre, film and television actor and theatre director.-Early career:...
at Berliner Ensemble
Berliner Ensemble
The Berliner Ensemble is a German theatre company established by playwright Bertolt Brecht and his wife, Helene Weigel in January 1949 in East Berlin...
and Deutsches Theater
Deutsches Theater
The Deutsches Theater in Berlin is a well-known German theatre. It was built in 1850 as Friedrich-Wilhelm-Städtisches Theater, after Frederick William IV of Prussia. Located on Schumann Street , the Deutsches Theater consists of two adjoining stages that share a common, classical facade...
.
In 1967 he visited Britain and began preparing a retrospective exhibition of his work, "photomontages", which was subsequently completed by his widow Gertrude and the Deutsche Akademie der Künste, and shown at the ICA in London in 1969.
In 2005, Tate Britain
Tate Britain
Tate Britain is an art gallery situated on Millbank in London, and part of the Tate gallery network in Britain, with Tate Modern, Tate Liverpool and Tate St Ives. It is the oldest gallery in the network, opening in 1897. It houses a substantial collection of the works of J. M. W. Turner.-History:It...
held an exhibition of his photomontage pieces.
Works
His photomontages satirising Adolf HitlerAdolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...
and the Nazis often subverted Nazi symbols
Nazi symbolism
The twentieth century German Nazi Party was notable for its extensive use of graphic symbolism, most notably the Hakenkreuz , which it used as its principal symbol, and, in the form of the swastika flag, became the state flag of Nazi Germany....
such as the swastika
Swastika
The swastika is an equilateral cross with its arms bent at right angles, in either right-facing form in counter clock motion or its mirrored left-facing form in clock motion. Earliest archaeological evidence of swastika-shaped ornaments dates back to the Indus Valley Civilization of Ancient...
in order to undermine their propaganda
Propaganda
Propaganda is a form of communication that is aimed at influencing the attitude of a community toward some cause or position so as to benefit oneself or one's group....
message.
One of his more famous pieces, made in 1935 entitled Hurrah, die Butter ist Alle! (Hurray, the butter is gone!) was published on the frontpage of the AIZ in 1935. A parody of the aesthetics of propaganda, the photomontage shows a family at a kitchen table, where a nearby portrait of Hitler hangs and the wallpaper is emblazoned with swastikas. The family — mother, father, old woman, young man, baby, and dog — are attempting to eat pieces of metal, such as chains, bicycle handlebars, and rifles. Below, the title is written in large letters, in addition to a quote by Hermann Göring
Hermann Göring
Hermann Wilhelm Göring, was a German politician, military leader, and a leading member of the Nazi Party. He was a veteran of World War I as an ace fighter pilot, and a recipient of the coveted Pour le Mérite, also known as "The Blue Max"...
during food shortage. Translated, the quote reads: "Iron has always made a nation strong, butter and lard have only made the people fat".
Homages in modern culture
Hurrah, die Butter ist Alle! served as the inspiration behind the song "MittageisenMittageisen
"Mittageisen" is a single by the English band Siouxsie and the Banshees. Originally appearing on the band's 1978 debut album The Scream as "Metal Postcard ", the track was re-recorded in 1979 with this time the lyrics sung in German....
" by Siouxsie and the Banshees; the song was re-recorded in German and released as a single with Heartfield's work as the cover art. The Swiss
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
darkwave band Mittageisen
Mittageisen (band)
mittageisen is a Swiss Dark Wave band of the early 1980s.The name refers to "Mittageisen", a single by Siouxsie and the Banshees that makes use of a John Heartfield photomontage on the cover. This picture was originally published on the frontpage of the "Arbeiter-Illustrierte-Zeitung / Workers...
(1981-1986) called themselves after this song title.
The band Blurt
Blurt
Blurt is a British musical group founded by the poet, saxophonist and puppeteer Ted Milton in 1979 in Stroud, Gloucestershire; with Milton's brother Jake Milton, formerly of psychedelic group Quintessence, on drums and Peter Creese on guitar...
recorded a song called "Hurrah! Die Butter Ist Alle" on their 1986 album "Poppycock".
The Heartfield piece The Hand has 5 Fingers with its original text: "5 fingers make a hand! With these 5 grab the enemy!", was referenced by alternative metal
Alternative metal
Alternative metal is a genre of alternative rock and heavy metal that gained popularity in the early 1990s. Most notably, alternative metal bands are characterized by heavy guitar riffs and experimental approaches to heavy music.-Origins:...
band System of a Down
System of a Down
System of a Down, also known by the acronym SOAD and often shortened to System, is a rock band from Southern California. The band was formed in 1994. It consists of Serj Tankian , Daron Malakian , Shavo Odadjian and John Dolmayan...
. A text printed on the back of the album System of a Down
System of a Down (album)
System of a Down is the debut album by American heavy metal band System of a Down, first released in 1998. The album was certified gold by the RIAA on February 2, 2000. Two years later, after the success of Toxicity, it was certified platinum...
reads: "The hand has five fingers, capable and powerful, with the ability to destroy as well as create". It should be noted however that this concept is not confined to Heartfield's work and is present, for example, in the symbolism of the raised fist
Raised fist
The raised fist is a symbol of solidarity and support. It is also used as a salute to express unity, strength, defiance, or resistance. The salute dates back to ancient Assyria as a symbol of resistance in the face of violence.-History:Assyrian depictions of the goddess Ishtar show her raising a...
.
The British hardcore punk
Hardcore punk
Hardcore punk is an underground music genre that originated in the late 1970s, following the mainstream success of punk rock. Hardcore is generally faster, thicker, and heavier than earlier punk rock. The origin of the term "hardcore punk" is uncertain. The Vancouver-based band D.O.A...
band Discharge
Discharge (band)
Discharge is a British hardcore punk band formed in 1977 by Terry "Tezz" Roberts and Roy "Rainy" Wainwright. They are often considered among one of the very first bands to play hardcore punk, and to mix punk with metal...
used Heartfield's work "Peace and Fascism" for the cover artwork of their compilation "Never Again".
Laibach
Laibach
Laibach can refer to one of the following:* German name for Ljubljana, the capital of Slovenia* Laibach , Slovenian industrial musical group** Laibach , the title of the debut album by the band with this name...
, a Slovenian avant-garde
Avant-garde
Avant-garde means "advance guard" or "vanguard". The adjective form is used in English to refer to people or works that are experimental or innovative, particularly with respect to art, culture, and politics....
act, often admits being influenced by Heartfield's art. They have recorded the song Herzfelde, apparently named after him.
The image also appears on the 50th anniversary edition of The Gutenberg Galaxy by media theorist Marshall McLuhan
External links
- Towson University Heartfield's Online Art
- John Heartfield in Artfacts.Net