Lecture Notes: Natalie Frank on Kollwitz

Introduction to Natalie Frank

• Speaker: Natalie Frank, a painter
• First Artistic Influence: Kollwitz

Early Artistic Inspirations

• Literature: Predominantly male perspectives encountered as a child
• Introduction to Kollwitz: First exposure to seeing the world through an adult woman's eyes

Kollwitz’s Impact

• Empathy & Representation:
  • Depiction of sexual violence from a woman's perspective
  • Example: Image of rape highlighting:
    • Physical weight and presence of women's bodies
    • Woman's vulnerability and experience
• Artistic Style:
  • Physical presence and autobiography infused in her art
  • Intense, pure, and unguarded expression
  • Grappling to show something interior with mastery

Techniques and Skills

• Draftsmanship: Incredible skill, envied by Natalie
• Medium: Printmaking challenges
  • No erasing, printed in reverse
  • Required foresight and control

Kollwitz's Relevance

• Despite time lapse, many issues remain unchanged
• Continued Resonance:
  • Women remain unheard
• Feminism and Avant-garde Work:
  • Created during a time when women were restricted from educational opportunities
  • Drew from personal life and surroundings
  • Gained access and recognition in her lifetime

Legacy and Influence

• Politics and Sincerity: Evident in all her work
• Belief in Self: Confidence in her narrative
• Influence on Natalie:
  • Ever-present in shaping Natalie’s worldview
  • Daring nature of Kollwitz’s work continually inspires