Himmelfahrt 1942

Karl Wiener made this work, 'Himmelfahrt', in 1942. In this piece, we see a pair of legs and feet pointing upwards into a blue sky dotted with puffy white clouds. The title, 'Himmelfahrt', translates to 'Ascension' in English, a word with strong religious connotations, specifically the ascension of Jesus Christ into heaven. But the cartoonish style and the disembodied nature of the legs introduce an element of the absurd. Wiener made this artwork during the Nazi regime. His style is classified as degenerate by the Nazi party. Was he commenting on the socio-political context? Was he referencing the propaganda machine? How does the title relate to the image? Does it suggest a satirical commentary on the promises of the Nazi ideology? Unlocking these meanings requires an understanding of the historical context, for example, researching Nazi policies on art and religion, and the artist's biography. In this way, we can approach a richer understanding of the artwork.