The Married Couple 1920

Editor: This is Heinrich Hoerle’s "The Married Couple." The stark lines and somewhat grotesque features are striking. What's your take on how Hoerle uses materials and processes to convey a message? Curator: The work seems focused on the means of production, doesn't it? The stark lines emphasize the act of drawing itself, the labor involved. Do you notice how the couple's hands, almost deformed, grasp a phallic object? Editor: I do see it, yes. It seems to me that it highlights the transactional aspect of marriage, a commentary on labor and perhaps consumption within the societal construct of marriage. Curator: Precisely. Hoerle, through his material choices and stark depiction, seems to question the very foundations and commodification of relationships. Editor: It’s amazing how a simple drawing can unpack so much about material conditions and societal structures. Curator: Indeed, it really makes you think about what marriage, even love, meant in the Weimar Republic.