Aus Trümmern erhebt sich der Mensch 1942

Karl Wiener made this stark drawing entitled Aus Trümmern erhebt sich der Mensch with pencil on paper. I love the simple monochromatic palette that places emphasis on the sharp jagged lines of the rubble and the figure which emerges on top of it. I can imagine Wiener sitting in the rubble himself, breathing in the dust, slowly building up these angular forms. It reminds me of when I’m in the studio, building up layers of paint, adding and taking away, and gradually seeing forms and shapes emerge through my labour. What I love about the work is the way it embraces process as a method for conveying uncertainty and ambiguity. How does the process of rebuilding begin? How do we emerge out of the rubble? I can imagine Wiener asking himself these questions as he drew, in this case quite literally, one line at a time.