Mother and Child 1919

Curator: This is Heinrich Nauen's "Mother and Child," a pencil drawing rendered in 1919. Editor: My initial impression is of intense emotion, though somewhat unsettling. The angularity of the mother's face and the infant's stark stare…it creates a rather complicated feeling. Curator: Nauen was, of course, a key figure in German Expressionism. This work, particularly through its distortion of form, echoes the movement's broader focus on subjective experience in the turbulent post-war years. Editor: Precisely. The mother's downcast eyes and elongated features can be seen as symbolic of the anxieties pervasive during the period after the First World War. The child's almost disturbingly large eyes draw the viewer into a primal confrontation with innocence or perhaps lost innocence. It’s a poignant visual paradox. Curator: The prevalence of portraits during this period speaks volumes about the societal preoccupation with identity and belonging, especially among women during those inter-war years. This image resonates with its cultural memory. Editor: Agreed. Motherhood as an archetype carries significant weight. The pencil strokes almost act like the scratches of lived experience. The way Nauen contrasts the smoothness of the baby’s skin with the sharply defined features of the mother conveys the sacrifice of womanhood to me. Curator: Also consider Nauen's social standing in the art world during that time. He and others faced enormous pushback from right-wing groups. So perhaps there's commentary on traditional family structure being critiqued at play. Editor: Ultimately, Nauen captures not just a mother and child, but a deeper, complex emotional narrative embedded within their very forms. A universal idea tinged by an uncertain moment. Curator: It encourages viewers to reconsider established conventions while revealing raw truths about our human experiences. Editor: Exactly, through stark angles, we meet truths of an unsettling intimacy.