Kathe Kollwitz was a Prussian born German artist who depicted the stories of those in need through painting, printmaking, and sculpture. Concentrating on marginalized groups such as women and the working class, her expressionistic portraits proved controversial in a male-dominated art sphere. Her empathy, combined with the quality of the work made her one of the 20th century’s most significant artists of social protest. She concentrated on printmaking because of her desire to make her work accessible to more people.
In 1919 the Prussian Academy awarded her the first female professorship in their history. The Nazi government forced her to resign that position in 1933, along with forbidding her to exhibit her art.
