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Last Day

A work made of watercolor, with touches of gouache, over graphite, selectively gum(?) varnished, on ivory wove paper.

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  • A work made of watercolor, with touches of gouache, over graphite, selectively gum(?) varnished, on ivory wove paper.

Date:

1934

Artist:

George Grosz
American, born Germany, 1893-1959

About this artwork

Grosz left Germany only eighteen days before Hitler seized power in January 1933. Because of his relentless political satire and criticism of the state, he would undoubtedly have been the target of persecution and execution by the new Nazi regime. Between 1933, when he arrived in New York, and 1936, he worked on a series of watercolors representing his first impressions of the me­tropolis. The Last Day does seem to be based on the Manhattan skyline, but Grosz’s treahnent of it is more a fore­shadowing of his apocalyptic paintings of the late 1930s. Grosz mounted an exhibition of his watercolors at Alfred Stieglitz’s An American Place gallery in 1934-35.

Status

Currently Off View

Department

Prints and Drawings

Artist

George Grosz

Title

Last Day

Place

United States (Artist's nationality:)

Date  Dates are not always precisely known, but the Art Institute strives to present this information as consistently and legibly as possible. Dates may be represented as a range that spans decades, centuries, dynasties, or periods and may include qualifiers such as c. (circa) or BCE.

1934

Medium

Watercolor, with touches of gouache, over graphite, selectively gum(?) varnished, on ivory wove paper

Dimensions

70 × 52.5 cm (27 9/16 × 20 11/16 in.)

Credit Line

Gift of Mrs. Thomas Hart (Ruth Page) Fisher

Reference Number

1970.118

Extended information about this artwork

Object information is a work in progress and may be updated as new research findings emerge. To help improve this record, please email . Information about image downloads and licensing is available here.

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