- Kämpft für Amnestie
Sheet: 11 5/16 × 8 5/16 in. (28.7 × 21.1 cm)
Mount: 12 3/16 × 9 1/8 in. (31 × 23.1 cm)
Explore Further
Sàndor
Èk was a Hungarian graphic artist and committed communist who became known for
contributing antifascist designs to radical leftist German publications. Living
in Berlin between 1925 and 1933, Èk created political posters and magazine
covers for newspapers such as Die Rote
Fahne [The Red Flag], the official organ of the Communist Party of Germany.
This photomontage, a rare original design, calls to mind the avant-garde
anti-Nazi propaganda produced by Èk’s friend John Heartfield, who was a fellow
illustrator at the Arbeiter-Illustrierte-Zeitung
[Workers’ Illustrated Magazine]. Superimposing an image of workers marching
toward the camera over a clockface about to strike midnight, Èk suggests the
urgency of the struggle for amnesty referenced by the German text.
The
“AX” at the upper right-hand corner was the signature Èk used, designating his
adopted German name of Alex Keil.
Provenance Research Ongoing Exhibition HistoryExhibited, Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, Lower Brown Corridor, "Hungarian Avant-Garde Photographers from the Manfred Heiting Collection", March 1, 2004-May 23, 2004
Inscriptions, Signatures and Marks
Inscribed in pencil, recto of mount, lower left below image: Leite 1 Tribunal
Inscribed in pencil, verso of mount, upper left: A.K. 1-10.
Inscribed in black ink, verso of mount, center: [Inscription in Hungarian? Possibly: Opu nsubu // byzeus]
Inscribed in pencil, verso of mount, lower center: U 202
Cataloguing data may change with further research.
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