Ludwig Hohlwein

Ludwig Hohlwein was born in Germany in 1874. He was educated as an architect and practiced until 1906 when he started in a new direction as a poster designer. He quickly established himself as one of the most important graphic illustrators working in Germany.

The thousands of posters left behind by this German master of color and line leave no doubt that Hohlwein is the greatest poster artist of early twentieth century Germany. Influenced more by the Arts and Crafts movement flourishing in Vienna than the proliferation of the art in France and Belgium , he was also an admirer of the Beggarstaffs and Mackintosh.

Hohlwein's high tonal contrasts and a network of interlocking shapes made his work instantly recognizable. Hohlwein was employed by the German government during the First World War to produce propaganda posters. He did the same as World War Two was beginning.

The concept of a pure Germanic race was the basis of Nazi. Here, an advertisement for a calendar promotes the Neues Volk, or New People, published by the Racial Policy Office of the Nazi party. Designer Ludwig Hohlwein portrays a "model" Aryan family that illustrates this group's principal characteristics: blond hair, fair complexion, chiseled features. The figures' hierarchy reflects each person's role within the family and in Nazi society. The male is in the dominant position, standing protectively over the group. The female figure carries a child identifying her as a mother. Indeed, the roles of women of pure Aryan blood were strictly defined as tied to the home and family. Aryan women were to be mothers and primarily responsible for increasing the German population, an activity the Nazis saw as "appropriate to their nature". The state used numerous measures to encourage large Aryan families, including closing birth control centers, providing tax credits for children, and outlawing abortion.

I do not respect or propagate the values of Racists or Nazis. I do feel however that Art and propaganda are part of history and should be dealt within a spirit of cultural & historical education in mind. Throughout history art has been a window into its respective culture. The art esthetic of Nazi Germany was neo-classical . Not the first time a Western power with colonial ambitions represented itself in those Greco-Roman terms.