7 PUBLIC LECTURES March 22, 2016 “Käthe Kollwitz and the Polarity of Beauty: Nietzsche or ‘The Silesian Angel’?” Joseph McVeigh, Professor of German Studies, Smith College April 12, 2016 “Finding the Krieg Cycle: Käthe Kollwitz, World War I, and the Creation of an Iconic Print Series” Claire Whitner, Associate Curator, Davis Museum, Wellesley College PROGRAM DETAILS FACULTY PREVIEW: Five College faculty representing a range of disciplines joined the museum staff in the spring of 2015 to hear plans for Mother’s Arms: Käthe Kollwitz’s Women and War and to share ideas for interpretive programming and class participation. The enthusiasm and interest of faculty led to several collaborations highlighted by gallery talks, lectures and a new partnership between SCMA and the DEFA Film Library at UMass Amherst. FILM SERIES: SCMA joined together with the DEFA Film Library at UMass Amherst to present three (East) German feature films related to the life and time of Käthe Kollwitz. DEFA (Deutsche Film-Aktiengesellschaft) was the state film production company of the former GDR (German Demo- cratic Republic). The DEFA Film Library is the only archive and research center outside of Germany devoted to a broad spectrum of filmmaking from and related to the GDR. “The Lost Angel,” GDR, 1966/71, was introduced by Professor Darcy Buerkle, Department of History, SCMA. The film follows German artist Ernst Barlach on the day in 1937 when the Nazis seized his famous sculpture The Hovering Angel–which bears the features of Käthe Kollwitz–out of the Gustrow Cathedral. “Käthe Kollwitz: Images of a Life,” GDR, 1987, was introduced by Barton Byg, Founding Director, DEFA Film Library and Professor German & Scandinavian Studies, UMass Amherst. The film pieces parts of Kollwitz’s letters and diaries together in a mosaic-like self-portrait in the aftermath of the death of her youngest son Peter in World War I. “Kuhle Wampe, or Who Owns The World?” GDR, 1932, was introduced by Dr. Skyler Arndt-Briggs, Executive Director, DEFA Film Library at UMass Amherst. In this avant–garde masterpeice, filmmaker Slatan Dudo, and co-screenwriter Bertolt Brecht tell the story of the struggles of a working- class family living in Berlin in the early 1930s. Kollwitz lived and worked in a low-income neighborhood in Berlin until her home was destroyed by bombing in World War II. GALLERY TALKS: Smith Art faculty members Barry Moser and Katy Schneider each gave a noontime talk and shared their personal experience with Kollwitz’s work and her influ- ence on their art. Henriette Kets de Vries presented a gallery talk that described her contextual approach to organizing the exhibition, and highlights of Kollwitz’s work. Hildegard Bachert, Kollwitz scholar and co-director of Galerie St. Etienne, NYC visited SCMA during Reunion weekend to speak about Kollwitz’s life and importance as an artist. PUBLIC LECTURES: Professor Joseph McVeigh examined Kollwitz through the lens of German high-culture in his lecture, “Käthe Kollwitz and the Polarity of Beauty: Nietzsche or ‘The Silesian Angel’?” He situated the artist within the influence of 17th century mystic Angelus Silesius (The Silesian Angel) and 19th century philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche. Claire Whitner, Associate Curator, Davis Museum, Wellesley College and editor of the catalogue, “Käthe Kollwitz and the Women of War,” focused her lecture on “Finding the Krieg Cycle: Käthe Kollwitz, World War I, and the Creation of an Iconic Print Series.” Kollwitz’s groundbreaking print series, Krieg (War) was published nine years after her son was killed on a WWI battlefield in 1914. Whitner provided analysis of the artist’s process of creation and mourning. ABOVE: Barry Moser leads a public gallery talk