Hans Baluschek was a
German artist and writer, born in Breslau in 1870.
Baluschek sought to
portray the life of the common people, especially Berlin’s working
class. He belonged to the Berlin Secession movement. But during his
lifetime he was most widely known for his illustrations of the
children's book Little Peter's Journey to the Moon.
There is not much
avant-garde about his style, very realistic. He was the contemporary
of Grosz and Dix but lacks their harsh tones. On the contrary, there
is tenderness and compassion in the way he depicts the women and men
of Berlin, queuing at the Employment Office or going to their jobs,
early in the morning, the sun not risen yet. But what I like the most
are his pictures of the big city, not the posh avenues or the famous
monuments but the suburban landscape, with railways and grim looking
factories.
Baluschek was an
active member of the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD) and as
such he became an advisor to Mayor Gustav Böss, playing a leading
role in the foundation of the Welfare Bureau for Berlin Artists.
He died in 1935 in
Berlin, under the Nazi regime he so much hated.
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| From "Little Peter's trip to the moon" |
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| Hans Baluschek, 1930 |
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| 1925 |
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