John Heartfield

Born as Helmut Herzfeld, the artist John Heartfield created some of the most memorable propaganda images of the twentieth century. Next to his graphic work for the KPD (German Communist Party) he produced over two hundred political montages with which he exposed the evils of the Nazi regime that had taken over his homeland. His life and work were rooted in a profound and simple belief in the nobility of the working class -- in their hopes and aspirations. As a KPD member his artistic work was dedicated to inform and educate them, to try to make them wise to the evils of national and international fascism, of military aggression, and of capitalism wherever he saw it promoted. His work covered the widest possible spectrum. In addition to political caricatures, he designed hundreds of books and book jackets, pamphlets, newspapers, stage sets and projections. He gave lectures and mounted exhibitions. He even tried his hand at film making. It was a career that continued during his exile in England throughout Second World War and afterwards. His life was a political montage, made up of many different roles and enthusiasms.
In a long overdue retrospective, art historian Anthony Coles contextualises Heartfields revolutionary Political Life from his Art.