Final answer:
The artwork created by Käthe Kollwitz in 1920 titled 'Memorial Sheet for Karl Liebknecht' is a tribute to the assassinated Communist leader, Karl Liebknecht. Kollwitz's woodcut focuses on the mourning workers over the ideological figure, emphasizing the human suffering associated with war and oppression through her Expressionistic style.
Step-by-step explanation:
The artwork created by Käthe Kollwitz in response to the assassination of Communist leader Karl Liebknecht is called Memorial Sheet for Karl Liebknecht (Gedenkblatt für Karl Liebknecht). Completed in the year 1919-1920, it represents a powerful form of political and social commentary through the medium of woodcut, a technique that Kollwitz only employed for a few years after World War I. This particular work is noted for its ability to convey an emotional response to the event, focusing on the collective mourning of the workers who believed in Liebknecht, rather than on Liebknecht's political ideology itself.
Kollwitz was renowned for her evocative and deeply compassionate work, often centring around the suffering of working-class people, especially during times of war and social struggle. The Weavers cycle is another well-known work by Kollwitz that offers insight into the lives and tribulations of oppressed workers. Her works frequently depict the suffering caused by war, highlighting the tragedies experienced by women and children. Kollwitz's sheer dedication to portraying human emotion makes her pieces a significant part of art history, particularly within the context of the Weimar Republic and the Expressionist movement. She engaged with Expressionistic qualities in her artwork, but she was not formally part of the German Expressionists.
Moreover, Kollwitz's Memorial Sheet of Karl Liebknecht draws from the Christian iconography of lamentation while reframing it within a contemporary socio-political context. The woodcut accentuates the raw emotions of the time through its stark contrasts and simplified forms, thus making it an enduring piece of political art that transcends its immediate historical context.