New Objectivity - 914

Narrator (f):

The 1920s were characterized by the rise, emancipation, and self-empowerment of women. Obtaining political rights, such as the right to vote in 1918, access to academies and universities, and increased participation in the professional world of men led to a reinterpretation of the image and role of women.

Narrator (m):

One can observe women becoming more masculine: cigarette, short hair, and sometimes also suit and tie following the model of trend-setting film stars such as Marlene Dietrich were the external signs of this change. At the same time, simplicity, functionality, and pragmatism were en vogue in clothing. In addition to fashions and hairstyles, the crucial accessory was the cigarette, which in the 1920s became the indispensable prop of emancipation: a signal of worldliness, which often went hand in hand with a tinge of disreputability.

Narrator (f):

Portrait of an Unknown Woman with a Cigarette by the Dresden painter, draftsman, and graphic artist Carl Walther of 1926 exemplifies ideally this new type of the emancipated woman. Self-confidently she looks back at us, critically assessing us. Her searching gaze causes the relationships to vacillate: Who is observing whom? Her hands are strikingly integrated into the play of her pose. Her left hand is resting outstretched on her knee before her, lending the portrait an authoritative related expression. By contrast, her right hand clenched in a fist at the height of her head conveys a concentrated, meditative impression. At its tips, she is holding a burning cigarette with which she draws a sign in the air with smoke. The smoke seems to gather at the upper edge of the frame as if it wanted to expand and were demanding more space.