The artwork titled “Dr. O. Kohnstamm” is a lithograph created by the artist Ernst Ludwig Kirchner in 1915. As a representative piece of the Expressionist movement, this portrait embodies the stylistic elements of distorting reality for emotional effect and providing a subjective perspective.
In the image, we observe a portrait executed with strong black-and-white contrasts, reflecting the lithographic medium’s characteristic boldness. The figure depicted appears to be a man with prominent facial features that are heavily stylized and abstracted. The shadows and shapes are rendered with sharp, angular lines, contributing to a sense of emotional intensity and psychological depth often sought in Expressionist art. The composition seems to intentionally forgo realistic representation, instead opting to capture the essence or underlying emotional state of Dr. Kohnstamm. The overall effect is striking, making a powerful statement through its simplicity and rawness of expression.