I designed this piece as a break from Revision for my history of German music (as well as some other aspects of German culture) exam. The Portrait is of Wilhelm Furtwängler as an older man. It is the first portrait I have attempted to do. I purposefully depicted him in the colours of the German flag.
Some brief background:
Furtwängler was unhappy enough to remain in Germany during the Nazi occupation.
Furtwängler tried to resist the regime and protect the tradition of German music. He wrote open letters of complaint to Goebbels over the treatment of Jewish performers. He never joined the Nazi party and always maintained that there was no such thing as degenerate music.
After the war, Furtwängler was branded as a Nazi. This accusation that was later revoked, but Furtwängler suffered greatly for it.
I, personally, believe that Furtwängler did all in his power (considering the pressures of such a regime) to avoid Nazi elements and whilst supporting German music. The Nazis under their regime returned the German flag to the imperial colours red, white and black because I see Furtwängler as not part of their regime I portrayed him in the colours of the Weimar and modern day German flag.
framed (it needs a good pressing!)
Closer up (strange marks are caused by the reflections on the glass)
I hope the piece is of interest.
I understand the Nazis and their actions are a serious subject and are surrounded by understandably strong views. So I hope I have not offended anyone.
