JOACHIM KARSCH (1897–1945) Vernichtendes Urteil [Damning Judgment]

signed and dated ‘Karsch 1931’ (lower left) charcoal and pencil on paper 29.5 × 14 cm. Executed in 1931 A German sculptor and graphic artist associated with Post-Expressionism. He was born in Breslau, he studied at the School of Applied Arts in Breslau (1911–1914) and later in Berlin, later developing his own style primarily as a sculptor.Karsch worked in a factory for two years and destroyed most of his previous work in 1924. In 1932 he won a bronze medal at the Los Angeles Olympic art competitions for his drawing Stabwechsel (Baton Exchange). After 1937 several of his works were removed from museums, and his Berlin studio was destroyed during the Second World War. In 1945, following the occupation of his residence in Groß Gandern by Soviet forces, he and his wife committed suicide to avoid deportation