Forty-four pencil drawings on the backsides of a shop order book are all that remain of the life of Wilhelm Werner. The detailed sketches, like scenes from a puppet show, are believed to be the only works of art by one of the 400,000 people who suffered forced sterilisation under the Nazis’ programme to eliminate “undesirables”. Photograph: Prinzhorn galleryThat Werner’s works survived, he believes, is nothing short of a miracle. The works of Werner have a particular poignancy, he says, viewed in the context of the many pieces of art by institutionalised artists that are often destroyed. On the inside of the book cover, Werner refers to himself as an “orator of the people” and a “theatre director”.

Source: The Guardian January 06, 2020 04:52 UTC