23 1/2x33 inches, 59 3/4x83 3/4 cm. Friedrichdruck, Breslau. Condition B+: repaired tears, creases and abrasions at edges and along vertical and horizontal folds; minor loss at top edge; pin holes in corners; colors attenuated. Mounted on Japan, tipped to mount. Framed.
Molzahn was a painter, printmaker, graphic designer, theorist and teacher. Although he was never officially a member of the Bauhaus, his work did appear in the group's third portfolio. In 1928, his seminal essay, "Stop Reading, Look!" hailed photography as the powerful new universal medium that would become a liberating means of communication. In 1929, he designed this and one other poster for an architectural and design exhibition in Breslau, Dwelling and Workplace. It is a tour-de-force of photomontage, typography and composition, in which all the elements of design and construction are represented. In 1938, Molzahn left Germany for America (seven of his artworks had been put on display in 1937 at the German Degenerate Art Exhibition). He taught at Moholy-Nagy's School of Design in Chicago from 1943-1947 and returned to live in Germany in 1959. Rademacher p. 240, Modern Poster 106, Modernism 127, Kunst 320, Berman / Juan March p. 130, MoMA 346.1937.
