Simplicissimus
May 8, 2008 12:16 AM   Subscribe

 
You know who else read Simplicissimus...
posted by Null Pointer and the Exceptions at 12:20 AM on May 8, 2008


Simplysissymus(t)lovereddogs
posted by deric at 2:24 AM on May 8, 2008


This is good. It is very enlightening to look at Simpli's early WWII issues -- Churchill is a target for satire ("Poland, Finland, Noraway" = old puppets, England, the next marionette, in both German and Italian). By examining the full (more or less) run of this magazine, we can see the limitations of liberal satire. Never does Simpli really engage the basic structure of Germany; it only satirizes certain obvious features of German society.
(BTW, didn't Kley have some drawings in this mag? Not one of the links mentions him.)
posted by CCBC at 3:20 AM on May 8, 2008


Kley definitely did contribute some amazing drawings to Simplicissimus.

When Simpl was at its best, it was an excellent magazine. The drawings, Olaf Gulbransson's in particular, are fantastic. He was a master of ligne claire long before Hergé. Anyone who is interested in graphic design should take a look. And the social satire of the magazine was very sharp. They criticized German militarism, the church, the lack of civil rights, and prejudices and stupidity in all social classes - the snobs, the unemployed, the countryside people and their favourite target, the Prussian officers.

But the full story about the magazine also needs to be told and it is not so beautiful. When the first world war broke out they did a 180 degree turn and became fiercely nationalistic. A few years earlier they could show English and German politicians frightening their audiences with tales about the other country's aggressiveness while picking their pockets. In 1914 the war was all England's fault. Their front page illustrations could still be spectacular, such as year 22 (1917-18), issue 12 - take a look at it.

And it got worse. In the 1920s and early 30s they criticized the rise of nazism. When Hitler came into power 1933 they did another 180 degree turn and became a nazi magazine (after having the magazine's office smashed at night by SA troops). Th. Th. Heine, the founder and spirit of Simplicissimus, was a Jew, and he was kicked out by his former friends and colleagues. Gulbransson, who had ridiculed Hitler, went on to praise him.

If you want to search for Kley or other artists the link "Verzeichnis der Beiträge und Beiträger" goes to a pdf list of all the contributors with issue and page numbers. If you want to search for Hitler or other subjects, use the link "Verzeichnis der erwähnten Personen und Werke".
posted by Termite at 5:02 AM on May 8, 2008 [1 favorite]


Wow. Just briefly dipping into two random issues from 1910 and the last one in 1944 is amazing.
Thank you.
posted by jouke at 5:05 AM on May 8, 2008


Year 22 (1917-18), issue 12 - here's a link.

Here are German and English politicians picking the pockets of their respective audiences while scaring them with stories of the other country's aggressiveness.

Here's a front page Hitler satire.

A few pages into this issue you will find a Kley drawing of nude women skating with crocodiles.

... and so on. Pick any issue, any year and you will find some interesting artwork.
posted by Termite at 5:19 AM on May 8, 2008


This is why we love the internet. Many thanks.
posted by IndigoJones at 5:33 AM on May 8, 2008


Fantastic. Thanks.
posted by chinston at 5:35 AM on May 8, 2008


Vielen Dank!
posted by ubersturm at 6:45 AM on May 8, 2008


PT: Pick any issue, any year and you will find some interesting artwork.
Exactly.
I also found the advertisements very intriguing: we like to think that our modern culture is overly focused on beauty ideals that are not attainable for people. That people feel there's something wrong with them as a result. That it didn't use to be this way.
Just browsing through the advertisements of a 1910 issue I was struck by the number of advertised products claiming to improve a womans flat chest, to straighten a crooked nose etc. Plus ça change...
posted by jouke at 8:17 AM on May 8, 2008


Thank you so much. I've been looking for something like this ever since I read Franz Schoenberner's Confessions of a European Intellectual (Time review here). Schoenberner was an editor of Simplicissimus, and complained how histories of the magazine did not include the anti-Nazi artwork. Now I can look at it whenever I want. This is truly a monument of the twentieth century.
posted by No Robots at 8:31 AM on May 8, 2008


What a great find. Good post, thanks!
posted by sveskemus at 11:22 AM on May 8, 2008


Awesome, thank you.
posted by jokeefe at 11:51 AM on May 8, 2008


These are truly incredible (and have consumed much of my day). Thank you, Taksi Putra.
posted by dyoneo at 12:29 PM on May 8, 2008


Ein toller Post!
posted by Kinbote at 2:02 PM on May 8, 2008


Great find -- thanks!
posted by scody at 5:56 PM on May 8, 2008


Thanks for the search/index info, Termite.
posted by CCBC at 1:30 PM on May 9, 2008


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