Karl Rossing

Karl Rossing's original wood engraving, "Einwandfreie Prozessfuhrung", is an early representation of the dangers of the rise to power of Adolf Hitler (born, 1889, died, 1945). A fine twentieth century painter, printmaker and illustrator, Karl Rossing was at the vanguard of that praiseworthy group of concerned artists who recognized the dangerously shifting political and social developments of their country and had the courage to depict it. In the late 1920’s a growing unease permeated Germany, leading to an eventual militarist and authoritarian takeover for which the ‘civilized’ world is still paying a heavy debt. Karl Rossing was one of the first artists to criticize Hitler and his followers.

"Einwandfreie Prozessfuhrung" ('Proceedings and Conduct Free from Objection', or, 'Faultless Litigation') is an important case in point. Here we are given an early portrayal of Adolf Hitler shortly before he came to power. His atrocities, however, were already known to any open-eyed observer, and, "Mein Kampf", written by Hitler and published several years before this woodcut, clearly spelt out its author’s intentions. Rossing thus depicts Hitler as a lecherous tyrant disrobing a woman whose closed eyes and posture bear strong affinities to the symbol of justice. The cross on the stand is a vivid reminder of the church’s support for this man. In short (even at this early date) Rossing saw what most of Germany chose to ignore.