Macbeth III

T. C. & E. C. Jack|Wilhelm Lehmbruck|William Shakespeare

1918 · Drypoint; only state · Drawings and Prints

Known best as a sculptor, Lehmbruck also made etchings and drypoints in his last decade. This example belongs to a series he devoted to Lady Macbeth, a fearsome figure in Shakespeare's play who encourages her husband to murder King Duncan as a means to the throne, and is herself eventually consumed by guilt. Here, she wears a crown, clutches a dagger and is surrounded by corpses and wraiths, including a young mother who holds a child up like a totem. Lembruck was traumatized by his service in an army hospital during the First World War and created this print a year before committing suicide.

Artist

T. C. & E. C. Jack|Wilhelm Lehmbruck|William Shakespeare

Date

1918

Medium

Drypoint; only state

Department

Drawings and Prints

Credit line

Gift of Bruno and Sadie Adriani, 1956