LACMA

ShopMembershipMyLACMATickets
LACMA
Los Angeles County Museum of Art
5905 Wilshire Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA 90036
info@lacma.org
(323) 857-6000
Sign up to receive emails
Subscribe
© Museum Associates 2026
  • About LACMA
  • Jobs
  • Building LACMA
  • Host An Event
  • Unframed
  • Press
  • FAQs
  • Log in to MyLACMA
  • Privacy Policy
© Museum Associates 2026
Collections

Ernst Barlach
The head1919

Not on view
Woodcut-style print title page with blackletter text and central illustration of a heavyset, bearded man leaning over an open book, Berlin, 1919
Woodcut print in black and white of a standing figure wearing a wide-brimmed hat and heavy cloak, rendered with bold, angular cuts and strong contrasts.
Woodcut print in black and white depicting four figures; in the foreground, a heavily draped figure crawls on hands and knees, while a hunched figure sits at right wrapped in bulky cloth; two standing figures appear in the background, one holding a staff; bold, expressive lines with dense hatching throughout.
Woodcut print in black and white; two bearded figures in heavy robes stand on a raised platform before a dense crowd, with a city skyline in the background; bold, angular lines and high contrast characterize the expressionist style.
Woodcut print in black and white; a large cloaked figure with a grimacing face dominates the upper center, rendered with bold diagonal gouge marks, while a crowd of smaller figures press and struggle at the base in dense, expressive linework.
Black and white linocut or woodcut print of three figures in draped clothing and head coverings; one stands upright at left, one crouches low at center, and one leans forward at right with raised arm, rendered with bold gestural lines against a hatched ground.
Woodcut print in black and white; a figure wrapped tightly in a heavy blanket sits on the ground in the foreground, with sandaled feet visible beneath; bold carved lines define folds of fabric; a crowd of standing figures rendered in loose, sketchy strokes fills the background.
Woodcut print in black and white depicting two nude figures intertwined; one raises an arm holding a snake while both crouch low, rendered with bold parallel gouged lines creating dense hatched texture throughout.
Woodblock print in black and white depicting a seated figure bundled in heavy layered clothing and a head wrap, leaning forward with hands clasped around a thin object, rendered with bold carved lines and hatched textures.
Woodcut print in black and white depicting three figures huddled together on the ground, wrapped in flowing robes, with a fourth figure looming above and a raised arm holding an object visible at the top center; bold carved lines and heavy contrast throughout.

Ernst Barlach, Untitled, 1919, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, The Robert Gore Rifkind Center for German Expressionist Studies, purchased with funds provided by Anna Bing Arnold, Museum Associates Acquisition Fund, and deaccession funds, photo © Museum Associates/LACMA

Artist or Maker
Ernst Barlach
Title
The head
Place Made
Germany
Date Made
1919
Medium
Ten woodcuts on Japan paper
Dimensions
See individual entries
Credit Line
The Robert Gore Rifkind Center for German Expressionist Studies, purchased with funds provided by Anna Bing Arnold, Museum Associates Acquisition Fund, and deaccession funds
Accession Number
83.1.6.2a-j
Classification
Prints
Collecting Area
Robert Gore Rifkind Center for German Expressionist Studies
Selected Bibliography
  • Schult, Friedrich. Ernst Barlach, das graphische Werk. Hrsg. mit Unterstützung der Deutschen Akademie der Künste zu Berlin. Series: His Ernest Barlach Werkverzeichnis, Bd. 2. Hamburg: E. Hauswedell, 1958.

Related Unframed

Related Unframed

50 Works 50 Weeks: The Hope Athena
50 Works 50 Weeks: The Hope Athena
  • September 30, 2025
  • Alexander Schneider
“The texture of technology”: Q&A with Artist April Greiman
“The texture of technology”: Q&A with Artist April Greiman
  • April 25, 2025
  • Britt Salvesen, Staci Steinberger
Colorful Connections: Public Programs for We Live in Painting
Colorful Connections: Public Programs for We Live in Painting
  • January 13, 2025
  • Amal Beatriz Pizarro
A Custom-Built Glass Façade for the David Geffen Galleries
A Custom-Built Glass Façade for the David Geffen Galleries
  • April 8, 2024
  • Editors
Evaluating the Authenticity of Ancient Artworks
Evaluating the Authenticity of Ancient Artworks
  • February 7, 2024
  • Astrid Molina
Classic Maya Figural Vessels
Classic Maya Figural Vessels
  • October 18, 2022
  • Karen Carrillo
DA² 2022: Recent Decorative Arts and Design Acquisitions
DA² 2022: Recent Decorative Arts and Design Acquisitions
  • September 20, 2022
  • Wendy Kaplan, Rosie Mills, Staci Steinberger, Bobbye Tigerman
Holiday Gift Ideas from the LACMA Store!
Holiday Gift Ideas from the LACMA Store!
  • November 20, 2020
Make Art @ Home—Exquisite Corpse Game
Make Art @ Home—Exquisite Corpse Game
  • November 12, 2020
  • Pattie Esquivel
A Visual Dive into Buddha for Beginners
A Visual Dive into Buddha for Beginners
  • August 11, 2020
  • Trang Spero
LACMA X Open-Editions—Partnership to Create Masks and Bandanas
LACMA X Open-Editions—Partnership to Create Masks and Bandanas
  • June 12, 2020
A Fijian Drua Docks in Los Angeles
A Fijian Drua Docks in Los Angeles
  • April 16, 2020
  • Erica Wrightson
This Weekend at LACMA
This Weekend at LACMA
  • December 13, 2019
  • Victor Guzman
Live Learn LACMA
Live Learn LACMA
  • November 18, 2019
  • Naima Keith
New Acquisition: Luchita Hurtado's "Untitled"
New Acquisition: Luchita Hurtado's "Untitled"
  • April 15, 2019
  • Jennifer King
Acquisitions from the 33rd Collectors Committee Weekend
Acquisitions from the 33rd Collectors Committee Weekend
  • April 15, 2019
  • Madeleine Heppermann
Now on View in the Korean Art Gallery
Now on View in the Korean Art Gallery
  • August 28, 2018
  • Christina Lee
Time and Again: The Intersection of Past and Present in Iranian Art
Time and Again: The Intersection of Past and Present in Iranian Art
  • May 2, 2018
  • Linda Komaroff
A Tremendous Storm: Understanding a Silhouette Sculpture from Kaminaljuyu
A Tremendous Storm: Understanding a Silhouette Sculpture from Kaminaljuyu
  • September 26, 2017
  • Lucia Henderson
Behind the Scenes with Paintings Conservation
Behind the Scenes with Paintings Conservation
  • December 15, 2016
  • Chi-Young Kim
Guillermo del Toro as Alchemist: An Interview with Keith McDonald and Roger Clark
Guillermo del Toro as Alchemist: An Interview with Keith McDonald and Roger Clark
  • November 10, 2016
  • Nicholas Barlow
Chocolate, Food of the Gods, in Maya Art
Chocolate, Food of the Gods, in Maya Art
  • October 27, 2016
  • Megan E. O’Neil
The Former Life of a Spanish Dalmatic
The Former Life of a Spanish Dalmatic
  • October 17, 2016
  • Ellen Dooley
Have a Question? Ask a Curator!
Have a Question? Ask a Curator!
  • September 13, 2016
  • Lucy Redoglia