In 1938, Oskar Kokoschka (1886–1980) emigrated to England, where he stayed until the end of World War II. During this time, the artist was highly politically active and created not only boldly designed graphic works, intended as humanitarian appeals, but also a series of allegorical paintings, such as the 1942 painting
Annexation – Alice in Wonderland. Referencing the three monkeys, who refuse to hear, speak or see, the artist depicted England’s foreign minister Neville Chamberlain (1869–1940) with a helmet and moustache, as well as a soldier from the Third Reich and a bishop. As personifications of the three major powers – England, Nazi Germany and France – as well as the three classes – civil society, military and the clergy – the three men symbolize the key elements responsible for Europe’s demise. To the right behind the barbed wire we see the naked Alice, named after the protagonist in Lewis Carroll’s (1832–1898) novel
Alice in Wonderland. Embodying both “truth” and “Austria”, Alice averts her gaze, with Vienna burning behind her. The work represents Kokoschka’s criticism of the approach of appeasement adopted by the Allied Forces towards Adolf Hitler’s invasion policy, and visualizes the artist’s desperate cry of protest.
AS, 2021
