Wilhelm Lehmbruck
(born Jan. 4, 1881, Meiderich, Ger. — died March 25, 1919, Berlin) German sculptor, painter, and printmaker. His youthful work was academically realistic, but he grew to admire the works of
Auguste Rodin, and in 1910 he moved to Paris, where he produced paintings and lithographs as well as sculptures. He became one of the most important German
Expressionist sculptors, best known for his elongated nudes, such as
Kneeling Woman (1911), which suggests a resigned pessimism. He returned to Germany at the outbreak of World War I and tended wounded soldiers in a hospital.
Seated Youth (1917) reveals his profound depression; he committed suicide two years later.
For more information on Wilhelm Lehmbruck, visit Britannica.com.
Britannica Concise Encyclopedia. © 1994-2012 Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. All rights reserved.