Helft dem Krüppel (Help the Cripples)

1920

Heinrich Hoerle

Associated Names
Heinrich Hoerle
Artist, German, 1895 - 1936
The image shows swirling lines and curves forming an abstract shape. The dark lines contrast with the lighter background, creating a cloak-like effect around the central figure. At the top is the text "Helft dem Krüppel" in an arched position. The shape resembles a crouching figure with exaggerated features, including feet and branches.

Media Options

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Artwork overview

  • Medium

    lithograph on pale brown paper

  • Credit Line

    Gift of the Collectors Committee

  • Dimensions

    sheet: 58.8 x 46 cm (23 1/8 x 18 1/8 in.)

  • Accession Number

    2006.24.1

  • Series Title

    Krüppel (Cripples)

Associated Artworks

See all 12 artworks
This is a drawing featuring a list of titles in German under the heading "KRÜPPEL." The list includes items such as "HEHLFT DEM KRÜPPEL," "DAS EHEPAAR," and "DER VATER." The text is printed in a simple, sans-serif font, and below the list are details about the publication, indicating it was published in 1920 in Cologne.

Krüppel (Cripples)

Heinrich Hoerle
1920
The image depicts two stylized figures from the waist up, embracing each other. One figure has a topknot or bun hairstyle with curly details, an elongated face with distinct facial features. The other figure has a bald head, a wrinkled face with a beard and furrowed brow, wearing a suit with a tie. Both are holding a common object between their hands. The art style is sketch-like with minimal shading on a plain background.

Das Ehepaar (The Married Couple)

Heinrich Hoerle
1920
This image shows a full-body sketch of a person in a kneeling position. The person's head is slightly tilted downward, and they have large, rounded eyes, a prominent nose, and protruding ears. The person is bald and wearing a button-up coat with an upturned collar and elongated sleeves. They are holding a flat object in their left hand and a rounded cap in their right hand. The background is plain and untextured.

Der Ernährer (The Bread Winner)

Heinrich Hoerle
1920

Artwork history & notes

Provenance

(sale, Kunsthaus Lempertz, Cologne, c. 1985); Dr. Louis Peters, Cologne; purchased 2006 by NGA.

Associated Names

Exhibition History

2005

  • Dada, Centre Pompidou, Paris; NGA; Museum of Modern Art, New York, 2005-2006, no. 202.

  • Dada, The Museum of Modern Art, New York, 2005 - 2006, unnumbered catalogue.

2026

  • New Humans: Memories of the Future, New Museum, New York, 2026, no cat. no, no repro.

Bibliography

2025

  • Gioni, Massimiliano, Carrion-Murayari, Gary, Weisburg, Madeline, and Wang, Calvin, editors. New Humans: Memories of the Future. Exh. cat. New Museum, New York, 2026: 72-75

Inscriptions

upper left in print: Helft dem Krüppel

Wikidata ID

Q76342092

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