From Merkel to Adenauer, biting caricatures of Germany's chancellors
With a razor-sharp pen, caricaturists have always targeted Germany's chancellors. "Touché — The Chancellors in Cartoons" at the Haus der Geschichte museum presents the very best in print and animated film.
Angela Merkel (2005 to present)
Portrayals of Merkel often include her typical "rhombus" hand gesture, or focus on her hairstyle and the identical blazers she wears. The above cartoon lampoons the pretense of not noticing the urgency of many issues she faces: crumbling, she asks, "is anything wrong?" The caricature exhibition "Touché — the Chancellors in Cartoons" in Bonn runs through May 10, 2020.
Gerhard Schröder (1998-2005)
Merkel's predecessor Gerhard Schröder went down in German history as "media chancellor." He wasn't afraid of showing up for the highly popular entertainment TV show "Wetten dass…" (Wanna Bet?) and would also announce policy changes in interviews with the mass-circulation "Bild" tabloid.
Helmut Kohl ( 1982-1998)
It's not just cartoon drawings — TV satire shows are also presented at the exhibiton in Bonn, including clips from Germany's 1990s cult TV show "Hurra Deutschland." The makers of the show that created the above Helmut Kohl puppet were relentless.
Helmut Schmidt (1974-1982)
Helmut Schmidt, who came from the northen German port city of Hamburg, was often portrayed as a maritime pilot maneuvering his country through dangerous waters. Usually, artists saw the country's fifth federal chancellor as an unswerving man of action and strong opinions.
Willy Brandt (1969-1974)
This caricature shows Willy Brandt toward the end of his chancellorship, a larger than life figure far removed from everyday politics. At the time, "Der Spiegel" news magazine criticised "Brandt's passive stance on domestic and foreign policy issues," says the musuem's curator, Ulrich Op de Hipt, adding that "Brandt was terribly upset" over the article.
Kurt Georg Kiesinger (1966-1969)
Caricaturists lampooned rulers and politicians as far back as the German Empire and the Weimar Republic. Things were a bit quieter after WWII, but the '68 student revolts changed that, and political caricature again took a more aggressive stance. Kurt Georg Kiesinger, the country's third chancellor, was often targeted for his Nazi past.
Ludwig Erhard (1963-1966)
Ludwig Erhard was head of government during Germany's busy economic miracle years in the wake of WWII. Artists liked to portray him as a statesman, a big man puffing on a big cigar. At the time, people were largely unaweare of Erhard's involvement with the Nazi regime.
Konrad Adenauer (1949-1963)
Classic caricatures are hand-drawn on paper. With a few strokes of the pen, an artist sketches facial features and recognizable individual attributes — like Erhard's cigar. Konrad Adenauer, Germany's first federal chancellor, was known as "der Alte" (the old man) and was often portrayed as a wily fox. He was 73 years old when he began his first term.