Journey to Berlin

When Elizabeth Shaw moved to Berlin with her husband, the painter, graphic artist and sculptor René Graetz, in 1946, it was "a romantic adventure" for both artists, as neither spoke much German. René Graetz was born in Berlin, but had not been back to Germany since childhood; he had lived mainly in Switzerland, France and later in England, after stopovers in other countries. The new beginning in post-war Germany presented her with unexpected challenges. Shaw described her first impressions and experiences on arrival in Berlin in the caricature "Journey to Berlin", a pen and ink drawing from 1946, which is laid out as a sequence of images in the manner of historical picture arcs. Shaw's distanced view as a foreigner of everyday German life in Berlin is spiced with a pinch of dry humour and - despite all the hardships of the time - takes away the discouragement of what is depicted and gives it something light.