WINTER, FRITZ
1905 Altenbögge–1976 Herrsching

Title: "Mit Rot".
Date: 1967.
Technique: Oil on canvas.
Measurement: 70 x 60 cm.
Notation: Signed and dated lower right: FWinter 67. Verso titled, signed and dated above: with - ROT FWinter 67.



Provenance:
- - Collection G. Kellerhals, Francfort a.M.

- Private collection Denmark


Literature:
- Lohberg, Gabriele: Fritz Winter - Leben und Werk, mit Werkverzeichnis der Gemälde und einem Anhang der sonstigen Techniken, Munich 1986, cat. rais. no. 2611, ill.



- A pared-down, precise composition from the late 1960s

- A characteristic work from Fritz Winter’s mature period



Fritz Winter is regarded as one of the central figures of German postwar abstraction and, as a member of the group ZEN 49, played a decisive role in the development of an autonomous, non-objective painting practice. Trained at the Bauhaus under Paul Klee and Wassily Kandinsky, he combined structural clarity with a conception of painting deeply inspired by nature. His works gained international recognition early on, including through their inclusion in the first documenta exhibitions in Kassel.



The painting Mit Rot (“With Red”) from 1967 presents a clearly structured yet dynamically interwoven composition of vertical and block-like zones of color. A cool blue ground defines the pictorial space, into which translucent turquoise planes are inserted. At the center, a luminous red emerges prominently, while the composition condenses on the right into a dark, nearly black-brown form. The red area reappears in the lower section, functioning as a substantial counterbalance. The predominantly glazed application of paint allows the canvas texture to remain visible, creating a delicate, vibrating surface that renders the painterly process perceptible.



The title Mit Rot points to the function of color as both an ordering and dynamic element. Red acts as an energetic center that rhythmically structures the cooler tonal areas and articulates the pictorial space. At the same time, the juxtaposition of transparency and density creates a subtle sense of depth, organizing the image into layered spatial planes. The vertical composition evokes associations with architectural or landscape-like structures without becoming representational.



The work belongs to a mature phase in which Winter concentrated his visual language on a limited number of concise elements. The balance of surface, color, and structure lends the painting a remarkable formal clarity and makes it a characteristic example of his late oeuvre. This deliberate reduction of means is accompanied by an increased sensitivity to chromatic relationships. Within this concentration, the work unfolds a quiet yet dynamic visual tension that is exemplary of Winter’s painting of the late 1960s.



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#Fritz Winter #Informel #ZEN 49 #Lyrical Abstraction #Germany #Post-War Art #Painting #Abstract #Oil #1960s #Post War.







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