Woodcut.
Gerken 874. Signed and inscribed "Probedruck" (trial proof, barely legible). Trial proof aside from to date 3 known copies. On blotting paper. 59 x 25.5 cm. Sheet: 59 x 40,7 cm.
[JS].
- Extremely rare. To date only 3 copies of this woodcut are known. - Only one other copy has been offered on the international auction market (www.artprice.com). - Strongly colored and high-contrast print from the energetically cut wooden block. - The barely legible signature and inscription testify to Kirchner's nervous state of mind and his poor physical condition towards the end of the First World War. - Kirchner's woodcut portraits from these years - like the "Head of Ludwig Schames" created a year later - are among the highlights of his print oeuvre. - Part of the important Landmann Collection, Mannheim/Toronto for more than 85 years.
LITERATURE: Collection inventory (file card) of Landmann Collection, privately-owned.