Artist
Karl Schmidt-Rottluff 1884 – 1976

About the work
The cheerful, carefree mood of the woodcuts produced in Nidden in 1913 was replaced by a more melancholy view of human existence in the following year. As her posture and her lowered eyes indicate, this woman is lost in contemplation. Completely preoccupied with herself, she does not appear to notice her surroundings. This is underscored by the blocklike silhouette of her body. The landscape surrounding her is in stark contrast to the contemplative mood this figure on the left of the picture conveys. Behind the dune three large dead tree trunks form bold vertical structures. Together with the vegetation behind them, characterised by vibrant linear hatching, they make up a backdrop that seems quite threatening and is far from being any kind of safe haven. The stylistic devices used here were inspired by Futurism and Cubism, and reinforce the restless atmosphere of this environment. This reflects the tensions in the artist’s own life – in the year this woodcut was produced, he was forced to cope not only with the death of his father but also with his fears arising from the radical changes brought about by the outbreak of the First World War.

Catalog raisonné
Schapire H 143