Artist
Karl Schmidt-Rottluff 1884 – 1976

About the work
With his active commitment to contemporary art and his great interest in the subject, Friedrich Schreiber-Weigand (1879–1953), who was the director of Chemnitz’s Stadtische Kunstsammlung from the time it was established in 1920 until his dismissal by the Nazis in 1933, succeeded in establishing one of the most comprehensive and important collections of Expressionist art in existence. He maintained a friendly relationship with Schmidt-Rottluff right up until his death. In the year when this woodcut was produced the two enjoyed a particularly brisk exchange, partly because of their lively debate about how to extend and present the collection in Chemnitz. Reappointed director of the art collection in 1946, Schreiber-Weigand organised the first post-War exhibition including watercolours by Schmidt-Rottluff at the Schlossberg Museum. For this portrait Schmidt-Rottluff opted for a white-line woodcut. This technique makes the white outlines stand out against their black background in an especially bright and lively fashion.

Catalog raisonné
Rathenau 6