Georg Kolbe - Kauernde - image-1
Georg Kolbe - Kauernde - image-2
Georg Kolbe - Kauernde - image-1Georg Kolbe - Kauernde - image-2

Lot 216 D

Georg Kolbe - Kauernde

Auction 1043 - overview Cologne
28.11.2014, 18:00 - Modern Art
Estimate: 30.000 €
Result: 47.120 € (incl. premium)

Georg Kolbe

Kauernde
1917

Bronze Height 23.5 cm Monogrammed 'GK' (joined) to the reverse of the integral plinth (10 x 10,2 cm), with foundy stamp "H. NOACK BERLIN" to the edge of the plinth. One of 30 known casts. - With a dark brown, slightly shiny patina.

The bronze “Kauernde“ was conceived in 1917, cast in an edition of 15 by the Berlin art dealer Ferdinand Möller in 1919 and probably also exhibited along with sculptures by Kolbe, Scheibe and Marcks in Möller's gallery in the same year. Due to the extreme popularity of the bronze, Kolbe decided upon a further edition, of which only 3 examples were cast during his lifetime (1940), with a further 13 being made with his permission following his death. “The 'Kauernde' is characterised by a clear and almost symmetrical composition. The arms and calves are set at right angles to one another, forming a balancing square, but despite this the figure does not appear inorganic or constructed. The tilted back head, closed eyes and relaxed features show the typical mood of Kolbe's works.” (Ursel Berger, Georg Kolbe - Leben und Werk, Berlin 1990, p. 239). Kolbe created a pendant to this work six years later, entitled “Sitzende” (Berger 55), however as opposed to the naturalistic charm of the present crouching figure, this later piece displays the stylised, abstract forms typical of his Expressionist phase.

Catalogue Raisonné

Berger 31

Certificate

We would like to thank Ursel Berger, Berlin, for additional information.

Provenance

Purchased from the artist's family; Private possession, South Germany

Literature

Wilhelm Valentiner, Georg Kolbe. Plastik und Zeichnungen, Munich 1922, p. 46 with illus. plate 23; Ursel Berger, Georg Kolbe - Leben und Werk, mit dem Katalog der Kolbe-Plastiken im Georg-Kolbe-Museum, Berlin 1990, p. 238 f. with illus.