Lot 1552 Dα

“A 'Jutz' was just as indispensable as a 'Kröner' or an 'Achenbach' in the private collections that cropped up along the Rhine throughout the 70s and 80s” wrote one feuilleton journalist in his obituary of the artist in 1916 (cf. Kölnische Zeitung, 5.9.1916).
The present work represents one of the rare, large format works by this artist. Jutz's depictions of animals can be viewed as metaphors of society, presenting an anthropomorphic mirror of human behaviour. Thus, his works never feature depictions of humans, and only very rarely include attributes of farm life, such a pitchfork, axe or overturned basket.
This piece depicts a whimsical battle between a goat kid and a mother hen whose startled chicks flee in all directions from her aggressive stance. The viewer is moved to ask if the gentle-looking, but stronger, kid stands a chance against the angered hen. The artist perfectly captures the motif of David and Goliath in his idyllic scene.