Oil on canvas 51 x 83 cm, framed. Signed and dated 'G. Schrimpf 31.' lower right. - Inconspicuous retouchings of isolated minor surface abrasions in sky area.
Hofmann/Praeger 1931/5
The Upper Bavarian landscape is a theme that Georg Schrimpf devoted himself to again and again. As a representative of the 'Neue Sachlichkeit' (New Objectivity), he was committed to depicting the object, the figure and the landscape. Schrimpf, and other artists of this school, called into question - or considered overcome - the ideas of Expressionism and other avant-garde forms of abstraction. Nevertheless, he was interested in more than just a naturalistic representation of the material world, and aimed to unveil the secrets behind this world through a special handling of colour and through the depiction of the smallest details with the finest of brushstrokes. The magic which this idyllic landscape radiates is thus the result of his pictorial composition. We experience it as a mysterious, ambivalent atmospheric mood. In spite of its peacefulness, we do not perceive it as having a romantic ambience - on the contrary, Schrimpf sought both to estrange and animate, using the stylistic painting effects of the Old Masters and the Nature-lyricism of an artist like Caspar David Friedrich. Schrimpf's landscapes are especially characterized by an immense spaciousness and by the rich nuances of his palette. The depth of the landscape contrasts vividly with the meticulously drawn, almost tangible closeness of the foreground.
Provenance
Acquired directly from the artist by the previous ownwer (1935), since then family possession, private collection, Southern Germany