Lot 339 Dα

Walter Ophey's large-format painting captivates us equally through its powerfully colourful palette and its kaleidoscope-like composition. Like scarcely any other still life by the artist, its crystalline formal idiom unites essential elements of Ophey's extraordinary exploration of colour, space, light and - not least - ornament. In the contrast between the opulent bouquet of flowers and the tautly draped cloth in the background, he achieves an exceedingly energetic arrangement culminating in an abundance of radiant contrasts. The high degree of abstraction and the emphatic use of colour point (among other things) to Ophey's intense occupation with dreams and visions, which manifests itself in diverse ways in the artist's work.
Born in Eupen in 1882, Ophey studied at Düsseldorf's Kunstakademie and quickly developed into one of the most sought-after Rhenish Expressionists. His remarkable popularity is demonstrated by his early inclusion in the Sonderbund exhibitions, and as early as 1914 his work - together with that of Paul Baum - was shown by Alfred Flechtheim for the first time. When “Das Junge Rheinland” gathered in Düsseldorf in 1919, the Düsseldorf-based painter was among its founding members. Together with August Macke, who died far too young, Ophey represents one of this generation's important artistic positions.