Lot 66 D

An extended voyage, begun in February 1921, led the Noldes first to southern France and then, by way of Barcelona and Malaga, to their primary destination of Granada, in the far south of the Iberian peninsula, where they stayed for a month.
Nolde was impressed by the magnificent, centuries-old buildings of Granada, but he was particularly captivated by the “gitanos”, a people that have been living outside the city in cave dwellings in the Sacromonte neighbourhood since the 16th century. Their temperament, the cheerful sense of ease the painter perceived in these people and the colourfulness of their clothing stimulated him to record these exuberant impressions in numerous watercolours – a technique that enabled him to work rapidly and spontaneously. Usually placing them before a coloured background, he portrayed women, men and children in boldly contrasting colours and with personal attributes.
The young girl depicted here is characterised through the golden hoop earrings which peek out beneath her thick, black hair. Reserved and serious, she looks out at the viewer. Emil Nolde’s masterful ability to characterise the person before him with just a few brushstrokes is revealed once more by this likeness. The contours are merely suggested and have been placed with assurance, forming the graceful lines of the neck and chin, the full lips and bridge of the nose; the summarily depicted dark eyes are particularly powerfully expressive. The light striking the face from the side lends the image an extraordinarily lifelike presence.