Ernst Ludwig Kirchner - Street scene, at the shop... Lot 719

Ernst Ludwig Kirchner - Street scene, at the shop window. Woodcut on strong wove paper (papier vélin). (1913/14). Approx. 31.5 x 23 cm (sheet size approx. 52 x 39 cm). One of only 8 known copies. Signed lower right, inscribed "Eigendruck" lower left. - Wonderfully dense street scene, one of the most sought-after motifs of Ernst Ludwig Kirchner - Very rare sheet in excellent print quality - From the famous Botho Graef Foundation of the artist to the Kunstverein Jena The motif of the street scene is one of the iconic motifs of Ernst Ludwig Kirchner. For the expressive woodcut "Street Scene, at the Shop Window" he chooses the view from a short distance on numerous closely stacked figures. The shop window is only hinted at in the upper left by the fragmentary advertising inscription. Kirchner uses large amounts of black in the woodblock, which is precisely divided and lightened by numerous white cuts, tightening the composition overall. The white sections are very clear in this print, even the fine interior lines in the hats are well discernible. This particularly clear print quality is not found in any other of the known copies. In the spring of 1914, the Jena Kunstverein held an important solo exhibition of Ernst Ludwig Kirchner's work. At the same time, the artist meets Botho Graef, who has been associate professor of classical archaeology and art history at the University of Jena since 1904. As a patron of modern art, Graef procures works by renowned contemporary artists for the university, the city of Jena and the Jenaer Kunstverein, which had been founded only the year before. A fatherly friendship developed between Graef and Kirchner. After Graef's death in 1917, Kirchner established the Botho Graef Foundation in May 1918 in gratitude and memory of his friend and patron, who had died at an early age. The foundation included a donation of 260 sheets of etchings, woodcuts and lithographs to the Jena Kunstverein. After the Kunstverein was annexed to the city museum in 1934, valuable holdings and especially the Expressionist works were confiscated in 1937 as part of the National Socialist "Degenerate Art" campaign. Only a remnant of the formerly unique collection remained. Today, the works in the collection are scattered around the world in private and public collections, but thanks to the foundation stamp that all the sheets bear, they can still be clearly identified today. In memory of Botho Graef and to honor his commitment to modern art, the city of Jena has awarded the Botho Graef Prize to contemporary artists since 1992. Dube H 238; Gercken 644. Provenance: Kunstverein, Jena, Botho Graef Foundation (1918 as a gift from the artist in memory of Botho Graef (1857-1917)), stamped on verso (Lugt 4337); On 2.8.1937 confiscation by the German Reich / Reichsministerium für Volksaufklärung und Propaganda, Berlin (cf. Database on the Seizure Inventory of the "Degenerate Art" Action, Research Center "Degenerate Art", FU Berlin, NS Inventory EK-No. 13115); Galerie Ferdinand Möller, Berlin, acquired by exchange on 2.1.1940; Grisebach, Berlin 24.11.1995, lot 39; Private collection, Switzerland; Galerie Wolfgang Wittrock, Berlin; Private collection, North Rhine-Westphalia. Taxation: differential taxed VAT: Margin Scheme