Otto Dix (1891 Untermhaus near Gera - Singen 1969)... Lot 537

Otto Dix (1891 Untermhaus near Gera - Singen 1969) - White Iris with Blanket. Oil on canvas-covered plywood panel. (19)47. Approx. 81 x 60 cm. Monogrammed and dated lower right. Löffler 1947/25. - Important floral still life from Otto Dix's late work - Testimony to a new artistic beginning after the years of internal emigration and his return from captivity as a prisoner of war - A return to his early expressionist painting style with characteristic dry application of paint and two-dimensional, gestural drawing The iris appears several times in Otto Dix's oeuvre: in 1912 he executed a work, now in the Dresden Kupferstichkabinett, which shows a naturalistic hand full of purple iris flowers against a yellow background. In 1933, Dix painted the portrait of Tamara Danischewski. This painting, now on display at the Kunstmuseum Stuttgart, shows the dancer with a single white iris in her hands. In 1947, the artist returned to the motif of the iris. In the years following the war, his works repeatedly returned to motifs from before the Nazi era and the experiences associated with it. A dense bunch of white irises stands in a dark blue pot, with a colorful patterned blanket lying on the table in front of it. The base and background are roughly executed, and the painting as a whole captivates with its dry application of paint and the sometimes rough yet animated brushstroke. Dix even sketches the ceiling, which has no depth and appears to be almost flat on the canvas. The irises, on the other hand, are the focus of his attention. He portrays the cluster of flowers delicately, almost translucently, alternating between areas of color and the finest lines. Where he keeps the lower part of the picture in earthy tones, this changes upwards into light and bright colors. In this extremely high-quality work from his mature phase, Dix succeeds in creating the summery atmosphere of a fresh bouquet that seems to have been placed there at random. Provenance: Studio/estate of the artist; Schrade Gallery, Mochental Castle and Karlsruhe; Private property, Baden-Württemberg, acquired from the aforementioned in 1978. Taxation: taxed on a differential basis (VAT: Margin Scheme).