GEORGE GROSZ | Wein, Weib und Gesang (Wine, Woman and Song)

Sale: Gutekunst & Klipstein, Bern, 16-17th May 1958, lot 320
Karl Ströher, Darmstadt (acquired in 1958)
Dr. Erika Pohl-Ströher, Switzerland (by descent from the above in 1977)
Thence by descent to the present owner in 2016

Vienna, Graphische Sammlung Albertina; Linz, Neue Galerie & Graz, Neue Galerie am Landesmuseum Joanneum, George Grosz, 1893-1959, 1965, no. 79, illustrated in the catalogue
Darmstadt, Hessisches Landesmuseum, Sammlung Karl Ströher, 2, 1965, no. 26, illustrated in the catalogue
Darmstadt, Hessisches Landesmuseum, Bildnerische Ausdrucksformen, 1910-1960, 1970, n.n., illustrated in the catalogue

Erika Pohl, Ursula Ströher & Gerhard Pohl (ed.), Karl Ströher, Sammler und Sammlung, Stuttgart, 1982, no. 191

Executed on cream wove paper, not laid down, hinged to the mount in two places along the upper edge and floating in the mount. The edges are slightly unevenly cut. There is a repaired tear to the centre of the lower edge, (approximately 3cm long), and a repaired tear (approximately 2cm long) to the lower right corner. There are some further minor repaired tears, one to the right part of the lower edge and three along the upper edge (the longest of which is 1cm long). There are some handling marks to the sheet along the lower edge. This work is in overall good condition.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

In this political and socially charged drawing the artist holds up a satirical mirror to the Germans, the so called 'Volk der Dichter und Denker (People of Poets and Thinkers)'. The title refers back to the couplet "Who loves not woman, wine, and song / Remains a fool his whole life long" which appears in print as early as 1837 in a German verse attributed to Martin Luther.

The authenticity of this work has been confirmed by Ralph Jentsch.