MAX PECHSTEIN | Am Fluss (At the River)

Ida Kimche Art Gallery, Tel Aviv
Hirschl & Adler, New York (acquired from the above in 1969; sale: Rhode Island School of Design Art Museum, Rhode Island, Benefit Auction, December 1969)
Purchased at the above sale by the present owner

The canvas is lined and examination under UV light reveals no signs of retouching. The reverse has been signed and titled by another hand. 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."

Max Pechstein’s interest in the expressive works of Vincent van Gogh, which he saw at the Galerie Arnold in 1905, had a powerful influence on his own nascent strand of Expressionism which he would rapidly develop from 1906 onwards. This development was further spurred on by his involvement with Fauve artists such as Kees van Dongen as well as artists associated with the Die Brücke movement, including Ernst-Ludwig Kirchner, Karl Schmidt-Rottluff and Erich Heckel. The confident and discernible brushwork, bright colours and exaggerated forms that characterise the  Die Brücke aesthetic are all visible in the present work. Gone however are the harsh black outlines, leaving a captivating palette applied in angular and descriptive strokes. By the time Pechstein painted Am Fluss in 1923, his mastery of form and colour had fully matured. The art critic Paul Fletcher commented on Pechstein's remarkable stylistic development in the 1920s: 'The strong impact evident in Pechstein's works of that period is probably due to a newly acquired balance between experience and his own creation. In his earlier work either one or the other is dominant, whereas in the 1920s Pechstein found the perfect harmony. The artist abandons the stylization of forms and creates compositions in which the elements of colour, shape and form merge into one organic whole' (quoted in Max Pechstein im Brücke-Museum Berlin (exhibition catalogue), Brücke-Museum, Berlin (& travelling), 2001-2002, p. 44, translated from the German). 

The present work is a remarkable example of the outburst of energy that characterised Pechstein’s work in the interwar period. Am Fluss depicts a scene in the small seaside fishing town of Leba in what is now Poland. Nearly every summer from 1921 to 1945 Pechstein fled to this coastal haven. The carefree environment allowed him to redirect his focus and create the extraordinarily vibrant and enigmatic canvases that reflect his long-held vision of the pastoral idyll. Am Fluss is rendered in a manner that is typical of Pechstein’s work from this period, with short, horizontal brushstrokes, dramatic planes of colour and an angular composition. The bright colouration of the sky is treated in almost abstract manner, with three horizontal bands whose vibrant colours imbue this landscape with a profound feeling of harmony and tranquility.

The authenticity of this work has been confirmed by Dr Aya Soika.