Accession Number
1965/2.73

Title
Die Sonne, No. 3 from the series 10 Holzschnitte...

Artist(s)
Karl Schmidt-Rottluff

Object Creation Date
1914

Medium & Support
woodcut on paper

Dimensions
19 ⅞ in x 24 ½ in (50.48 cm x 62.23 cm);26 ⅛ in x 32 ⅛ in (66.36 cm x 81.6 cm)

Credit Line
Museum Purchase

Label copy
Karl Schmidt-Rottluff’s woodcut The Sun can be seen as a culminating work of the classic phase of Expressionism and an expression of the hopeful anticipation with which many Europeans greeted World War I. Created in the summer of 1914, during the artist’s customary sojourn by the lakeside, The Sun exemplifies the ecstatic exultation in nature that the early Expressionists frequently depicted though incorporating a decidedly religious theme.
In this composition, two figures facing away from the viewer approach a rising sun on the horizon. The tremendous luminescence of the sun’s rays and the supplicant posture of the two figures endows this work with a decidedly spiritual tone. The open, submissive posture of the figures communicates an openness and sense of optimism – a sense of hope that pervaded much Expressionist art in the eager anticipation of a war that was believed to result in necessary change.
Text written by Katharine A. Weiss, Exhibitions Assistant, on the occasion of the UMMA exhibition Graphic Visions: German Expressionist Prints and Drawings, January 25–April 6, 2003, West Gallery

Primary Object Classification
Print

Collection Area
Modern and Contemporary

Rights
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Keywords
Expressionism
Figures
infant
modern and contemporary art