Hermann Max Pechstein

Estate of the artist
Thence by descent to the present owner

Kiel, Kunsthalle Kiel, Max Pechstein. Ein Expressionist aus Leidenschaft. Retrospektive, 2010-11, no. 228, illustrated in colour in the catalogue


To be included in the forthcoming Pechstein Catalogue raisonné being prepared by Dr Aya Soika.

The canvas is not lined and there appear to be no signs of retouching visible under UV light. There is some very light craquelure to some of the dark green pigments. This work is in good original condition. Colours: Overall fairly accurate in the printed catalogue, although the blues in the white are less pronounced and the blue background is slightly more uniform in the original.
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Painted in 1949, the present work is a powerful example of the artist's mature Expressionist style. Although this was a time of smaller artistic output, the intensity of Pechstein's work was considerably increased. With its luscious colouration of saturated yellows, greens and the abstracted blue colour fields in the background, Verwelkende Sonnenblumen is a portrayal of a still-life that demonstrates Pechstein's debt to the Fauve painters as well as his admiration for Van Gogh (fig. 1). Stylistically the present work corresponds closely to Expressionist ideas of the former Brücke member, aiming towards a distortion of form and perspective and a stridency of colour and vision. Indeed the abstracted background brilliantly underlines Pechstein's continuous experimentation with the painterly language of Expressionism.

The art critic Paul Fletcher commented on Pechstein's remarkable stylistic development: 'The strong impact evident in Pechstein's later works is probably due to his acquired balance between experiences and his own creation. In his earlier work either one or the other is dominant whereas in the later years Pechstein found the perfect harmony. The artist abandons the stylisation 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 (exhibition catalogue), Brücke-Museum, Berlin & travelling in Germany, 2001-02, p. 44, translated from German).