László Moholy-Nagy

photogram, a unique object, signed 'Moholy = Nagy,' titled, dated, inscribed 'ich bitte das foto eiligst zurück dessau, burgkühnauer allee 2' [crossed out with pencil] and with the directional arrow and notation 'oben' by the photographer in ink and inscribed with a directional arrow and 'kameraloses' by the photographer in pencil and with his 'moholy-nagy' stamp on the reverse, framed, 1925

An associate of the photographer, Institute of Design, Chicago

William Larson, 1973

Eugene and Dorothy Prakapas, 1980

Sotheby's New York, Photograms by László Moholy-Nagy: From the Collection of Eugene and Dorothy Prakapas, 27 April 2005, Sale 8150, Lot 83

Private collection

Howard Greenberg Gallery, New York, 2006

Claremont, California, Galleries of the Claremont Colleges, Photographs of Moholy-Nagy from the Collection of William Larson, April - May 1975, and traveling through 1979 to: San Francisco Museum of Modern Art; University of New Mexico Art Museum at Albuquerque; Fine Arts Gallery of San Diego; Vancouver Art Gallery; Arkansas Art Center at Little Rock; Tyler, Texas, Museum of Art; Philbrook Art Center at Tulsa; Detroit Institute of the Arts; Center for the Visual Arts Gallery, Illinois State University at Normal; Minneapolis Institute of Arts; J. B. Speed Art Museum at Louisville; Georgia Museum of Art, University of Georgia at Athens; Baltimore Museum of Art; Greenville, North Carolina, County Museum of Art; New Orleans Museum of Art; Everson Museum of Art at Syracuse; College of Arts and Sciences, Rutgers University; Bowdoin College Museum of Art; South Dakota Memorial Art Center at Brookings; and Indiana University Museum of Art at Bloomington

Valencia, Spain, Institut Valencia d’Art Modern, Centre Julio González, László Moholy-Nagy, February - April 1991, and traveling to: Fridericianum Museum at Kassel, Germany; and Musée Cantini at Marseille, France, through September 1991

This unique object:

Herbert Molderings, Floris M. Neusüss, and Renate Heyne, Moholy-Nagy: The Photograms: Catalogue Raisonné (Ostfildern, 2009), fgm 235

Leland D. Rice and David W. Steadman, Photographs of Moholy-Nagy from the Collection of William Larson (Claremont College, 1975), p. 64

Catherine David, Gianni Rondolino, Andrei Boris Nakov, and Veit Loers, László Moholy-Nagy (Institut Valencia d’Art Modern, 1991), pl. 81

Catherine David, Gianni Rondolino, Andrei Boris Nakov, and Veit Loers, László Moholy-Nagy (Marseille: Musée Cantini, 1991), p. 209

This photogram is on heavy double-weight paper with a semi-glossy surface. There is wear on the edges and corners of the print, and this has resulted in chipping and losses of the emulsion, particularly along the left and right edges. The most noticeable losses are just below the center of the left edge, and in the upper right corner – these are visible in the catalogue illustration. There is light creasing in the upper left corner, but this has not broken the emulsion. When the print is examined very closely in raking light, a slightly curved 4.5-inch line can be seen running vertically just to the left of the center of the print. Light, straight lines of silvering are visible near the print's edges. While these condition issues are apparent, they do not diminish the impressive appearance of this image. The print is currently hinged with paper tape to a modern mount along the top edge.
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.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

The instructions on the reverse of the photogram offered here read ‘ich bitte das foto eiligst zurück dessau, burgkühnauer allee 2’—‘please return this photo quickly to Dessau, Burgkühnauer allee 2’ (see overleaf).   Burgkühnauer allee 2 was the address of one of the Master’s Houses at the Dessau Bauhaus, where Moholy lived from the end of 1926 to the summer of 1928 (cf. the chronology of Moholy addresses, Heyne and Neusüss, p. 304).   The directional arrow and word ‘oben,’also on the reverse, may signal that this work was slated for reproduction at one time, although as of this writing, a corresponding reproduction has not been located.

The circular, wheel-like object appears in three other Moholy photograms, one in the Centre Georges Pompidou (fgm 234); in a photogram (fgm 134) and its positive (fgm 134A) in the National Gallery of Art, Washington, D. C.; and in the photogram (fgm 236) whose corresponding positive version is offered in this catalogue as Lot 21.  The circle, triangle, and square could comprise a set of geometric toys or teaching aids, but the longer ribbed object is harder to characterize.  Its repetitive circular shapes, and the angle at which it is placed, create a sense of depth that is crucial to the composition.  Moholy’s careful structuring of the objects is balanced by the infinite space of the photogram’s dramatic black background.

Like the early photogram in Lot 17, the photogram offered here has an outstanding provenance: from one of Moholy’s associates at the Institute of Design in Chicago to the photographer William Larson, then to Eugene and Dorothy Prakapas.   Along with Lot 17, it was featured in the important Rice and Steadman exhibition and catalogue, Photographs of Moholy-Nagy from the Collection of William Larson, and in the Prakapas sale of Moholy photograms in these rooms in 2005.  For more information, please see Lot 17.