Adolph von Menzel

Sale, Boston, Grogan & Company, 6 June 2010, lot 2

The sheet has very fractionally discolored. Otherwise in superb condition, with the medium fresh and vibrant throughout. Sold in a modern giltwood frame.
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 present work is a fine and characteristic example of Menzel's virtuosity as a draughtsman, demonstrating his ability to couple crisp, bold lines with the soft, delicate effects created through the technique of stumping.  These contrasting styles of handling allowed the artist, when necessary, to couple high levels of detail alongside the softer, more sumptuous textures created by the clothing that many of his more fashionable sitters are portrayed wearing.

Menzel captures in this drawing, the confident pose of a young and elegantly dressed woman, whose ribbon-laced hat is perfectly in keeping with the prevalent fashions found in the upper echelons of German society in the late 19th century.  Though the majority of Menzel's drawings were not created with the specific intention of being used as preparatory studies for a painting, the pose of the woman in the right half of the composition is highly reminiscent of the seated woman found in Menzel's gouache of the same year, Travelling through the Countryside.¹

The 'Rummel' to whom Menzel dedicated this drawing, some four years after he originally drew it, appears to have worked as an agent for a Zurich art collector named Henneberg, and to have carrying on negotiations with Menzel on the collector's behalf.

^1. See Adolph von Menzel, Between Romanticism and Impressionism, exhib. cat., Paris, Musée d'Orsay, Washington, National Gallery of Art and Berlin, Alte Nationalgalerie, 1996, p. 147, reproduced fig. 144