Gabriele Münter

Perls Galleries, New York (acquired from the artist)
Dr. Ernst Anspach, New York (acquired from the above circa 1960)
Private Collection, New York (acquired as a gift from the above in 2002)

The surface is clean and stable. Under ultraviolet light, remnants of Munter's original medium are visible as a light green haze. There is a very small restoration in the top of the green tree just below the light blue mountain on the left side. There are also a few very small restorations along the very top edge of the board. The painting should be hung as is. The above condition report has been provided by Simon Parkes of Simon Parkes Art Conservation, Inc. 502 East 74th St. New York, NY 212-734-3920, simonparkes@msn.com, an independent restorer who is not an employee of Sotheby's.
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.

Landscapes inhabit a place of unparalleled importance in Münter's oeuvre; they were her favorite subjects to paint, and the nuanced changes in light and weather provided ever-varying material for her explorations of color modulation. The vast majority of her finest landscapes were painted en plain air in the town of Murnau, the Bavarian alpine village where she stayed with Wassily Kandinsky from 1908 until 1914. The two were fascinated by the local tradition of Hinterglasmalerei (glass painting) which they discovered there and with which they experimented extensively. Münter's response to the jewel-like luminosity, simplified forms and fresh naiveté of this folk art is particularly evident in her resulting paintings of the following years.

The present work is a particularly early example of Münter's explorations of color and texture in landscape painting, and it provides evidence of the significant role she would play in the evolution of art in the decade that followed. In 1911 she would go on to collaborate with Kandinsky and other artists including Alexej von Jawlensky, Franz Marc and August Macke to found the vanguard movement Der Blaue Reiter (The Blue Rider) in Munich. The group sought to liberate painting from a literal, figurative understanding of the world, reaching instead for a symbolic and spiritual dimension in their art, paving the way for a broader international appreciation of abstraction.