Fritz Klimsch

Overall the condition of the bronze is very good with minor dirt and wear to the surface consistent with age. There are a few specks of paint and some dirt to the proper right thigh.
"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. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

In his 1924 monograph on Fritz Klimsch the renowned art historian Wilhelm Bode celebrates the sculptor’s unique engagement with artistic tradition. Having gained the Rome Prize at the Berlin Academy in 1894, the young Klimsch travelled to Italy and later to Greece, which had a formative impact on his style and technical excellence.  While he revered classical sculpture and incorporated some of its aspects into his own work, thus following in the tradition of German neoclassical sculptors, he created a synthesis between a static classicism and the vibrant movement of Rodin, whose work had left a deep impression on the artist during a visit to Paris. A co-founder of the Berlin Secession in 1897 together with Max Liebermann and Walter Leistikow, Klimsch largely concentrated on sculpting elegant female nudes, characterised by a simplification of forms and expressive movement. Frühling beautifully exemplifies the sculptor’s individual style: her idealised physique and sense of calm reveal an element of classicism, while the influence of Jugendstil and artistic contemporaries such as Rodin is evident in the elongated forms and languid pose. The young woman appears to awaken from slumber, signalling the birth of spring. 

The plaster model for Frühling was exhibited at the Berlin Academy in 1926, followed by its first cast in bronze in 1932. Until the end of the war this remained the only cast, and its whereabouts are currently unclear. It may be assumed that the present bronze was cast after 1945, when Klimsch gave permission for further casts to be made. Like most of the sculptor’s bronzes, it was produced by the H. Noack foundry, which was established with Klimsch’s support in 1897 and primarily catered for Secession artists.

RELATED LITERATURE
Fritz Klimsch. Eine Auswahl seiner Werke. Mit einer Einleitung von Wilhelm Bode, Frieburg im Breisgau, 1924; H. Braun, Fritz Klimsch. Eine Dokumentation, Cologne, 1991, p. 365

The Museum Europeu d'Art Modern, Barcelona (MEAM)

The Museu Europeu d’Art Modern (European Museum of Modern Art) is one of Barcelona’s hidden gems, situated in an elegant 18^th-century palace in the heart of the city’s old town, El Born. Founded for the promotion of 20^th and 21^st-century figurative sculpture and painting, the museum houses an outstanding and growing collection of contemporary art. Each year it hosts the Figurativas Painting and Sculpture Awards, which brings together representations of the human form by contemporary artists from across the globe.

The following lots are a carefully curated selection of highlights from the Museum’s collection of 19^thand 20^th-century sculpture. It begins with a series of elegant classicising and Romantic marbles, led by Émmanuel Hannaux’s magisterial Le poète et la sirène (lot 34). These works evidence the belle époque fascination with the idealised human form, combined with wistful and exotic subjects. Affortunato Gori’s sumptuous Oriental Dancer (lot 37) highlights the fin de siècle taste for Orientalist subjects, reflecting major literary works from the time, notably Oscar Wilde’s Salome (1906). Historicism is represented in the very rare and dramatic original terracotta Monument to Beethoven by Théodore Rivière (lot 48).

The divergent movement towards a modernist aesthetic is witnessed in George Minne’s beautifully carved Le petit blesse II (lot 59) which represents the Symbolist desire to depict inner emotions in plastic form. Several works within the sale were created by artists like Minne, who were heavily influenced or trained by Auguste Rodin. The most striking of these is Louis Dejean’s column of swirling and twisting bodies (lot 82), which recalls Rodin’s Gates of Hell. A more classicising modernist aesthetic is seen in Fritz Klimsch’s elegant rendering of Frühling (Spring) (lot 63). This is complemented by Raymond Delamarre’s strong Art Deco David (lot 55), and his totemic torso LaBolognaise (lot 70). However, perhaps the most beautiful of the Art Deco sculptures is the Nude Girl by Jaume Otero i Camps (lot 40), a Catalan artist with native resonances for MEAM. Charles Despiau’s Le Faune (lot 58), seen on the cover of the catalogue, displays a softer classicism in line with the work of Aristide Maillol. Portraiture is represented by François Pompon’s charming Bust of André Leproust, and Jan and Joël Martel’s extraordinary clean-cut image of Professor Henri Vignes.

Each of the works in the catalogue were exhibited in Una mica d’escultura, si us plau! L’escultura europea del segle XX at MEAM, a dedicated exhibition of the Museum’s collection of European 19^thand 20^th-century sculpture.