Max Beckmann

Stephan Lackner, Santa Barbara (acquired directly from the artist)

Buchholz Gallery (Curt Valentin), New York

Dr. Ferdinand Ziersch, Wuppertal (acquired before 1955)

Galerie Wilhelm Grosshennig, Dusseldorf (by 1960)

Wilhelm Reinold, Hamburg (acquired from the above on 24 October 1960)

Private Collection (by descent from the above and sold: Christie's, London, February 2, 2004, lot 32)

Acquired at the above sale

Bern, Kunsthalle, Max Beckmann, 1938, no. 20

Winterthur, Kunstverein, Max Beckmann, 1938, no. 23

Zurich, Galerie Aktuaryus, Max Beckmann Gemälde und Graphik, 1938, no. 6

Chicago, The Arts Club of Chicago, Max Beckmann, 1942, no. 13

Zurich, Kunsthaus & Basel, Kunsthalle, Max Beckmann 1884-1950, 1955-56, no. 68 (no. 58 in Basel)

Wuppertal, Städtisches Museum, Max Beckmann 1884-1950, 1956, no. 36

Dusseldorf, Galerie Wilhelm Grosshenning, October 1960, illustrated in color

The Artist's Handlist of 1934 (no. R336)

Benno Reifenberg & Wilhelm Hausenstein, Max Beckmann, Munich, 1949, no. 336, p. 74

Erhard & Barbard Göpel, Max Beckmann, Katalog der Gemälde, vol. I, Bern, 1976, no. 401, p. 269; vol. II, illustrated pl. 134

Very good condition. Original canvas. There is no evidence of retouching visible under ultra-violet light. Apart from some stable craquelure in the thick white impasto, this work is in very good ocondition.
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.

This still-life dates from Beckmann's time in Berlin, which was the most psychologically intense phase of his career.  When he painted this picture in 1934, the artist was already being singled-out by authorities as a potentially subversive presence within the Reich. Having been dismissed from his teaching post at the Frankfurt Städelschule, Beckmann was now prohibited from exhibiting his work in galleries and museums throughout Germany.  

"I am trying to use intensive work to get myself through the talentless insanity of these times," Beckmann wrote in 1935. "After a while this political gangsterism becomes ridiculously indifferent, and one feel's best in the island of one's soul" (quoted in Reinhard Piper, Mein Leben als Verleger: Vormittag - Nachmittag, Munich, 1964, p. 340). 

Beckmann's mastery in the genre of still-life lies in his ability to find pleasure and powerful metaphors in everyday objects.  In the present composition, the dynamic arrangement of the breakfast table alludes to the optimism engendered by the creative process, the harmony of a settled home and the nourishment of a morning meal, all aspects that were being sorely tested in Beckmann's own life at this time.  At the same time, however, the present work has the characteristically narrow format of many of his canvases from the 1930s, with the objects depicted close-up, as if confronting the viewer, an arrangement that underlines the sense of anxiety he felt during this heated moment in history.