- 56
Edvard Munch
Estimate
30,000 - 50,000 GBP
bidding is closed
Description
- Edvard Munch
- August Strindberg (Woll 66; Schiefler 77)
- lithograph
- image: 500 by 376mm 19 3/4 by 14 5/8 in
- sheet: 636 by 436mm 25 by 17 1/2 in
Lithograph, 1896, Woll's fourth state (of five), signed in pencil, inscribed 'An Frau Förster Nietzsche', printed by Clot, Paris, on greyish white China paper, framed
Provenance
A gift from the artist to Elisabeth Förster-Nietzsche (Elisabeth was the sister of Friedrich Nietzsche, the German philosopher); Norwegian Private Collection; Sotheby's, London, 30 May 2008, lot 221; acquired directly from the above.
Condition
With wide margins (unevenly trimmed at the left edge and the sheet corners), in good condition apart from a vertical repaired tear (measuring approx. 5cm) at centre of lower margin, three soft diagonal creases in lower left image and margin, the extreme sheet edges with pale paper toning and scattered minute repaired tears, framed.
"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 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."
Catalogue Note
Munch's first portrait of Strindberg misspelt the writer's name and incorporated the form of a naked woman in the decorative border, much to Strindberg's disgust. These compositional elements were subsequently removed from later impressions, as in the present example.
Munch first met Strindberg in Berlin in the autumn of 1892. As Michael Meyer writes: 'In Munch, Strindberg found a kindred spirit of his own calibre, such as he had never been lucky enough to encounter before, if one excludes his brief correspondence with Nietzsche' (Michael Meyer, Strindberg, A Biography, London, 1985, p. 256).
The two men fraternised at the wine cellar Türkes, popularly known as zum schwarzen Ferkel (the Black Porker), the preferred bohemian haunt for so many Scandinavians of a literary and artistic bent living in Berlin at the time. Soon after they met Munch painted Strindberg's portrait.
By the time they joined up again in Paris four years later, however, their relationship had soured. According to Munch Strindberg '...never said a word on arrival but merely laid a revolver on the table in front of him and stayed silent throughout the session.' In his convoluted version of events Strindberg noted in his diary: 'Munch got nervous, grew hysterical when he put on my coat; got up and went home to bed! Returned. Talked about women, like a woman' (quoted in Meyer, ibid., p. 339).
By the end of the decade Strindberg's enmity towards Munch was total. When an issue of the German magazine Quickborn containing Munch's illustrations of various of his works reached him Strindberg wrote to Richard Bergh: 'Tomorrow I shall send you Munch's latest horrible masterpieces. In seven years he hasn't had a new idea, nor even found a new subject to caricature' (quoted in Meyer, ibid., p. 390).
Munch first met Strindberg in Berlin in the autumn of 1892. As Michael Meyer writes: 'In Munch, Strindberg found a kindred spirit of his own calibre, such as he had never been lucky enough to encounter before, if one excludes his brief correspondence with Nietzsche' (Michael Meyer, Strindberg, A Biography, London, 1985, p. 256).
The two men fraternised at the wine cellar Türkes, popularly known as zum schwarzen Ferkel (the Black Porker), the preferred bohemian haunt for so many Scandinavians of a literary and artistic bent living in Berlin at the time. Soon after they met Munch painted Strindberg's portrait.
By the time they joined up again in Paris four years later, however, their relationship had soured. According to Munch Strindberg '...never said a word on arrival but merely laid a revolver on the table in front of him and stayed silent throughout the session.' In his convoluted version of events Strindberg noted in his diary: 'Munch got nervous, grew hysterical when he put on my coat; got up and went home to bed! Returned. Talked about women, like a woman' (quoted in Meyer, ibid., p. 339).
By the end of the decade Strindberg's enmity towards Munch was total. When an issue of the German magazine Quickborn containing Munch's illustrations of various of his works reached him Strindberg wrote to Richard Bergh: 'Tomorrow I shall send you Munch's latest horrible masterpieces. In seven years he hasn't had a new idea, nor even found a new subject to caricature' (quoted in Meyer, ibid., p. 390).