LONDON.- This September, Sotheby’s will offer at auction an important group of prints by the German Expressionist artist, Ernst Ludwig Kirchner. Covering the Dresden period of Die Brücke, Kirchner's subsequent stay in Berlin, and the years he spent living in Davos in the Swiss Alps, the collection brings together woodcuts, lithographs and an etching from key stages in the artist’s career. The six works, which have a combined total estimate of £406,000-598,000, come to sale from a distinguished European collection and form part of Sotheby’s London auction of Prints & Multiples on 27 September 2016.

Lucy Rosenburgh, Sotheby’s Prints Specialist, said: “Kirchner pushed printmaking to its limits and this stunning group is a superb showcase for his range and virtuosity.”

HIGHLIGHTS

Promenade vor dem Café (Kaiser-Café Berlin) The very rare lithograph printed in black and pink, 1914 Estimate £80,000-120,000 / €95,500-144,000
Kirchner's Berlin street scenes, produced between 1914 and 1915 in oil, watercolour, etching, woodcut, and lithographs, are the most celebrated body of work of his career. The group of prints in the sale is led by Promenade vor dem Café (Kaiser-Cafe Berlin), the very rare lithograph of 1914, printed in black and pink, and one of seven recorded impressions. Owing to the experimental nature of Kirchner's technique and the individuality of each handpulled print, each impression has a unique quality. The city's energy and the dark glamour of its inhabitants – prostitutes in dramatic plumed hats, and top-hatted gentleman in long coats – reach a state of near abstraction in this lithograph. The arch of a large glass window in the background shelters a lively interior scene; on the street outside, three figures parade across the foreground.

Zwei Frauen Lithograph printed in black and orange, 1914, a rich, textured impression of this very rare print, one of only two known impressions printed in colours Estimate £100,000-150,000 / €120,000-179,000
Zwei Frauen of 1914 is one of two known impressions printed in orange; the other impression is in the collection of the National Gallery of Art in Washington. For Kirchner, the female nude was a vehicle for social revolution, and an emblem of ambivalent eroticism. Employing the formal language of primitive art forms, he challenged the conventional depiction of the nude in early 20th century German art.

Akte auf einem Teppich The very rare woodcut, 1910, a strong impression showing the grain of the wood, the second state (of three), one of three known impressions and the only known on this paper Estimate £60,000-80,000 / €72,000-95,500
Of the three known impressions of Akte auf einem Teppich, this is the only known version on canary yellow wove paper. As a founding member of Die Brücke (The Bridge) – formed in 1905 with the aim of reinvigorating modern German art – Kirchner forged links between old and new art forms through his paintings and prints. One key medium that the group re-energised was the woodcut, which was considered an appropriate medium through which to pay tribute to German art of centuries past, whilst reinventing style and subject matter. The study and depiction of the nude became a central subject for Die Brücke, as Kirchner aimed to depict the human body in its natural environment, free of academic constraints. In Atke auf einem Teppich, the geometric lines and twisting motions of the female bodes imbue the scene with dynamic movement. A frequent visitor to the ethnographic museum in Dresden, Kirchner was drawn to sculptures originating in the Pacific islands. The angular, sparse forms of the models faces in this woodcut demonstrate how he integrated Oceanic art forms into his works.

Drei Badende, Moritzburg The rare woodcut printed in blue, green and black, 1910, the second (final) state, one of only five known impressions printed in colours Estimate £80,000-120,000 / €95,500-144,000
In 1910, shortly before moving to Berlin, Kirchner returned to Moritzburg for the summer, accompanied by the artists Erich Heckel and Max Pechstein, where they developed a unified style notable for its flatness of form and stylised angularity. The Brücke group habitually migrated to the countryside for the summer with the intention of studying the human figure in the context of a natural setting. Kirchner’s casual attitude to nudity combined with the overt eroticism threading through his work was a form of social rebellion, in keeping with the tenets of their 1906 manifesto. Quick to make and cheap to produce, the woodcut became a vehicle for experimentation and expression, and offered the Brücke artists the opportunity of exposure to a wide audience.

Drei Akte im Walde Woodcut, 1933, a vibrant impression, the colours fresh, printed from seven blocks in turquoise, blue, red, yellow, dark-green, ochre and lightgreen, the rare fourth state (of five), one of approximately 30 known impressions in various states and colours Estimate £80,000-120,000 / €95,500-144,000
Kirchner’s stay in Berlin from the beginning of the 20th century was cut short by the First World War, during which time he suffered a nervous breakdown. He finally settled in Davos, following sojourns in German and Swiss sanatoriums, and spent the rest of his life there. Away from Berlin’s decadence, the artist’s health gradually improved and he experienced an artistic rebirth by focusing on the beauty of the landscape and the local people. Depicting three nude figures in a wooded landscape, Drei Atke im Walde bridges the gap between Kirchner’s early bathing scenes and his subsequent rediscovery of nature. The curved lines of the bodies and the ‘spotlight’ effect are conceits that Kirchner developed between 1928 and 1931.

Augustfeuer
The very rare etching, 1923, printing with selectively wiped platetone, a strong impression of the only state Estimate £6,000-8,000 / €7,200-9,600
Augustfeuer was produced in 1923, a turbulent year for Kirchner, when his doctor at Park Sanatorium in Davos died unexpectedly, and he was forced to move home. The appointment of a new doctor – Doctor Bauer – provided Kirchner with some stability. Bauer became a lifelong friend and a significant patron, and his collection in Davos included this extremely rare etching. Kirchner revisited the subject of Augustfeuer multiple times, in both paintings and etchings.