Lyonel Feininger
1871 - 1956

Kopf. Ca. 1916/17.
Fir Wood, painted in India ink.
Ca. 32 x 15 x 23 cm (12.5 x 5.9 x 9 in).
Probably the only wooden head of this size in Lyonel Feininger's oeuvre. Beyond that, only two comparable works (presumably in plaster), which are also attributed to the artist, are documented in photographs. [AR].

• From the estate of the artist's son, T. Lux Feininger.
• This is the first time it is offered on the international auction market.
• Extremely rare. Probably the only wooden head of this size in Lyonel Feininger's oeuvre.
• Strong simplification of form and geometrization of surface: it almost seems as if Feininger transferred the “prismatism” of his painting into three-dimensionality.
• At the time of its creation, the artist had his first solo exhibition at the gallery “Der Sturm” in Berlin in 1917; a few years later, he was appointed to the Bauhaus in Weimar.

Achim Moeller, Director of the Lyonel Feininger Project, New York–Berlin, has confirmed the authenticity of this work, which is registered in the Lyonel Feininger Project archive under number 2024-10-08-25. The work is accompanied by a certificate.
Additional information was provided by Achim Moeller, The Lyonel Feininger Project, New York – Berlin.

PROVENANCE: Estate of the artist, New York.
Theodore Lux (T. Lux) Feininger, Cambridge, MA (inherited).
Estate of T. Lux Feininger, MA (inherited).

EXHIBITION: Lyonel Feininger: Menschenbilder. Eine unbekannte Welt, Hamburger Kunsthalle, October 24, 2003–February 1, 2004, cat. no. 103, p. 152 (here as “Kopf einer Frau” and dated 1916/17, with color ill. p. 108).
Lyonel Feininger: Retrospective in Japan, Yokosuka Museum of Art, Yokosuka, August 2–October 5, 2008, Aichi Prefectural Museum of Art, Higashisakura, October 17–December 23, 2008, Miyagi Museum of Art, Sendai, January 10–March 1, 2009, cat. no. 051, p. 195 (here as “Kopf eines Mannes” and dated 1916/17, illustrated in color on p. 65).