LYONEL FEININGER

The authenticity of the work has been confirmed by Achim Moeller, director of the Lyonel Feininger Project LLC, New York, Berlin. It is registered in the Archiv of the Lyonel Feininger Project under the number 1419-02-15-17.

Provenance:
- Collection Wolfgang Gurlitt, Munich.
- Collection Dr. Hans Werner Riedel and Dr. Ralf Dieter Loher-Riedel, Munich.

Exhibitions:
- Berlin-Wittenau 1961, Rathaus Reinickendorf, Kunstamt Reinickendorf, „Lyonel Feininger: Aquarelle, Zeichnungen, Lithographien, Radierungen“, 30 September - 29 October, no. 19 (Romanze an der Meeresküste, with ill.).
- Dortmund 1962, Museum am Ostwall, „Lyonel Feininger - Kleine Blätter: The Intimate World of Lyonel Feininger”, 23 May - 17 June, no. 11 of the annexe „Aus der Sammlung Wolfgang Gurlitt“ (Romanze an der Meeresküste [Romance at the Seaside]).

In 1937 Feininger and his second wife moved to New York, the city where he had lived until he was 16 years old. Despite popularity in Europe, the name Feininger was largely unknown in America, which was difficult for the artist to handle at first. He eventually tried to warm up to the new city and increasingly dealt with the buildings of the New York metropolis. He created his first paintings and etchings of Manhattan and its skyscrapers. Despite gradual acceptance, he never let go of his homeland which is very evident in his work. While still living in Germany, Feininger had spent most of his holidays at the seaside, on the Baltic Sea, where he observed the roaring waves and the passing ships. During that time, hundreds of sketches were created which captured his impressions and ideas and which accompanied him to America in 1937. This enthusiasm for the sea and the boats lasted for a lifetime and captivated his memories even during his time in America.

Through the sketches and notes that Feininger brought to New York, a number of new works were created recalling his Baltic holidays. The present drawing, rendered in ink and watercolour, is a splendid example of his work at that time. It shows a typical Feininger composition of a frontal view in which the artist depicted the sea with ship and persons before it. It additionally shows the black framing of the coloured area which appears in nearly all his drawings. The slanted horizon, with the steamship formally floating against the current, the very bold colours as well as the tripartite combination of two women and one man in the foreground, together with the title "Romance at the seaside", leaves the viewer much room for interpretation to create a very interesting story of his own.