Self-Portrait in Front of Stairs (Selbst vor Treppe)

1922

Walter Gramatté

Associated Names
Walter Gramatté

Artist, German, 1897 - 1929

The image shows a portrait of a person from the shoulders up, facing forward with a direct gaze. Their facial features are stylized with bold colors, including large green eyes. The person has short, parted hair with reflective highlights suggesting a blonde shade. They wear a blue garment with a bow around the neck and a hint of a patterned shirt collar underneath. The background includes a light-painted wall, a staircase visible through an open doorway on the left, and a tall window with a crossbar on the right. The composition is colorful and expressive.

Media Options

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Artwork overview

  • Medium

    watercolor over graphite

  • Credit Line

    Gift of Ruth Cole Kainen

  • Dimensions

    sheet: 48.5 x 37.5 cm (19 1/8 x 14 3/4 in.)

  • Accession Number

    2012.92.768

Artwork history & notes

Provenance

The artist's widow, Sophie-Carmen [called Sonia] Fridman-Gramatté, later Sonia Eckhardt-Gramatté [1899-1974]; (sold via C.G. Boerner, Düsseldorf), to Ruth Cole Kainen [1922-2009], Washington, D.C. (Lugt 4739), purchased 7 September 1989; gift to NGA 2012.

Associated Names

Exhibition History

1966

  • Walter Gramatté 1897-1929: Paintings, Drawings, Prints. National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa, 1966, no. 40 (nor reprod.)(cat. by Ferdinand Eckhardt and R. H. Hubbard).

1982

  • Walter Gramatté 1897-1929: 71 x selbst. Aquarelle, Zeichnungen, Druckgraphik. Brücke-Museum, Berlin, 1982, no. 23, pl. 11 (color).

1989

  • Walter Gramatté 1897-1929: Gemälde und Arbeiten auf Papier. Staatsgalerie moderner Kunst, Munich, 1989, no. 107 (color).

Bibliography

1081

  • Walter Gramatté: Bilder und Aquarelle/Paintings and Watercolours. Winnipeg, 1981 (published privately by Estate S.C. Eckhardt-Gramatté): A. 133 (color).

Inscriptions

by artist, lower right, in brush and wash: W.G. 22; by artist, verso lower margin, in graphite: 6) Walter Gramatté, Selbst mit Treppe, 1922; by later hand, verso lower left, in blue pencil: 61 [circled]; by artist, verso lower right, in purple pencil: Selbstbildnis / Gramatté 22 / (Treppe links)

Markings

stamp, verso lower center, in black ink: R; stamp, verso upper left, in purple ink: ZOLLAMT KORNHAUS[covered by hinge]

Wikidata ID

Q64634030

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