Titelblatt (title page) from Georg Heym: Umbra Vitae (Georg Heym: Shadow of Life)

1924

Ernst Ludwig Kirchner

Associated Names
Ernst Ludwig Kirchner
Artist, German, 1880 - 1938
Georg Heym
Author, German, born Poland, 1887 - 1912
Spamersche Buchdruckerei, Leipzig
Printer
Kurt Wolff
Publisher, German, 1887 - 1963
The image contains bold black and red shapes, including a central figure with outstretched arms. It shows elongated, curved lines forming a stylized face with hands on both sides. The composition is bordered by black letters spelling out "Georg Heym," "Umbra Vitae," and "Kurt Wolff Verlag München." The combination of forms and text creates a graphic impact.

Media Options

This object’s media is free and in the public domain. Read our full Open Access policy for images.
Not on view See artworks now on view

Artwork overview

  • Medium

    woodcut, printed in red and black, on wove paper from a bound volume with 50 woodcuts (including cover and front and back endpapers)

  • Credit Line

    Gift of Ruth Cole Kainen

  • Dimensions

    book: 23.8 × 16.5 × 1.2 cm (9 3/8 × 6 1/2 × 1/2 in.)

  • Accession Number

    2012.92.41.3

  • Catalogue Raisonné

    Dube 1980, nos. 611, 759-807

Associated Artworks

See all 50 artworks
The image displays a stylized profile of a person with their upper body visible, including the head, neck, and part of the shoulders. The person is shown in a side view facing left, with their left hand raised as if adjusting their glasses on their nose. The facial features are abstract, depicted with exaggerated lines for the eyes, nose, and mouth. The hair is portrayed as a simple dark mass, suggesting short, slicked-back hair. The artwork utilizes a limited color palette of primarily green and yellow shades with bold black outlines. The background contains a stylized design or texture, with the text "Georg Heym Umbravitae" displayed prominently at the top.

Bucheinband (cover) from Georg Heym: Umbra Vitae (Georg Heym: Shadow of Life)

Ernst Ludwig Kirchner, Georg Heym, Spamersche Buchdruckerei, Leipzig, Kurt Wolff
1924
This is a photograph of a book cover. The cover features a minimalist design with a centered title label on a plain background. The background is a muted green color that shows signs of wear and fading at the edges. The central label is a cream rectangle with bold black text. It reads "GEORG HEYM UMBRA VITAE" and mentions "MIT 47 ORIGINAL-HOLZSCHNITTEN VON ERNST LUDWIG KIRCHNER," followed by "KURT WOLFF VERLAG - MÜNCHEN." The cover conveys a vintage aesthetic, indicative of an era when typography and simple design played a central role in book presentation.

Georg Heym: Umbra Vitae (Georg Heym: The Shadow of Life)

Ernst Ludwig Kirchner, Georg Heym, Spamersche Buchdruckerei, Leipzig, Kurt Wolff
1924
The image contains bold black lines on a reddish background, forming abstract shapes. On the left are abstract faces with distinct features. On the right are two simplified human shapes walking.

Vorsatz (front endpapers) from Georg Heym: Umbra Vitae (Georg Heym: Shadow of Life)

Ernst Ludwig Kirchner, Georg Heym, Spamersche Buchdruckerei, Leipzig, Kurt Wolff
1924

Artwork history & notes

Provenance

(Sotheby's New York, November 14, 1985, lot 67); Ruth Cole Kainen [1922-2009], Washington, D.C. (Lugt 4739); gift to NGA, 2012.

Associated Names

Exhibition History

2014

  • Modern German Prints and Drawings from the Kainen Collection, National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC, 2014.

2024

  • The Anxious Eye: German Expressionism and Its Legacy, National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC, 2024.

You may be interested in

You may be interested in