Dead Men before the Position near Tahure (Tote vor der Stellung bei Tahure)

1924

Otto Dix

Associated Names
Otto Dix

Artist, German, 1891 - 1969

Otto Felsing

Printer, German, 1854 - 1920

Karl Nierendorf

Publisher, German, 1889 - 1947

This is a drawing of two decaying skeletal heads facing each other. The image depicts two skulls with detailed deteriorated features. The skulls have empty eye sockets and visible teeth, with textures that suggest decay and erosion. The drawing uses a monochromatic color palette of blacks and grays to emphasize the morbid atmosphere, with high contrast between shadows and highlights that accentuate the contours and textures of the skulls. The background is minimal, focusing on the interaction between the two heads. The style emphasizes macabre and grotesque elements.
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Artwork overview

  • Medium

    etching and aquatint on laid paper

  • Credit Line

    Print Purchase Fund (Rosenwald Collection)

  • Dimensions

    plate: 19 x 25.6 cm (7 1/2 x 10 1/16 in.)
    sheet: 34.8 x 47.3 cm (13 11/16 x 18 5/8 in.)

  • Accession Number

    1971.10.2

  • Catalogue Raisonné

    Karsch 1970, no. 119

  • Series Title

    Der Krieg

Artwork history & notes

Exhibition History

2024

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

Bibliography

1970

  • Karsch, Florian. Otto Dix; das graphische Werke.Hannover: Fackeltrager-Verlag Schmidt-Kuster, 1970.

1997

  • Richler, Martha. National Gallery of Art, Washington: A World of Art. London, 1997: 178-179, fig. 17.

Inscriptions

recto, lower left below image, in graphite: 5/70; lower center below image, in graphite: X; lower right below images, signed, in graphite: Dix; lower right sheet, in graphite: 1567kk25
verso, stamp in brown ink, in oval: WALRAF RICHARTZ MUSEUM KOLN; lower left sheet in brown ink: 25939; lower left sheet, in graphite: MA

Wikidata ID

Q65511445

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