Bather on the Beach

1912/1913

Ernst Ludwig Kirchner

Associated Names
Ernst Ludwig Kirchner

Artist, German, 1880 - 1938

This is a drawing of a simplified human form amidst abstract shapes. The drawing features a minimalist representation of a body, sketched with fluid black lines, depicting the back of a figure. The figure is set against a backdrop of geometrically abstract elements, including a prominent triangle in the upper left corner and a curved form in the lower right. These abstract shapes are accented with dabs of blue color. The use of minimal lines suggests form while allowing broad interpretation. The strategic use of blue provides an aesthetic contrast to the monochrome sketching.

Media Options

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Artwork overview


Artwork history & notes

Provenance

Kirchner estate (Lugt 1570b, annotated: A Be/Bf 6). (Roman Norbert Ketterer, Lugano); Ruth Kainen, purchased October 31, 1979; gift to NGA, 1983.

Associated Names

Exhibition History

1983

  • Graphics Survey Exhibition, National Gallery of Art, Washington D.C., September 1983.

1992

  • Ernst Ludwig Kirchner: Paintings, Drawings, and Prints, National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., 1992.

Bibliography

1994

  • Berman, Patrica G., Modern Hieroglyphs: Gestural Drawing and the European Vanguard 1900-1918. Exh. cat. Davis Museum and Cultural Center, Wellesley, 1994, fig. 19 (not exhibited).

Inscriptions

lower right in crayon: EL Kirchner

Wikidata ID

Q64559832

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