Max Beckmann
1884-1950
Woman with Cigarette
1946
12 1/8 x 9 3/8 inches (30.7 x 23.9 cm)
Graphite pencil on paper.
2005.124
Bequest of Fred Ebb.
© Max Beckmann / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York
Notes
Beckmann, who is best known for his large allegorical paintings, was forced to leave Germany in 1937 after Hitler declared his work "degenerate." This lively sketch, created while he lived in exile in Amsterdam, explores a prevalent theme in his work: the relationship between the sexes. The woman whose face dominates the composition is the subject of attention of two men, visible only in fragments. The graphic energy and the compact composition accentuate the tension of this scene of jealousy and seduction.
Inscriptions/Markings
Signed, lower right, in graphite pencil, with "B" monogram and dated "6.8.46"; inscribed at lower center, in graphite pencil, "Frau m. Zigarette / Woman with Zigarette" (sic).
Artist
Classification
Century Drawings
Catalog link
Department