Erich Heckel

Erich Heckel
1883-1970
Half-Length Portrait of a Woman
1913-1914
Charcoal pencil on laid paper.
22 5/8 x 15 1/4 inches (57.5 x 38.8 cm)
Bequest of Fred Ebb.
© Erich Heckel / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York
2005.133
Notes: 

Heckel was a key member of the Brücke (Bridge) group of German Expressionist artists. This drawing dates to the period of 1911-1913 when the group was based in Berlin. Heckel was drawn to African sculpture, which he studied at the ethnographic museums of Dresden and Berlin, and its influence can be seen here. The subject's head appears much too big in relation to her right arm, which is folded against her chest with her hand holding her neck. The thick contour lines, the angularity of the shapes, and the bold contrast between light and dark give the drawing a sculptural quality, which is also reminiscent of Heckel's extensive work in woodcut.

Inscription: 

Signed and dated at lower right, in graphite pencil, "Heckel 1913/14".

Provenance: 
Allan Frumkin Gallery, New York; from which acquired by Fred Ebb, New York, in 1978.
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