Reclining Female Nude, Ernst Ludwig Kirchner | Mia

Reclining Female Nude, Ernst Ludwig Kirchner — Reclining Female Nude, c. 1923
Ernst Ludwig Kirchner
Watercolor, graphite, and oil pastel on paper
Gift of George Rickey 92.52
Not on View
One of Germany’s leading Expressionists, Ernst Ludwig Kirchner moved to Switzerland to find treatment for chemical dependency and mental illness. In Zurich, in 1921, he met the dancer Nina Hard and took her back to his home, despite the protests of his wife, Erna. Here we see Nina in Kirchner’s studio, and she’s also depicted in the picture within a picture at left.

As a young man, Kirchner looked to Henri Matisse for inspiration, drawing on the older artist’s practice of simplifying art and his focus on nudes, rhythmic patterning, and seemingly arbitrary colors. Yet far from merely imitating Matisse’s ideas, Kirchner drove them to extremes to express his own brand of primal emotion.

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Details

Title: Reclining Female Nude
Dated: c. 1923
Artist: Ernst Ludwig Kirchner
Nationality: German
Artist Life: 1880–1938
Role: Artist
Gallery: Not on View
Department: European Art
Dimension: 13 7/8 x 20 5/8 in. (35.24 x 52.39 cm) (sheet)
Credit: Gift of George Rickey
Accession Number: 92.52
Medium: Watercolor, graphite, and oil pastel on paper
Country: Germany
Century: 20th century
Provenance: Estate of Ernst Ludwig Kirchner (stamp verso); [Galerie Wilhelm Grosshennig, Dusseldorf, 1967]; George W. Rickey, East Chatham, New York (until 1992; gave to MIA).
Rights: Public Domain
Classification: Drawings
Object Name: Watercolor
Wikipedia: Cite this information
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Curator Approved: This record is from historic documentation and may not have been reviewed by a curator, so may be inaccurate or incomplete. Our records are frequently revised and enhanced. If you notice a mistake or have additional information about this object, please email collectionsdata@artsmia.org.

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