Ernst Ludwig Kirchner
Kinderköpfchen. 1906
Oil on cardboard. 48,4 x 50,2 cm (19 x 19.7 in)
Estimate: € 600 000-800 000

The range of offers comprises:
1) Modern Art
2) Post War/Contemporary Art

1) Modern Art

This section is headed by Ernst Ludwig Kirchner‘s work "Kinderköpfchen" from 1906. Inspired by the art of van Gogh, Impressionist elements mix with the strong strokes of the brush that already hint at an elementary-expressive statement. The arrangement of the background as well as the coloring itself show notions of Art Nouveau. The painting clearly exemplifies the path this important artist was on, how Kirchner’s strong will helped him to conquer new artistic territories. The estimate is at € 600 000-800 000.

Four works by Gabriele Münter are also in top position, led by "Landschaft mit Haus in Oberau", which was made between 1908 and 1912, a time of change for the art of Münter. It was in those days that she discovered new perspectives, making her way from Impressionism to something that she described as "feeling the content - abstraction - delivering an extraction". The work has been estimated at € 200 000-300 000. While the 1919 work "Vom weißen Busch" will enter the race at € 90 000-120 000, the two paintings "Landschaft am Meer" from 1919 and "Landschaft mit Kindern" (around 1935) have been estimated at € 100 000-150 000.

Other big shots in this section are László Moholy-Nagy with his 1919 oil painting which has been estimated at € 140 000-180 000 and Conrad Felixmüller and his "Tiggaren, der Bettler", a watercolor from 1924. The socio-critical motif of the needy beggar in the foreground is contrasted with a fresh coloring that gives the overall composition a positive atmosphere. The estimate is at € 100 000-150 000.

The auto-didactic artist Richard Ziegler achieved what others did not manage even after several attempts: In no time he was part of the German avant-garde, exhibiting together with Dix and Grosz in the "Novembergruppe". His oil painting "Die Polizei" from 1929 depicts a life on the edge which was nowhere else in Europe celebrated with such an intensity as it was the case in Berlin in the 1920s. The artists regard the falling social barriers as a mirror image of a society that does not want to subordinate to any rules whatsoever. The estimate is at € 50 000-70 000.

Besides Emil Nolde's watercolor "Marschlandschaft" from around 1935, August Macke's India ink drawing "Morgenpromenade" from 1913 and a "Liegender Akt" by Christian Rohlfs will be called up with estimates between € 40 000-60 000 each. The latter is represented with five other works, among them the oil painting "Blick auf Ehringsdorf bei Weimar" (estimate: € 30 000-40 000) and the tempera work "Anthurie" (estimate: € 28 0000-34 000). Other important works come from renowned artists such as Willi Baumeister ("Formen figural-dreiteilig", estimate: € 80 000-100 000), Paul Klee ("Der Verliebte", estimate: € 22 000-26 000), Franz Marc ("Zwei Rehe im Walde", estimate: € 30 000-50 000), Pablo Picasso ("Grande Tête de Femme au Chapeau Orné', estimate: € 60 000-80 000), Pierre-Auguste Renoir ("Le Chapeau Epingle", estimate: € 75 000-95 000) and Wols ("Masque rouge", estimate: € 35 000-45 000).

on 2) Post War/Contemporary Art

In this section Martin Kippenberger's three-piece oil painting "Kleiner Verkehr (Kreuzung Hauptstraße-Gerwigstraße, St. Georgen) - Nach Witzleben links - Capri Nr. 8" occupies the top position. In terms of form the artist refers to the triptych, however, as far as the topic is concerned Kippenberger broke with its typical characteristics. For instance, he plays with the observer’s habitual mechanisms of reception as none of the three scenes is declared to be the work’s actual central motif. It is merely the traffic motifs, being on the road to an unknown destination that these three parts seem to have in common. Kippenberger himself was a seeker and a restless character throughout his life. Trying to escape conventions and seeking innovation and recognition he wandered from city to city. In this respect this unusual work can also be seen as an impressive profile of a restless artist’s personality.

Martin Kippenberger
Kleiner Verkehr (Kreuzung Hauptstraße-Gerwigstraße, St. Georgen)-Nach Witzleben links-Capri Nr. 8
Oil on canvas. 1981/82. Each 50 x 60 cm (19.6 x 23.6 in each)
Estimate: € 250 000-350 000

Estimated at € 140 000-180 000 Günther Uecker's large format nail work "Weißer Schrei" also counts among the top lots of this section. One can look forward in excitement to when this work, as well as two other works with estimates of € 50 0000-70 000 and € 60 0000-80 000 respectively, will be called up, particularly as two works by the ZERO artist realized increases of 81%* and 115%* respectively in the last auction at Ketterer.

At € 90 000-120 000 each Johann Georg Müller's oil painting "Maskerade" and Jörg Immendorff's bronze "Affe mit Malerpalette" will enter the race. His other work "Adler von rechts drehend" can perhaps be obtained for as little as € 50"000-70"000.

German art is rated high at the moment, that also accounts for oil paintings by Gerhard Richter. His work "Grün-Blau-Rot" from 1993 counts among the artist’s most abstarct creations, in which the conceived color application trails away in a seemingly coincidental color haze after it had been processed with a coating knife. The estimate of this impressive depiction of the clandestine is at € 60 000-80 000. The same accounts for his "11.2.88" from 1988.

A similar amount is asked for by Hans Hartung's acrylic work "T1965-R10". The work, made in 1965, seems improvised, as if spontaneously cast onto the canvas, but this impression, intended by the artist, is wrong. His works are based on a large number of sketches and considerations.

Markus Lüpertz examined the world of everyday objects in the late 1960s. "Wäsche auf der Leine (Dithyrambisch)" is a prime example of this work complex. The artist made a white sheet and two wooden posts the protagonists of this glue-bound distemper work which carries an estimate of € 40 000-60 000.

The transition from two- to three-dimensionality is picked out as the central issue by Stephan Balkenhol with his wood sculpture "Stehender Mann". His construction of a console mounted to the wall, emphasizes the connection with architecture. Thus his obvious figures mark their location and seize space, however, without becoming all too present. The estimate is at € 40 000-60 000.

Other important German artists in this auction are, among others, Horst Antes, Fritz Koenig, Markus Lüpertz, Sigmar Polke and Neo Rauch. International representatives are Marino Marini and his relief "Cavallo" (Taxe: € 40 000-60 000) from Italy. Whereas the USA are represented by, for instance Keith Haring ("Tree and Flower", estimate: € 28 000-38 000), Sol LeWitt (portfolio: Grids and Colour, estimate: € 30 000-50 000) and Julian Schnabel ( "Untitled-FF" , estimate: € 30 000-40 000), finally Anish Kapoor represents India with his "Shadow II" (estimate: € 25 000-35 000).

Last but definitely not least Kazuo Shiraga must be mentioned, who is going to captivate the observer with his striking oil painting "Yugi" from 1994, on which the paint makes for a massive relief of a couple of centimeters and thus adds the unique haptics to Shiraga's energetic creation that can only be attained through the unusual painting method.

Works by Shiraga, who is regarded a precursor of Japanese Action Painting, can be regarded as happenings, because of their body-focussed process of creation, in which the artist applies the paint with his feet. The estimate for this 145,2 x 112 cm large work is at € 80 000-120 000