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Lot Essay
Ralph Jentsch has confirmed the authenticity of this work.
With the ascent of Hitler and his assumption of the chancellorship in 1933, Grosz left his native Berlin and moved to New York with his wife Eva. He arrived safely in late January, by March the exiled artist was stripped of his German citizenship, in May his books and portfolios were among those burned publicly, and July saw some of his assets stripped and the closure of his dealer Alfred Flechtheim's gallery.
Against such an ominous political backdrop, Grosz embraced America, teaching at the Art Students League, taking on significant commissions for illustration from Vanity Fair and other prominent magazines, and, as in the present work, painting the bustle of New York and the sleepier environs of Cape Cod. The teeming New York Harbor, the entryway into his adopted home, captures both the sense of adventure which captivated the artist on arrival and its vigorous welcome: "Grosz's time in America stimulated him, kept him alive, and helped keep his life on track. He cared deeply about the work he was doing while he was doing it" (J.M. Judin, ed., George Grosz, The Years in America, 1933-1958, exh. cat., Nolan Judin, Berlin, 2009, p. 23).
With the ascent of Hitler and his assumption of the chancellorship in 1933, Grosz left his native Berlin and moved to New York with his wife Eva. He arrived safely in late January, by March the exiled artist was stripped of his German citizenship, in May his books and portfolios were among those burned publicly, and July saw some of his assets stripped and the closure of his dealer Alfred Flechtheim's gallery.
Against such an ominous political backdrop, Grosz embraced America, teaching at the Art Students League, taking on significant commissions for illustration from Vanity Fair and other prominent magazines, and, as in the present work, painting the bustle of New York and the sleepier environs of Cape Cod. The teeming New York Harbor, the entryway into his adopted home, captures both the sense of adventure which captivated the artist on arrival and its vigorous welcome: "Grosz's time in America stimulated him, kept him alive, and helped keep his life on track. He cared deeply about the work he was doing while he was doing it" (J.M. Judin, ed., George Grosz, The Years in America, 1933-1958, exh. cat., Nolan Judin, Berlin, 2009, p. 23).