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Lot Essay
Painted in 1901, Portrait Frau Gindus is an early work by Alexej von Jawlenksy. Born in Torzhok, Russia, Jawlenksy didn’t come to painting until his early twenties, after giving up a career with the Russian Imperial Guard. In 1889 he traveled to St. Petersburg to study under the historical painter Ilya Repin renowned for his realistic, psychologically compelling work. While in St. Petersburg, Jawlensky became enamored with the high society's costume balls and ballets. This period, though brief in his larger artistic career, solidified his interest in the human figure, especially faces, that would follow him well into his career, becoming the main subject of his later work.
By 1896 Jawlenksy was ready for something new. When moving to Munich, Germany, he was introduced to the vibrant colors of Fauvism and the new wave of German Expressionism. During his first few months in Munich, where he would go on to spend the majority of his career, he got to know some of the most influential avant-garde artists of the time. He kept company with Wassily Kandinsky and Gabriele Münter; in meeting Marianne von Werefkin, a formal pupil of Repin, he further developed his color palette and abstract tendencies. The following years would prove crucial to the development of his style, as his brushwork became increasingly confident and the boldness of the color nearly overpowering.
The present work is one of the earliest works painted upon his arrival to Munich. As the predecessor to later works of female sitters in lavish dress and bright colors, like Bildnis des Tänzer Sacharoff (Jawlensky, no. 205), his Potrait Frau Gindus is a testament to the artist's deep knowledge and appreciation for Vincent Van Gogh’s work, while simultaneously capturing the first signs of his own style. By utilizing a loose, airy, wet-on-wet paint style Jawlenksy juxtaposes Frau Gindus' red dress against a mustard yellow background as she rests her hands on her lap, looking longingly toward the viewer. Her headdress may have been a traditional German piece adopted from the bonnets of the 1870s, denoting the sense of formality and grandeur. Not publicly exhibited since 1965, the painting is an exquisite example of Jawlenksy’s prowess as a portraitist before his turn toward expressionism.
By 1896 Jawlenksy was ready for something new. When moving to Munich, Germany, he was introduced to the vibrant colors of Fauvism and the new wave of German Expressionism. During his first few months in Munich, where he would go on to spend the majority of his career, he got to know some of the most influential avant-garde artists of the time. He kept company with Wassily Kandinsky and Gabriele Münter; in meeting Marianne von Werefkin, a formal pupil of Repin, he further developed his color palette and abstract tendencies. The following years would prove crucial to the development of his style, as his brushwork became increasingly confident and the boldness of the color nearly overpowering.
The present work is one of the earliest works painted upon his arrival to Munich. As the predecessor to later works of female sitters in lavish dress and bright colors, like Bildnis des Tänzer Sacharoff (Jawlensky, no. 205), his Potrait Frau Gindus is a testament to the artist's deep knowledge and appreciation for Vincent Van Gogh’s work, while simultaneously capturing the first signs of his own style. By utilizing a loose, airy, wet-on-wet paint style Jawlenksy juxtaposes Frau Gindus' red dress against a mustard yellow background as she rests her hands on her lap, looking longingly toward the viewer. Her headdress may have been a traditional German piece adopted from the bonnets of the 1870s, denoting the sense of formality and grandeur. Not publicly exhibited since 1965, the painting is an exquisite example of Jawlenksy’s prowess as a portraitist before his turn toward expressionism.