Rudolf Jettmar (1869-1939) Symbolist Artist: Expulsion of Adam and Eve from the Garden of Eden

eBay Austria has an interesting listing this morning by the famous Symbolist painter Rudolf Jettmar (1869-1939). The title is "The Expulsion of Adam and Eve from the Garden of Eden." It is composed of two of my favorite themes in art: "The Nude" and "Adam & Eve." The mythology of Adam and Eve is but a good opportunity for an artist to bring together both the male and the female nudes in one composition, something not often seen in purely academic art. The theme itself has a long history in Art and has been worked and reworked until it has become a cliche, however, an enjoyable cliche to me.

Rudolf Jettmar was a Viennese painter and print maker who was born in Poland in the mid 19th century. In fact he was a founding member of the Vienna Secession and created many works for the groups magazine. Jettmar was an important representative of the European Symbolist Movement. In 1895 he took the Prix de Rome and studied for six months in Italy. The main themes of his works are drawn from mythology, always using the human figure, nude and clothed, against a background of moody heroic landscapes. In 1911 he was made Professor of the Vienna Academy of Fine Arts and until 1914 was at the heart of Viennese Art. In 1925 he took over the position of Professor of the general painting course at the academy. Jettmar was also an accomplished chamber musician and that influence can be readily seen in his compositions and use of color.
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Here are but a few of Jettmar's works:

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Peter Trumm (Jean-Pierre Joseph Trumm)(1888-1966) Woodcut with Nude Figures - 1910

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Several weeks ago I introduced you to the artist Peter Trumm (1888-1966). Trumm studied at the Academies of Karlsruhe and Munich. I managed to buy an original woodcut by the artist on eBay Germany last week and it arrived today. It was a bargain price wise, even considering the shipping was three times the cost of the print. I am a bit mystified, however, by the subject matter but it is, to say the least, interesting. I am not sure what is going on, most probably a scene from mythology. I scanned it and stitched the two parts together. Enjoy.
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Caption: Nude figures in Landscape
Artist: Peter Trumm (1888-1966)
Materials: Woodcut on thin Japan paper
Dated: Signed, circa 1910

Fritz Douzette (1878-1955): Pencil drawing, Nude Boy, After Prof. Georg Sturm (1855-1923) Allegory of the Hunt

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I was browsing an eBay seller's listings in Germany yesterday and I ran across a small drawing of a nude boy that on first appearance appeared to be a preliminary study for a larger work. The seller indicated the drawing was from the estate of Fritz Douzette (1878-1955) and attributed the drawing to him solely upon the "Nachlass Fritz Douzette" stamp on the back of the drawing, but I immediately recognized the subject as coming from a series of allegorical murals done by Professor Georg Sturm (1855-1923). It is not really clear whether Douzette copied the figure from a print (first illustration below and above) or if the drawing was a study by Sturm himself and just part of Douzette's estate collection. Without that key signature on the drawing, we may never know. Anyway, the small pencil drawing is a nice academic study, perhaps created for nothing but the sheer admiration of the original.
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Dr. Georg Sturm (1855-1923) Allegory of the Hunt

Fritz Douzette (1878-1955) Nude Boy, after Allegory of the Hunt, from the estate of the artist.

Maxmillian "Max" Barduleck (1846-1923) Academic Pencil Drawing: Seated Male Nude 1864

Yesterday the Max Barduleck (1864-1923) drawing arrived from Germany. When I took it out of its shipping container and looked at it for the first time I had to catch my breath. It is truly a beautiful work of art. The detail of the drawing is amazing, down to the shadows on the fingernails. The fact that the artist was only 18 years old when he completed the drawing is just astounding to me. I scanned it just as a teaser. It came in a shrink wrapped mat and when I get time I will take it out of the protective container and scan it in more detail. Enjoy
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Caption: Seated Male Nude

Artist: Max Barduleck (1846-1923)

Material: Graphite pencil on Paper (35cm x 28cm)

Dated: Signed and dated 1864

Anonymous German Artist: Male Nude - Nude Boy - 1900 - 19th Century Drawing Technique in Progress

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The two auction drawings from Koblenz, Germany arrived on Monday (above). The drawing of the male nude reaching out with closed fist on the left is somewhat mediocre and problematic but the drawing on the right (above and below), especially the larger drawing of the male nude on the left hand side of the paper, is a nice example of 19th century drawing techniques in progress. I have scanned the drawing life sized and reduced it by 50% so that you can see the detail of the original drawing. If you look closely you can see the light contour drawing of the overall figure and if you move from the feet up to the top of the model's head you can actually see the process the artist has used to complete the drawing. The artist has started the process by outlining the various planes of the body where lights, mid-tones, and darks will ultimately fall. This is a great example of graining, meaning the artist has created solid areas of shade with no separate strokes visible. As you travel up the body you can see how the artist has used hatching and cross-hatching to model the various soft planes and musculature of the body. Examining the drawing further, I do not believe the artist made it to the next step in drawing, stumping, where lights and darks are blended.
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Caption: Male Nude

Artist: Unknown

Material: Pencil on paper

Dated February 2, 1900

Max Seliger (1865-1920): Semi-Nude Male - The Dying Soldier

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This afternoon I bought this beautiful pencil sketch of a semi-nude male posed as a dying soldier by German Artist Max Seliger (1865-1920) on eBay Germany. It is very reminiscent of those drawings of wounded soldiers by the American Artist John Singer Sargent which were sketched by Sargent during the Great War. It is obviously a preparatory sketch for a larger work. The work is very moving and the classic training behind that accomplished hand is very obvious. Looking at this drawing one can see how the artist accomplished a stunning outcome of a fairly complicated modeled pose. The head and arms appear to be horizontal to the picture plane, the chest is twisted into that flat plane and the hips are twisted even further, causing fairly extreme foreshortening of the right leg and a somewhat by a lesser amount of foreshortening on that left leg. All that complicated twisting of the figure would have caused some problems for any drawing student but Seliger has brought if all off admirably.

Max Seliger attended the Royal School of Art in Berlin and later at the Institution of Decorative Arts in Berlin. He was a student of Max Friedrich Koch. From 1894, Seliger was an instructor at that same institution. In 1901 he became director of the Academy of Graphic Arts and Printing Arts in Leipzig. While there, he undertook the reorganization of the institute. In 1914 he founded the Leipzig Book Fair for Trade and Graphics. During his career, Seliger created murals and mosaics for many public buildings, including the Reichstag and Calvary Church in the suburb of Oranienburg in Berlin and for the entrance hall of the German Library in Leipzig.
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Caption: The Dying Soldier

Artist: Max Seliger (1865-1920)

Medium: Pencil on Paper (35cm by 24cm)(13.75 in by 9.5 in)

Dated: 1899

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Here are a few additional examples of Seliger's works:

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French Drawings: XVI-XIX Centuries

Last night I found and bought a copy of the book: French Drawings - 16th to 19th Centuries by Gillian Kennedy and Ann Thackray of the Courtauld Institute of Art. The book is a paperback edition published by the University of London. It should be arriving sometime in the next two weeks and when I get my hands on it I will do a book review for you and post a few of the illustrations. The Courtauld Institute of Art houses one of the most significant collections of works on paper in Britain. It comprises approximately 6,000 drawings and watercolors and some 20,000 prints. The collection ranges from the late Middle Ages to the 20th century avant-garde. A small Museum in London that should be on any comprehensive tour.
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