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Four nude figures stand on the shore of a pond, amid dense foliage

Chunky, bold black lines outline four semi-abstract figures that stand at the edge of a pond, indicated by a large black half-oval extending in from the left. A grassy shore and dense vegetation are indicated by bright green shapes that mass along the bottom, curve around the right side, and then recede in the distance beyond the pond along the top. Two figures at right stand in the foreground on the shore, holding thin reeds, while the other two do likewise, just beyond them in shallow water at center-left. While they lack distinct facial features, the figures, simplified pale orange shapes, show animated gestures.

Identification and Creation

Object Number
BR58.190
People
Ernst Ludwig Kirchner, German (Aschaffenburg am Main, Germany 1880 - 1938 Davos, Switzerland)
Title
Bathers Tossing Reeds
Other Titles
Original Language Title: Mit Schilf werfende Badende
Classification
Prints
Work Type
print
Date
1909
Culture
German
Persistent Link
https://hvrd.art/o/223237

Physical Descriptions

Medium
Woodcut printed in black, green, and red inks on off-white wove paper
Technique
Woodcut
Dimensions
block: 20 x 29.1 cm (7 7/8 x 11 7/16 in.)
sheet: 32.5 x 44 cm (12 13/16 x 17 5/16 in.)
Inscriptions and Marks
  • Signed: in graphite at l.r.: ELKirchner
  • stamp: on verso at c.c., brown ink, German: KUNSTHALLE ZU HAMBURG [crossed out in graphite]
  • inscription: on verso at c.c., graphite, handwritten: 1950/89
  • stamp: on verso at u.r., brown ink, German: Kunsthalle / Hamburg / aus dem kupferstich- / Kab. ausgeschieden / am:
  • inscription: on verso at u.r., graphite, handwritten: 29.IX.1956 [within the area of the kupferstich-Kabinett stamp]

State, Edition, Standard Reference Number

Standard Reference Number
Dube I 160; Sch. 121

Acquisition and Rights

Credit Line
Harvard Art Museums/Busch-Reisinger Museum, Gift of Charles L. Kuhn in memory of Louis W. Black
Accession Year
1958
Object Number
BR58.190
Division
Modern and Contemporary Art
Contact
am_moderncontemporary@harvard.edu
Permissions

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Exhibition History

  • From Impressionism to the Bauhaus: German Master Prints from the Harvard Collection, Busch-Reisinger Museum, Cambridge, 05/19/1981 - 06/29/1981
  • From the Realists to the Expressionists: Works on Paper by Central European Artists from 1870 to 1918, Busch-Reisinger Museum, Cambridge, 03/14/1983 - 04/29/1983
  • Ancient to Modern, Harvard Art Museums, Cambridge, 01/31/2012 - 06/01/2013
  • 32Q: 1440 Secessionism: Munich, Vienna, Berlin (Expressionism), Harvard Art Museums, Cambridge, 09/04/2021 - 04/04/2022

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Verification Level

This record has been reviewed by the curatorial staff but may be incomplete. Our records are frequently revised and enhanced. For more information please contact the Division of Modern and Contemporary Art at am_moderncontemporary@harvard.edu