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A landscape painting with three horses in shades of red in the foreground.

The painting is a landscape with three horses standing on a yellow and green surface, two are muted orange with blue and purple manes, the neck of the horse on the right is bent down, the horse on the left has two raised hooves, head facing left. Between and behind is a pinkish-brown horse facing away with head the head raised. There is a blue and black mass in lower right corner with uneven edges. The background is an undulating series of round shapes in pink, green, and gray. Streaks of white, blue, yellow and orange line the top.

Identification and Creation

Object Number
2014.301
People
Franz Marc, German (Munich, Germany 1880 - 1916 Verdun, France)
Title
Grazing Horses IV
Other Titles
Original Language Title: Weidende Pferde IV
Classification
Paintings
Work Type
painting
Date
1911
Culture
German
Persistent Link
https://hvrd.art/o/222353

Location

Location
Level 1, Room 1500, Modern and Contemporary Art, Art in Germany Between the Wars
View this object's location on our interactive map

Physical Descriptions

Medium
Oil on canvas
Dimensions
121 x 183 cm (47 5/8 x 72 1/16 in.)
framed: 136.5 x 198.1 x 5.1 cm (53 3/4 x 78 x 2 in.)
Inscriptions and Marks
  • gallery label: t.l. stretcher (verso), paper (torn), ink, printed, English: Three Red Horses, 1911, Franz Marc, oil, no. 2431, owner Mr...
  • exhibition label: t.l. stretcher (verso), paper, ink, printed, English: Loan label: 34 55, Geier, 120 x 183
  • inscription: t.l stretcher (verso), wite chalk, handwritten: K87
  • stamp: t.c. canvas (verso), ink, German: Museum Folkwang
  • label: t.c. stretcher (verso), paper, ink, printed, Italian: Comune di Firenze, XXVII Maggio Musicale Fiorentino Mostra dell’Espressionismo; Provenance: Paul E. Geier, Roma; Autore: Franz Marc; Titolo: Rote Pferde; Cassa: 149
  • exhibition label: t.c. stretcher (verso), paper, ink, printed, German: Haus der Kunst München, Entartete Kunst, 18.10-16.12.1962, Marc, Die Roten Pferde, 1911, Paul E. Geier, Rom, öl/Lwd. 121 x 183
  • label: t.c. stretcher (verso), paper, graphite(?), handwritten: L55.74 Franz Marc
  • label: t.r. stretcher (verso), paper, ink, print, printed, typed, English: S.E. no. 2656 [#s typed], Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, Spec. Loan Exhibition of European Masters [typed]
  • label: t.r. stretcher (verso), paper, ink, printed, English: The Red Horses, Franz Marc, Mr. & Mrs. Paul E. Geier, 2301 Grandview Avenue, Cinncinati, OH
  • label: t.r. stretcher (verso), paper, ink, printed, handwritten, typed, Italian: Flli L & R Piconi, Imballatori di Oggetti d’Arte, Roma. N [typed] 0.1 [handwritten]
  • stamp: t.r. canvas (verso), ink, German: Museum Folkwang Essen
  • stamp: c.r. stretcher (verso), ink: [circular shape; unreadable]
  • stamp: c.r. stretcher (verso), ink: [diamond-shaped stamp; unreadable except for] Roma
  • stamp: center canvas (verso), ink: [difficult to read]
  • inscription: center stretcher (verso), blue crayon, handwritten: CNM 12 [12 underlined]
  • inscription: center stretcher (verso), white chalk, handwritten: K87[?]
  • label: center stretcher (verso), paper (torn), ink, printed, German: Knauer[...] 7716 [...]st-Abteilung
  • label: c.l. stretcher (verso), paper, ink, printed: Cinncinnati Art Museum, 1983-97 loan
  • stamp: c.l. canvas (verso), ink, Italian: Dogana di Brennero Sezione Ferrovia
  • stamp: l.c. canvas, ink, Italian: Dogana di Brennero Sezione Ferrovia
  • stamp: t.l. canvas (verso), ink, Italian: Dogana di Brennero Sezione Ferrovia
  • stamp: t.l.canvas (verso), ink: [circular-shape; unreadable]
  • stamp: t.l. canvas (verso), ink: [diamond-shaped; unreadable]
  • inscription: l.l. stretcher (verso), red crayon, handwritten, German: Herrn Marc
  • inscription: l.l. stretcher (verso), white chalk, handwritten: K87
  • stamp: l.c. stretcher (verso), ink, German: Museum Folkwang Essen
  • stamp: t.l.stretcher (verso), ink, German: Museum Folkwang Essen
  • label: t.l. frame (verso), paper, ink, red crayon, printed, handwritten: Printed: K.V.H.; handwritten in red crayon through label: x
  • label: t.l. frame (verso), paper, ink, red crayon, printed, handwritten: Stamped: av Knauer, 327; handwritten in red crayon through label: x
  • label: t.r. frame (verso), paper, ink, graphite(?), printed, handwritten: Handwritten and underlined twice: P.E.G.; printed: 3711
  • label: t.r. frame (verso), paper, ink, printed, handwritten, English: To: Folkwang Museum Essen [handwritten]
  • inscription: t.r. frame (verso), blue crayon, handwritten: Obscured inscription [51cm long]
  • inscription: l.c. frame (verso), graphite(?), handwritten: Case #[...]
  • inscription: l.c. frame (verso), graphite(?), handwritten: [obscured handwriting]

Provenance

Recorded Ownership History
The artist, 1911, sold; to the Folkwang Museum (Hagen, later Essen, Germany, 1911-1937); removed from the collection by the National Socialist (Nazi) authorities,1937, consigned; to [Theodor Fischer Gallery, Lucerne, Switzerland, for sale June 30, 1939, lot 87;] sold [through Steinmeyer] to Paul E. Geier (1939-1981) by descent; to Gabriele Geier, (1981-2012); Estate of Gabriele Geier (2012-2014) bequest; to the Busch-Reisinger Museum, 2014.

NOTE:
See Barron, et. al. for information on Steinmeyer, p. 146. n.21.

This painting was on loan to the Busch-Reisinger Museum from 1991-2014.

Acquisition and Rights

Credit Line
Harvard Art Museums/Busch-Reisinger Museum, Bequest in memory of Paul E. and Gabriele B. Geier
Accession Year
2014
Object Number
2014.301
Division
Modern and Contemporary Art
Contact
am_moderncontemporary@harvard.edu
Permissions

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Publication History

  • Alfred H. Barr, Jr. and Ernst Rathenau Verlag, Die Wirkung der deutschen Ausstellung in New York, Museum der Gegenwart; Zeitschrift der deutschen Museen für neuere kunst (Berlin, 1931), Vol. 2, No. 2, pp. 58-74, p. 59, ill. (b/w)
  • Alfred H. Barr, Jr., Modern German Painting and Sculpture, exh. cat., ed. The Museum of Modern Art, W. W. Norton & Company (New York, New York, 1931), p. 29, cat. no. 55, b/w ill. no. 55
  • Franz Marc, brochure, Buchholz Gallery (New York, 1940), p. 1, cat. no. 3, ill.
  • Georg Ehrhart, Franz Marc oder De abstrakte kunst, Reclam-Verlag (Stuttgart, 1949), pp. 16-17, ill.
  • Perry T. Rathbone, European Masters of Our Time, exh. cat., Museum of Fine Arts, Boston (Boston, MA, 1957), p. 22, fig. 33, ill. (b/w)
  • Peter Selz, German Expressionist Painting, University of California Press (Berkeley and Los Angeles, CA, 1957), pp. 202, 248, plate 80, ill.
  • Klaus Lankheit, Franz Marc: Katalog der Werke, Verlag M. DuMont Schauberg (Cologne, 1970), p. 43, no. 131, ill.
  • Frank Nicolaus, Als Hitlers Kunst-Schergen kamen, Art (Hamburg, 1987), October, 1987, pp. 77-85, p. 77, ill. (color)
  • Jan Tschichold, Die Neue Typographie: Ein Handbuch fur Zeitgemass Schaffende, Verlag Brinkmann & Bose (Berlin, 1987), p. 36, ill.
  • Mark Rosenthal, Franz Marc, Prestel (Munich, 1989), fig. 14, ill.
  • Horst G. Ludwig, Vom Blauen Reiter zu Frisch gestrichen, Hugendubel (Munich, 1997), p. 65-66, fig. 55, ill.
  • James Cuno, ed., A Decade of Collecting: Recent Acquisitions by the Harvard University Art Museums, Harvard University Art Museums (Cambridge, Mass., Spring 2000), p. 108, ill. (color)
  • Anke Schlecht, Art Compass: Franz Marc, brochure, Staatsgalerie Stuttgart (Stuttgart, 2000), p. 7, ill. (color)
  • Christian von Holst, Franz Marc Horses, exh. cat., Hatje Cantz (Stuttgart, Germany, 2000), Cover, 11, 34, 84-85, ill. (color)
  • Mark Abbe, "Walker celebrates 'Horses' of a different color", Star Tribune (Minneapolis, 2001), April 8, 2001, pp. F1, F18, p. F18, ill. (color)
  • Helmut Meyer and Gudrun Meyer, Pferde anders aufgezäumt: Streifzüge durch die Natur- und Kinstgeschichte, Schluetersche GmbH & Co. KG (Hannover, Germany, 2002), p. 94-95 / fig. 22
  • Peter Nisbet and Joseph Koerner, The Busch-Reisinger Museum, Harvard University Art Museums, ed. Peter Nisbet, Harvard University Art Museums and Scala Publishers Ltd. (Cambridge, MA and London, England, 2007), p. 6
  • Stephan Wolohojian and Alvin L. Clark, Jr., Harvard Art Museum/ Handbook, ed. Stephan Wolohojian, Harvard Art Museum (Cambridge, 2008), p. 296, ill.
  • "Das schoenste Museum der Welt" Museum Folkwang bis 1933, exh. cat., Steidl and Edition Folkwang (Essen, 2010), pp. 100-101, 221-222, 352, 361, fig. 69, ill. (color)
  • Martin Bailey, "'Degenerate' art reunited: Folkwang rehangs paintings that made Hitler see red", The Art Newspaper (London, England, 2010), No. 212, p. 15, p. 15, ill. (color)
  • Gina Thomas, "Museum Folkwang", Burlington Magazine (London, England, 2010), Vol. CLII, No. 1289, pp. 566-567, p. 566, fig. 67
  • Seine Augen trinken alles: Max Ernst und die Zeit um den Ersten Weltkreig, exh. cat., Max Ernst Museum Bruhl des LVR (Bruhl, Germany, 2014), p. 44, fig. 3, ill. (color)
  • Andrea von Hedenstroem, Fragen über Farben: Maltechnische und materialspezifische Untersuchung eines Meisterwerks von Franz Marc: Weidende Pferde IV, Restauro, Restauro (Germany, 2016), 3, Pages 44-48, Figure 1, Page 44; Figrue 2, Page 45
  • Andrea von Hedenstroem and Lynette Roth, Franz Marc: Zwischen Utopie und Apokalypse, exh. cat., Franz Marc Museum (Berlin, 2016), pp.84-95, ill. (color)
  • Andrea von Hedenstroem, "Investigation, Condition and Treatment of Franz Marc, Grazing Horses IV (The Red Horses)" (2016), pp 1-104 passim
  • Andrea von Hedenstroem and Lynette Roth, Kanst Du Dir Das Denken?: Franz Marcs Weidende Pferde IV, Franz Marc: zwischen Utopie und Apokalypse, Sieveking Verlag (Germany, 2016), Pages 88-152, Page 90, Page 91, Page 92
  • Andrea von Hedenstroem, Lucy Cooper, Katherine Eremin, Claire Grech, Teri Hensick, Narayan Khandekar, Richard Newman, and Kate Smith, Questions of Color: A Technical Study into Franz Marc’s Masterpiece Grazing Horses IV (The Red Horses), Preprints of the 18th ICOM-CC Triennial Conference, ICOM-CC (https://paintingsconservation.de/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/Andrea-von-Hedenstroem_Franz-Marc-Questions-of-Color-Grazing-Horses-IV.pdf, 2017), Figure 1, Page 1; Figrue 3, Page 2; Figure 4, Page 3; Figure 5, Page 3; Figure 6, Page 4; Figure 7, Page 4; Figure 8, Page 6
  • Franz Marc / August Macke: L'aventure du Cavalier bleu, exh. cat., Musée de l'Orangerie and Les Éditions Hazan (Paris, 2019), p. 47, fig. 21, ill. (color)
  • Frédéric Bußmann, Roland Mönig, and Daniel Schreiber, Brücke und Blauer Reiter, exh. cat., Wienand Verlag (Cologne and Berlin, 2021), p. 252, fig. 11, ill. (color)

Exhibition History

  • Kollektion Franz Marc, Moderne Galerie Thannhauser, 05/01/1911 - 05/31/1911
  • Franz Marc Gedachtnis-Ausstellung, Munchner Neue Sezession, 01/01/1916 - 12/31/1916
  • Gedachtnis-Ausstellung Franz Marc, Nationalgalerie Berlin, 01/01/1922 - 12/31/1922
  • Gemalde und Plastiken moderner Meister aus deutchen Museen, Galerie Fischer, 01/01/1939 - 12/31/1939
  • Franz Marc, Buchholz Gallery, 11/11/1940 - 12/07/1940
  • Artists of the Blaue Reiter: Exhibition of Painting and Graphic Works, Busch-Reisinger Museum, 01/21/1955 - 02/24/1955
  • European Masters of Our Time, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, Boston, 10/10/1957 - 11/17/1957
  • Franz Marc Gemalde, Gouachen, Zeichnungen, Skulpturen, Kunstverein Hamburg, 11/09/1963 - 01/05/1964
  • A Decade of Collecting: Recent Acquisitions from the Busch-Reisinger Museum, Central and Northern Art and Design from 1880 to the Present, Harvard University Art Museums, Busch-Reisinger Museum, 04/19/2000 - 07/09/2000
  • Franz Marc, Staatsgalerie Stuttgart, Stuttgart, 05/27/2000 - 09/10/2000
  • Franz Marc and the Blue Rider, Walker Art Center, Minneapolis, 04/08/2001 - 07/15/2001
  • Retrospective exhibition of the work of Franz Marc (1880-1916), Städtische Galerie im Lenbachhaus, Munich, 09/17/2005 - 01/08/2006
  • Re-View: S427 Impressionist & Postimpressionist Art, Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Cambridge, 08/02/2008 - 06/18/2011
  • "The Most Beautiful Museum in the World" Museum Folkwang until 1933, Museum Folkwang Essen, Essen, 03/20/2010 - 07/25/2010
  • 32Q: 1500 Art in Germany Between the Wars (Expressionism-Interwar), Harvard Art Museums, Cambridge, 11/16/2014 - 04/05/2016; Harvard Art Museums, Cambridge, 01/26/2017 - 01/01/2050
  • Franz Marc - Zwischen Utopie und Apokalypse, Franz Marc Museum, Kochel am See, 06/12/2016 - 09/11/2016

Related Works

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