Emil Nolde
1867 - 1956
Kerzentänzerinnen. 1917.
Woodcut.
Signed and numbered. One of two known copies. On sturdy chamois-colored wove paper. 30.4 x 23.9 cm (11.9 x 9.4 in). Sheet: 49 x 34 cm (19,2 x 13,3 in).

One of two known prints of this first state from a total edition of 21 copies. [AW].

• Nolde’s “Kerzentänzerinnen” – expressive power and mystical exoticism.
• The eccentric motif is based on one of Nolde’s most significant Expressionist paintings: “Kerzentänzerinnen” from 1912 (Nolde Foundation, Seebüll).
• This rare print was once part of the renowned Expressionist collection of Martha and Paul Rauert, Hamburg.
• Copies of the fifth state, of which 13 are known, are held, among others, by the Städel Museum, Frankfurt am Main, and the Staatsgalerie, Stuttgart.
• This work was on permanent loan to the Franz Marc Museum in Kochel am See from 2017 to 2024.
• This is the first time a copy of this first state is offered on the international auction market (source: artprice.com).

PROVENANCE: Collection of Martha and Paul Rauert, Hamburg (1920).
Ahlers Collection, Herford.
Galerie Herold, Hamburg.
Private collection, Southern Germany (acquired from the above).

EXHIBITION: Franz Marc Museum, Kochel am See (permenent loan from January 2017 to October 2024).

LITERATURE: Gustav Schiefler, Christel Mosel, Martin Urban, Emil Nolde – Das graphische Werk, vol. II: Holzschnitte, Lithographien, Hektographien, Cologne 1996, CR no. H 127 I (of V).

In good condition, as if freshly printed. A few small brown spots here and there. Partially slightly soiled or slightly discolored along the outer edges of the sheet. Slight printing marks on the upper left edge of the sheet and very sporadically elsewhere, likely due to the manufacturing process. The corners of the sheets and parts of the edges are minimally bumped. The upper right corner has a faint crease, and there is a small, faint crease at each corner of the image outside the illustration.