Lot n° 66
Estimation :
200 - 400
EUR
Result with fees
Result
: 520EUR
Frédéric FIEBIG (1885-1953) - Lot 66
Frédéric FIEBIG (1885-1953)
The Great Tolstoy
Original woodcut (or linocut), signed in the upper left-hand plate, 1910.
H_31 cm W_21 cm
"Fiebig's strength is most apparent in the many portraits he engraved on wood and lino. These portraits undoubtedly prompted the Baroness de Rotschild to suggest to Fiebig in 1912 that he open a portrait studio. Various portraits of Madame Fiebig, and of a pianist in their circle of acquaintances, show how Fiebig knew how, with a few vigorous cuts, to give people a strikingly accurate and expressive portrayal, and bring out their characteristic features. The most admirable is that of the Russian writer Tolstoy, which exists in five different versions, as well as in numerous preliminary studies in pencil and charcoal.
In the most masterful of these engravings, known as "The Great Tolstoy" (repr. 35), the writer is shown almost full-frontal, his head tilted slightly to the right. His beard, divided into two waving masses, his hair and the large flat areas of his face are cut into light, elongated, angular spots in the dark wood. Fiebig leaves only the outline of the face, haloed by hair and extending over the hollowed cheeks, a deep wrinkle on the forehead, and shadows highlighting the eyes, nose and mouth.
We can only agree with Abbé Breuil when he says of this portrait of Tolstoy: "I know of no other effigy of the great Russian that is so condensed, so admirable".
Indeed, Fiebig's work has such impact and expressive force that it has been compared to the work of the Expressionists, citing the woodcuts of Schmidt, Rottluff, Erich Heckel, Ludwig Kirchner and especially Emil Nolde. [...]
In February 1913, Henri Breuil devoted a long article to Fiebig on the occasion of his major solo exhibition at Bernheim-Jeune (December 1912), in which he praised Fiebig's art and, in particular, his talent as an engraver, as demonstrated by his portrait of Tolstoy. In it, he described Fiebig as an "incomparable engraver", because "he has found the excessive formula that contains life". By this he was no doubt alluding to Fiebig's gift for reducing the representation of a being or of nature to the essential, and thus achieving the most intense expressivity, such as is precisely the prerogative of "Tolstoy". Abbé Breuil praised this portrait in the following words: "...in my opinion, it sums up Fiebig's art perfectly. If you look at it, you'll find his paintings exhibited at Bernheim".
In this article, Abbé Breuil also goes on to speak of Fiebig's personal technique in his paintings contemporary with the woodcuts: "...broad, bold, square or elongated strokes, applying themselves to everything, translating the different aspects of nature with a spontaneous and formidable frankness, although one senses that this manner is the result of serious and thoughtful study".
- Kyra Kapsreiter-Homeyer, Frédéric Fiebig, sa vie et son oeuvre.
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