Mother and Child; Woman and Girl, 1924

Dimensions: 88.0 x 27.5 x 30.0 cm

Physical Description: Swiss Pinewood

Inventory Number: St.P443

Acquisition: Acquired in 1998 as a gift from a private collection; formerly Carl Hagemann Collection

Status: On display, 1st upper level, Modern Art, room 12

Texts

About the Work

Protect or let go? The mother's gestures are ambiguous: she holds her daughter firmly with one hand but pushes her away with the other. Parental experience speaks through her sad gaze, while the child looks at the world with its big, innocent eyes. In contrast to the simplified form of the bodies and the coarsely hewn surface of the figures, Kirchner devotes himself here with bizarre precision of detail to the sexuality of the girl: her vagina is painted red. Inspired by art from outside Europe, this wood sculpture is one of a series of representations of couples created during the mid-1920s.

About the Acquisition

The important collection of Expressionist art owned by the chemist Carl Hagemann (1867-1940) was formed from the beginning of the twentieth century in close exchange with the artists - even during the period when they were being vilified by the National Socialists. After Hagemann's death in 1940, his collection was secretly removed into storage to escape the war, together with the Städel's own collection. In gratitude for this hazardous but successful effort, Hagemann's heirs presented 935 works on paper to the Städel during the 1940s. Further generous donations were made over the course of several decades.

Work Data

Basic Information

Title: Mother and Child; Woman and Girl

Sculptor (male)

Ernst Ludwig Kirchner

Period Produced

20th century

School

expressionism

Object Type

sculpture

Physical Description: Swiss Pinewood

Material

pine wood

Technique

carving

Property and Acquisition

Institution

Städel Museum

Departement

Modern Art 1800–1945

Collection

Städelsches Kunstinstitut

Creditline: Städel Museum, Frankfurt am Main

Picture Copyright: Public Domain

Acquisition: Acquired in 1998 as a gift from a private collection; formerly Carl Hagemann Collection

Work Content

Motifs and References

Genre

nude

Main Motif

Iconclass

Primary

42B742 mother and child(ren), woman and child(ren) (family group)
31D15(+89) adult woman (+ nude human being)
31D112(+82) child (+ female (human being) (not to be used where -AA- is prescribed))
31D112(+89) child (+ nude human being)
31A231 standing figure

Secondary

25G411 cut flowers; nosegay, bunch of flowers

Research and Discussion

Provenance

Object History: Galerie Ludwig Schames (Manfred Schames), Frankfurt

verkauft an Carl Hagemann (1867-1940), Frankfurt am Main, 1926

Nachlass Carl Hagemann, 1940

Depositum im Städel Museum, Frankfurt, 1941

Vermächtnis an das Städelsche Kunstinstitut, Frankfurt am Main, 1998.

Information

Since 2001, the Städel Museum has systematically been researching the provenance of all objects that were acquired during the National Socialist period, or that changed owners or could have changed owners during those years. The basis for this research is the “Washington Declaration”, also known as the “Washington Conference Principles”, formulated at the 1998 “Conference on Holocaust-Era Assets” and the subsequent “Joint Declaration”.

The provenance information is based on the sources researched at the time they were published digitally. However, this information can change at any time when new sources are discovered. Provenance research is therefore a continuous process and one that is updated at regular intervals.

Ideally, the provenance information documents an object’s origins from the time it was created until the date when it found its way into the collection. It contains the following details, provided they are known: