About the Work
Maria Lassnig portrays herself mercilessly as an old woman with bony shoulders and hollow cheeks. She looks questioningly at the viewer, while the monkey on her lap ruffles its hair. The monkey has various art-historical connotations. It stands for vanity, but also for the artist's skills as an imitator. Lassnig takes a decided stand against the artistic techniques of reproduction such as photorealistic painting. Instead, she interprets feelings, imaginative images and body awareness pictorially. In this self-portrait, the monkey becomes the artist's alter ego and reflects her inner processes.
About the Acquisition
Margarethe and Gustav Kober provide generous aid to numerous cultural organisations in Frankfurt. In addition to the Städel, the Kobers support – among others – the Historisches Museum, the Jüdisches Museum and the Museum für Moderne Kunst in a great variety of ways.
