The Fishermen, Fernand Léger
Fernand Léger
The Fishermen
DE
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Fernand Léger

The Fishermen, 1921


Dimensions
60.0 x 91.0 cm
Physical Description
Oil on canvas
Inventory Number
2132
Acquisition
Acquired in 1976 as a gift from the Imprimatur Gemeinnützige GmbH Frankfurt am Main and Werner Wirthle
Status
On display, 1st upper level, Modern Art, room 13

Texts

About the Work

Almost thirty years before Ole Kirk Christiansen invented Lego, the French painter and graphic artist Fernand Léger created his group of 'Animated Landscapes', to which 'The Fishermen' also belongs. Three figures reminiscent of Lego people have been placed in a strange technoid setting. Assembled from a small number of basic geometric forms and faceless, their stiff movements remind us more of robots than of people. Léger's chilly representation does not offer the viewer a romanticising view of nature. Instead, his portrayal reflects a new technical dimension encompassing all areas of life.

About the Acquisition

This painting made its way into the museum in 1976 as a gift from the Imprimatur foundation. The Imprimatur-Stiftung, Gemeinnützige GmbH was founded in Frankfurt in 1957. It owns the simple majority of the Frankfurter Societäts-Druckerei GmbH. The foundation supports young journalists and also training positions in the graphics profession in a variety of ways. It also endows a prize for excellent journalistic performance. In 1989 it affiliated with the Fazit-Stiftung.

Work Data

Basic Information

Title
The Fishermen
Painter
Period Produced
Object Type
Physical Description
Oil on canvas
Material
Technique
Label at the Time of Manufacture
Signiert und datiert unten rechts: F. LEGER 21
Work Catalogues
  • Bauquier, Bd. 2, 1992: 1921-278

Property and Acquisition

Institution
Administration
Collection
Creditline
Städel Museum, Frankfurt am Main
Picture Copyright
© VG Bild-Kunst, Bonn 2023
Acquisition
Acquired in 1976 as a gift from the Imprimatur Gemeinnützige GmbH Frankfurt am Main and Werner Wirthle

Work Content

Motifs and References

Genre
Main Motif
Associated Persons and Institutions

Iconclass

Primary
Secondary

Research and Discussion

Provenance

Object History
Galerie Alfred Flechtheim, Berlin, 1928
Gustav Kahnweiler (1895-1989)
Daniel-Henry Kahnweiler (1884-1979), Paris
Galerie Louise Leiris, Paris
Sidney Janis Gallery, New York, seit mindestens 1951
Israel Rosen (1911-1988), Baltimore
Galerie Beyeler Basel
Städelsches Kunstinstitut, Frankfurt am Main (Schenkung der Imprimatur Gemeinnützige G.m.b.H. und Werner Wirthles), 1976.

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:

  • the type of acquisition and/or the way the object changed hands
  • the owner's name and place of residence
  • the date on which it changed hands

The successive ownership records are separated from each other by a semicolon.

Gaps in the record of a provenance are indicated by the placeholder “…”. Unsupported information is listed in square brackets.

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Last update

01.06.2023