About the Work
'The Red Aeroplane' is a powerful reflection of Radziwill's fascination for subjects related to modern technology and mechanisation. Aircraft form an established part of his artistic repertoire. This depiction is characterised by the monumental way in which the machine is presented and by the remarkably precise reproduction. The painting, created as an homage to man's dream of flying, was later painted over by the artist and adorned with Surrealist-looking pictorial elements - including the dramatically ghostly sky and the Grim Reaper, who recalls the tradition of the memento mori. This main work, created in 1932, remained in the possession of the artist until into the 1960s. It was on view in numerous important exhibitions, including the one held at the Kestner-Gesellschaft in Hannover in 1933 and at the Kölner Kunstverein in 1937.
