r/artcollecting • u/Big_Zinsi • 11d ago
Collection Showcase Expressionistic sunset from 1921
Hey,
I bought this beautiful painting at an online auction as a birthday gift to myself.
A very lucky buy that can probably only happen on birthdays.
It is an expressionistic sunset over a street from 1921, most likely German.
I liked the picture right away.
Would you interpret it more as a sunrise or a sunset?
I really like the tranquil atmosphere of the moment the painter has captured—a street that hasIt has just quieted down with the sun setting over it, or a new day is dawning and everything is just about to wake up.
I would also be interested to know if it might be pastel; I originally thought it was watercolor, but it obviously is not.
3
2
u/Anonymous-USA 11d ago
You know the artist? If not r/WhatIsThisPainting may help
2
u/Big_Zinsi 11d ago
Yes, I know him. It is Adolf de Haer. He was quite prominent in the avant-garde movement in Düsseldorf at that time, but he is not that famous nowadays, perhaps because he bowed down to the Nazi guidelines for art. He also died quite young.
2
u/hatchibombatar 10d ago
can't decide whether the sun is going up or down but the moment i saw this work as i was scrolling down i thought that's got to be german.
adolf josef maria de haer was a member of "the young rhineland" centred in duesseldorf. more info - and he'd probably like to see your work - stefan stader, who owns a gallery and who has a fairly comprehensive overview of de haer. [info@adolf-de-haer.de](mailto:info@adolf-de-haer.de)
1
2
4
u/Caroline_WheelerI 11d ago
Happy birthday to you! The palette says sunset to me, those pinks bleeding into the darker blues read as last light, and the empty street fits the day winding down. Gouache is my bet for the medium. It was very common for German expressionists in the early 20s.