Fritze
- Date
- 1975
- Material
- Acrylic on canvas
- Classification
- Paintings
- Collection
- Modern and Contemporary Art
- Current Location
- On View, Gallery 242
- Dimensions
- 112 x 112 in. (284.5 x 284.5 cm)
framed: 112 3/4 x 112 3/4 in. (286.4 x 286.4 cm) - Credit Line
- Gift of the Honorable and Mrs. Thomas F. Eagleton, by exchange
- Rights
- © A.R. Penck, Courtesy Galerie Michael Werner, New York--Cologne
- Object Number
- 13:2003
NOTES
Although abstract at first glance, Fritze, which translates as “guy,” contains a hidden figure. Narrow shoulders and a vast head, with seemingly pursed lips and red and blue eyes, rise from the colorful brushwork. To the upper left is another eye, this time golden. At the upper right corner is a form resembling the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin. In a divided Berlin, this sign of Germany’s former strength had become a symbol for the loss of a unified national identity. Ralf Winkler, known by the pseudonym A. R. Penck, lived and worked in Dresden in East Germany until he was deported to the West in 1980.
Provenance
by 1979 -
Michael Werner Gallery, Cologne, Germany [1]
by 1985 -
Private Collection [2]
by 2002 - 2003
Michael Werner Gallery, New York, NY, USA; Cologne, Germany
2003 -
Saint Louis Art Museum, purchased from Michael Werner Gallery [3]
Notes:
The main source for the provenance is a letter from Michael Werner Gallery dated May 24, 2002 [SLAM document files]. Exceptions and other supporting documents are noted.
[1] Michael Werner Gallery is named as the owner in a 1979 exhibition catalogue and on a 1979 exhibition label on the verso of the work ["A. R. Penck: Concept Conceptruimte." Rotterdam: Museum Boymans-Van Beuningen, 1979, no. 49].
[2] A 1985 publication describes the painting as in a private collection, courtesy of Mary Boone / Michael Werner Gallery, Cologne [Joachimides, Christos, Wieland Schmied, and Norman Rosenthal. "German Art in the 20th Century: Painting and Sculpture 1905-1985." Munich: Prestal Verlag, 1985, no. 275].
[3] Minutes of the Collections Committee of the Board of Trustees, Saint Louis Art Museum, March 4, 2003; and the Minutes of the Board of Trustees, Saint Louis Art Museum, March 10, 2003.
Michael Werner Gallery, Cologne, Germany [1]
by 1985 -
Private Collection [2]
by 2002 - 2003
Michael Werner Gallery, New York, NY, USA; Cologne, Germany
2003 -
Saint Louis Art Museum, purchased from Michael Werner Gallery [3]
Notes:
The main source for the provenance is a letter from Michael Werner Gallery dated May 24, 2002 [SLAM document files]. Exceptions and other supporting documents are noted.
[1] Michael Werner Gallery is named as the owner in a 1979 exhibition catalogue and on a 1979 exhibition label on the verso of the work ["A. R. Penck: Concept Conceptruimte." Rotterdam: Museum Boymans-Van Beuningen, 1979, no. 49].
[2] A 1985 publication describes the painting as in a private collection, courtesy of Mary Boone / Michael Werner Gallery, Cologne [Joachimides, Christos, Wieland Schmied, and Norman Rosenthal. "German Art in the 20th Century: Painting and Sculpture 1905-1985." Munich: Prestal Verlag, 1985, no. 275].
[3] Minutes of the Collections Committee of the Board of Trustees, Saint Louis Art Museum, March 4, 2003; and the Minutes of the Board of Trustees, Saint Louis Art Museum, March 10, 2003.
We regularly update records, which may be incomplete. If you have additional information, please contact us at provenance@slam.org.