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On laid paper (watermark: SLG). Signed and inscribed with the work number: 1517.
Karl Schmidt-Rottluff experienced the outbreak of World War I in his hometown of Chemnitz. While his two brothers were drafted, he stayed in Chemnitz with his mother and looked after the family mill. At the end of 1914, he returned to Berlin and waited for his call-up notice, which would reach him in early May 1915.
Schmidt-Rottluff took advantage of this time and practically fell into an artistic frenzy. During this time, he created numerous portraits of his friends and companions, including the art historian Rosa Schapire (1874-1954) and Lyonel Feininger (1871-1956).
This woodcut was also created in this temporal context. It shows the portrait of a young woman with loose hair. Her gaze is directed upwards. Her facial features, necklace, and loose hair are reminiscent of a South Seas native, whose masks and cultural objects served as a source of inspiration for the artists of the “Brücke” group. It is striking that the facial features and necklace of the woman depicted in the woodcut resemble those of the painting “Woman with a Bag (Portrait of Rosa Schapire)” from 1915 (Tate Britain, London).
