1171 - Gerhard Marcks and Rudolf Kügler, two annual gifts of the Kassel Kunstverein, 1954 and 1957/58

Gerhard Marcks and Rudolf Kügler, two annual gifts of the Kassel Kunstverein, 1954 and 1957/58 Two annual gifts of the Kassel Kunstverein: 1) Gerhard Marcks (1889 Berlin – 1981 Burgbrohl), „Pflüger“, original woodcut on paper, 1954, lettered verso in type „PFLÜGER Originalholzschnitt von Gerhard Marcks Gedruckt für den Kasseler Kunstverein als Jahresgabe 1954“. A ploughman, his hands on the stilt, strides across the field behind a team of two cattle; the ground of the picture is articulated by dense horizontal cut lines. Age-appropriate good condition, margins creased, minimally torn at the top, somewhat stained and yellowed. Image 19.5 x 30 cm (HxW), overall size 38 x 53 cm (HxW). 2) Rudolf Kügler (1921 Berlin – 2013 Berlin), „Fischerdorf“, etching on paper, annual gift 1957/58, signed lower right, stamped verso „Jahresgabe 1957/58 Kasseler Kunstverein e.V.“ and added to by hand. Above a harbour basin with three rowing boats a cubically constructed row of houses with masts and chimneys is staggered against a dark range of hills. Age-appropriate good condition, margins creased and somewhat stained. Image 19.5 x 25 cm (HxW), overall size 34.5 x 45 cm (HxW) From 1919 to 1925 Gerhard Marcks directed the ceramics workshop of the Bauhaus as master of form and became known above all as a sculptor; his graphic work comprises several hundred woodcuts, which he regarded as an independent part of his output. „Pflüger“ is listed in the Lammek catalogue raisonné under H 191 and was made on commission for the Kassel Kunstverein. Rudolf Kügler, a pupil of Max Kaus and from 1956 professor at the Academy of Fine Arts in Berlin, was among the known representatives of abstracting post-war printmaking and was shown at documenta II in Kassel in 1959; his works are held by the Berlinische Galerie and the Museum Ludwig in Cologne, among others. Since the 19th c. art societies have issued their members a specially printed original print each year as an annual gift.