7124 - Kuhfuss, Paul

Kuhfuss, Paul Still Life with Mask and Bananas Oil on canvas. 1930. 76 x 90 cm. Signed “Kuhfuss” in black with a brush in the lower left corner; on the reverse, the artist’s address in Berlin-Pankow and labeled “No. 13-22.” Hellwich/Röske 30/23. Kuhfuss depicts bananas, lush, sprawling plants, and a colorful South Sea mask with vigorous brushwork in an intense color palette dominated by blue-green. Around 1930–32, the artist created tempera works and oil paintings on the same motif in slightly varying compositions (see Hellwich/Röske 30/21, 31/58, 32/30, and 32/34); the artist also owned African carvings, which served as motifs for his still lifes. Beginning in 1950, he revisited this series of motifs, but rendered the depiction with an even looser, more abstract linework. On the reverse: a preliminary sketch for another composition. Provenance: Galerie der Berliner Graphikpresse, 1st auction, 1991, Lot 139 Private collection, Berlin - Please request condition reports for individual lots, as the condition is usually not mentioned in the catalog. - Please ask for condition reports for individual lots, as the condition is usually not mentioned in the catalog.