Portrait Of A German Officer
New york 1945 pp.
Portrait of a german officer. 19 20 24 115 nos. Marsden hartley portrait of a german officer detail 1914 oil on canvas 173 4 x 105 1 cm alfred stieglitz collection the metropolitan museum of art new york the letter e appears twice in the composition. 66 recto and verso notes that the recto is almost certainly a portrait of a german officer.
Done in oil on canvas the portrait depicts the abstract figure of an imperial german officer as being composed entirely of military decorations and badges of rank. Portrait of a german officer is an early 20th century portrait by american modernist painter marsden hartley. Marsden hartley portrait of a german officer detail 1914 oil on canvas 173 4 x 105 1 cm alfred stieglitz collection the metropolitan museum of art new york hartley s painting is also more than a portrait of an individual.
The red curvilinear e on a gold background in the middle of the painting right is a battalion marker that refers to the bayerische eisenbahn the name of von freyburg s railroad battalion. This monumental painting is the centerpiece of a series that evokes the dynamism pageantry and danger of life in berlin during world war i. Portrait of a german officer.
The painting is currently on display at the metropolitan museum of art. It expresses the rising german nationalism that he witnessed while living in berlin. The painting s collagelike appearance dramatic color and emotional brushwork attest to hartley s skillful synthesis of cubism and german expressionism.