The Stuttgart State Gallery has acquired two significant works by renowned Bauhaus artist Oskar Schlemmer, adding to what is already the world's largest collection of the German master's pieces. The acquisitions, funded by the Baden-Württemberg Museum Foundation, include the wall relief "Bauplastik R" (1919) and a sketch for "The Dancer" (1923), both connected to his famous Triadic Ballet.
Schlemmer, who was born in Stuttgart in 1888, is considered one of the most important artists in the region and a significant representative of the Bauhaus movement. The painter, sculptor, stage artist, and visionary spatial designer spent his final years in Baden, where he lived and worked until his death in 1943. His last stay in Baden-Baden about 80 years ago ended tragically when the industrious artist came to the spa town to recover from acute pneumonia but ultimately died there in April 1943.
The newly acquired "Bauplastik R" represents an important work from Schlemmer's time at the Bauhaus in Weimar. This large wall relief fresco depicts a highly abstracted figure in profile, reduced to geometric basic forms. Through the combination of concave, convex, and rectangular elements, the figure appears to move through space, embodying Schlemmer's exploration of human existence within spatial relationships.
The second acquisition, the sketch for "The Dancer" from 1923, serves as a preliminary drawing for the painting of the same name already in the State Gallery's collection. According to the museum, this work can be interpreted as a stylized self-portrait of Schlemmer in a dancing pose. Both the drawing and painting were created during preparations for the second performance of the Triadic Ballet in Weimar, where Schlemmer himself performed as a dancer at the National Theater.
Schlemmer's Triadic Ballet, created about 100 years ago, features a parade of figures reminiscent of Martians marching: turban bearers, ring-bodied figures, and characters in diving suits with moon faces performing three different dances with sound sticks, clacking rhythms, and whirling spiral ladies. For the Stuttgart artist with the thinker's forehead, dancing and masquerade were particularly important elements. He toured many cities with his ballet troupe.
The artist's connection to the Baden region extends beyond his final years. In Offenburg, rare frescoes by Schlemmer can still be found on the walls of a factory canteen - the last wall paintings by him to survive both the Nazi era, when his art was considered degenerate, and wartime bombing. These landscape views from the Markgräflerland region, painted in mild light and earth tones, were created in 1940-41 when the former professor of wall painting and metal sculpture at the Bauhaus had limited creative freedom under the Nazi regime.
Since 1937, Schlemmer's art was classified as degenerate, and only through the intervention of the Offenburg factory owner was he allowed to execute this commission of landscapes with animals, considered harmless by the authorities. By around 1940, Schlemmer no longer placed humans but animals in space, yet his striving for harmony continued to find expression. These Offenburg landscapes represent some of the few remaining frescoes by the artist and can be considered a rarity, much like the two works now acquired for the Stuttgart collection.
Schlemmer embodied many of the ideas of the Bauhaus, the essential and most influential design school of the early 20th century. The school's professors and students worked in all creative, form-giving areas and continue to influence good design today. Unlike many of his artist colleagues, Schlemmer was a universal figure and an important catalyst. In his paintings, sculptures, and wall reliefs, he attempted to organize human existence in space, exploring the relationship between figure and spatial environment.
The two historically significant works were acquired from the artist's estate with funds from the Baden-Württemberg Museum Foundation, ensuring no burden on public budgets. The purchase price for works by one of the most expensive artists of the early 20th century was not disclosed. Both pieces are now on display at the Stuttgart State Gallery, immediately expanding the museum's comprehensive Schlemmer collection and providing visitors with deeper insight into the background of his iconic works.
