Herbert Seidel (1906-1974), Autumn Verso Summer Landscape, 1953

Herbert Seidel (1906 Berlin - 1974 Rüdersdorf), Autumn verso Summer Landscape, 1953. India ink on grained, bleached paper, 40.5 x 58 cm, signed “Herbert Seidel” in lead on the front, inscribed “Herbst” and dated “1953”.

- Pinholes in the corners, slight creases and minimally wavy

- Imagined Landscape -

A master of woodcut, Herbert Seidel draws inspiration for his paintings from the aesthetic effect of this technique. The broad black strokes look like the lines of a woodcut, although the line structures here are much more expressive, because in the letterpress process of woodcutting the areas formed by the cut wood are printed. Nevertheless, the black lines in particular echo the effect of the woodcut, and the shapes of the houses, which are only outlined, are based on the pictorial idea of the woodcut. The branches, treetops, and mountains are only hinted at, so that they seem almost incomplete, but it is precisely through these minimal settings that our imagination is stimulated to see the landscape in the outlines of the forms.

By making the artistic experience of the woodcut fruitful for painting, an extremely expressive landscape is created, which we complete with our eyes and thus open up imaginatively.

The reverse side depicts a summer landscape with temple-like architecture, over which the sun shines in all its glory. The fence-like enclosure lends the architecture, flanked by trees, a sacredness that is reinforced by the sun as a symbol of God. Herbert Seidel's struggle to establish new sacred imagery is evident here.

About the artist

Herbert Seidel was a German painter and printmaker best known for his woodcuts of Christian themes. Taking modernism as his starting point, he sought to revive sacred imagery. At the same time, he distinguished himself with innovative landscape painting.