Sitzende, von Blattwerk umgeben 1923

This color woodcut of a seated woman surrounded by foliage was made by Otto Mueller sometime in the first third of the 20th century. I love how the woman's yellow body almost merges with the green foliage, creating a sense of harmony between her and nature. It reminds me of Gauguin and his interest in representing the human figure in a natural setting. I wonder what Mueller was thinking when he chose these colors and this composition? Was he trying to capture a sense of primal innocence, or something else entirely? The texture of the woodcut adds another layer of interest. You can see the grain of the wood in the print, which gives it a tactile quality. It’s rough around the edges, imperfect in a way that feels very human. It makes me want to pick it up and run my fingers across the surface. This piece seems so much in conversation with the German Expressionist movement.