Akte im Wasser (Original Title) by Otto Mueller

Akte im Wasser (Original Title) 1914 - 1918

drawing, lithography

17_20th-century

drawing

lithography

toned paper

pen sketch

landscape

personal sketchbook

german

ink drawing experimentation

pen-ink sketch

sketchbook drawing

watercolour illustration

storyboard and sketchbook work

sketchbook art

watercolor

"Akte im Wasser" (Nude in Water), a 1914-1918 lithograph by German artist Otto Mueller, depicts two nude figures in a landscape setting. The work, housed in the Städel Museum, showcases Mueller's signature style, a blend of Expressionism and Jugendstil, with simplified forms, vibrant colors, and a focus on the human figure's sensuality. The scene is characterized by its tranquil atmosphere, enhanced by the use of muted tones and the figures' serene postures. The work exemplifies Mueller's exploration of the human form and its relationship to nature, a recurring theme in his oeuvre.

Comments

stadelmuseum about 1 year ago

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In 1890, Mueller learned the lithography technique. In this planographic printmaking method, the artist draws directly on the stone that will serve as a printing plate. Here as well, line dominated Mueller’s compositions. After the printing process, he coloured this lithograph of "Nudes in the Water" by hand in grey ink and chalks of different shades, thus combining the printmaking and drawing mediums. Closely linking emphatic line and planar zones of colour, this work bears a resemblance to the artist’s drawing Naked Girl Sitting by the Water (Städel Museum, Inv. No. 16097).