König 1910

Curator: This work, titled "König," was created by Christian Rohlfs in 1910. It’s rendered with ink and watercolor on paper, exhibiting traits of German Expressionism. Editor: At first glance, there's a raw, almost childlike quality to it. The king feels massive, dominating the frame. The linework is bold, assertive. Curator: Absolutely. Rohlfs utilizes these seemingly simple lines and washes of color to convey a great deal. The figure of the king resonates with symbolic weight that dates back centuries. Royal regalia has always represented political, and sometimes even, divine legitimacy. Editor: Note the angularity in the crown. It's almost violently positioned atop his head. Even the staff held aloft possesses a starkness that denies any easy interpretation of power. The choice to use watercolor here—typically associated with lightness and delicacy—lends an unsettling instability. Curator: But this “instability”, as you call it, resonates perfectly with Expressionist concerns. Remember the era: growing social anxieties, and challenges to established authority are mirrored here in the collapsing form of the ruler, even as the crown asserts itself visually. The subject below him offers homage, it's clear, but what's missing? He appears powerless. Editor: The application of color seems almost haphazard. It rejects any sense of depth, opting instead for a flattened picture plane. The black outlines trap the washes of color, further reinforcing the image’s constructed nature, devoid of representational ambitions. Curator: Right, it’s less a representation and more an embodiment of a concept – the fraying of tradition. The viewer becomes privy to the underlying psychological state of a society questioning itself, all filtered through the artist's interpretation of kingship. Editor: Ultimately, I think this “König” fascinates precisely because of its artifice, its awareness of its own materiality as much as its purported subject. The intentional crudeness, rather than diminishing it, intensifies its message. Curator: Indeed, what strikes me most is how Rohlfs manages to imbue "König" with a timeless relevance, tapping into the eternal themes of power, submission, and the anxieties inherent in any established order. Editor: Agreed. It's a deceptively simple work concealing depths of thought.