Auction 160

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Modern and Contemporary Art

Saturday, 11 July 2026 at 11:00 am

Lot 233 u. a. Willi Geiger. Album der Freien Vereinigung …

Album der Freien Vereinigung Münchner Kunststudenten. 1902-04. Album mit 15 monogrammierte Handzeichnungen von Willi Geiger (davon 1 auf dem Umschlag), 3 Farbzeichnungen von Hans Schlier, sowie Zeichnungen von Friedrich Georg Tobler, Ludwig Engler, Otto Obermeier u.a. Signiert und teils datiert. Tusche, Gouache, Aquarell, Blei- und Buntstift auf Bütten. Teils mit begleitenden Texten. 40,5 x 30 cm. Papier dezent gewellt, leichte Feuchtigkeitsspuren, Bereibungen und Flecken, Einband mit Kratzern, Blätter teils gelöst. Insgesamt gut.

Jahrhundertwende – Diese Album-Zeichnungen sind damit eines der frühesten bekannten Zeugnisse von Geigers doppelter Begabung: dem existenziellen Grafiker und dem satirischen Zeichner. Die 15 Originalzeichnungen von Willi Geiger behandeln dämonisch-groteske Figuren, Phantastische Wesen, Soziale und weitere Karikaturen. Geiger begann sein Studium 1901 an der Münchner Akademie zunächst als Schüler von Peter Halm (Radiertechnik), trat dann als Meisterschüler in Franz von Stucks Malereiklasse ein. Die Album-Zeichnungen von 1902 fallen exakt in die produktivste Phase seines Frühschaffens: Parallel entstand der Tuschezeichnungs-Zyklus "Seele", den Geiger Franz von Stuck "in tiefster Verehrung" widmete. Die Album-Zeichnungen sind also Zeitgenossen von Blättern wie Lebensabend, Der Narr und Ende aller Dinge aus eben jenem Zyklus. Das F.V.M.K.-Album entstand exakt in Geigers erstem Akademiestudium bei Franz von Stuck. Solche Vereinsnetzwerke hatten für Nachwuchskünstler eine katalytische Funktion: Sie ermöglichten frühe Sichtbarkeit, gegenseitige Kritik und kollegiale Förderung. Franz von Stuck prägte Geiger durch seine charakteristische Methode: Kontur als ornamentales Mittel, plastische Figur ohne Tiefenperspektive, Konzentration der bildnerischen Mittel auf den Hauptgegenstand. Alle drei Prinzipien sind in diesen Zeichnungen direkt ablesbar. Das Album dokumentiert das gesellige Leben eines Münchner Kunststudentenvereins (F.V.M.K.), dessen Jahresfest 1902 als "Maskenball-Übkneipe" gefeiert wurde. Die Kombination aus Willi Geigers frühen Originalzeichnungen (1902 - in sein erstes Akademiestudien­jahr fallend) und dem Vereinspoem des bedeutenden Reformpädagogen und Schriftsteller Paul Georg Münch (1877-1956) macht dieses Album zu einem einzigartigen Primärdokument der Münchner Bohème unmittelbar vor dem Durchbruch des Expressionismus. Geigers charakteristisches Monogramm und sein bereits vollständig ausgebildeter Tusche-Strich machen die Autorschaft zweifelsfrei.

Fin de Siecle – Fin de Siecle. - Album of the Free Association of Munich Art Students. 1902-04. Album containing 15 monogrammed hand drawings by Willi Geiger (one of which is on the cover), 3 colour drawings by Hans Schlier, as well as drawings by Friedrich Georg Tobler, Ludwig Engler, Otto Obermeier and others. Signed and partly dated. Ink, gouache, watercolour, graphite and coloured pencil on laid paper. Partly with accompanying texts. Paper slightly undulating, minor traces of moisture, rubbing and staining, cover with scratches, leaves partly loose. Overall good condition. These album drawings represent one of the earliest known testimonies to Geiger's twofold gift: that of the existential draughtsman and the satirical illustrator. The 15 original drawings by Willi Geiger depict demonically grotesque figures, fantastical creatures, social caricatures and further satirical subjects. Geiger began his studies in 1901 at the Munich Academy, initially as a pupil of Peter Halm (etching technique), before entering Franz von Stuck's painting class as a master student. The album drawings of 1902 fall precisely within the most productive phase of his early work: running parallel to them was the ink drawing cycle "Seele" (Soul), which Geiger dedicated to Franz von Stuck "in deepest veneration." The album drawings are thus contemporaries of sheets such as Lebensabend (Evening of Life), Der Narr (The Fool) and Ende aller Dinge (End of All Things) from that very cycle. The F.V.M.K. album was created at the exact moment of Geiger's first year of study under Franz von Stuck. Such association networks served a catalytic function for emerging artists: they enabled early visibility, mutual critique and collegial encouragement. Von Stuck shaped Geiger through his characteristic method: contour as ornamental device, sculptural figure without spatial depth, concentration of pictorial means upon the principal subject. All three principles can be read directly in these drawings. The album documents the convivial life of a Munich art students' association (F.V.M.K.), whose annual celebration in 1902 took the form of a "Maskenball-Übkneipe" (a costumed drinking feast with artistic performances). The combination of Willi Geiger's early original drawings - dating from his very first academic year - and the association poem by educational reformer and writer Paul Georg Münch (1877-1956) makes this album a unique primary document of the Munich Bohème in the period immediately preceding the breakthrough of Expressionism. Geiger's characteristic monogram and his already fully formed ink line leave no doubt as to the authorship.

Startprice: 1000 €
Estimate: 1500 €

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Auction 160