Eve, 1910

Dimensions: 106.0 x 41.0 cm

Inventory Number: 2086

Acquisition: Acquired in 1961 as a gift from Dr. Fritz Hagemann; formerly Carl Hagemann Collection

Status: Not on display

Texts

About the Work

In 1910, surrounded by “sun, happiness and floral splendour”, Emil Nolde painted Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. A little later, he cut up this picture of paradise and kept only the depiction of the primordial mother Eve. Unclothed, alone and somewhat lost, she stands in front of oversized flowers. Nolde combined his decidedly subjective interpretation of the biblical motif with allusions to prevailing themes of his time, such as the idealising view of foreign cultures and the motif of the (usually red-haired) femme fatale. Nolde achieved his breakthrough with the religious paintings he produced from 1909 onwards.

About the Acquisition

From 1900 onwards, the Frankfurt chemist and industrialist Carl Hagemann (1867‒1940) assembled one of the most important private collections of modern art. It included numerous paintings, drawings, watercolours and prints, especially by members of the artist group “Die Brücke”. After Carl Hagemann died in an accident during the Second World War, the then Städel director Ernst Holzinger arranged for Hagemann’s heirs to evacuate his collection with the museum’s collection. In gratitude, the family donated almost all of the works on paper to the Städel Museum in 1948. Further donations and permanent loans as well as purchases of paintings and watercolours from the Hagemann estate helped to compensate for the losses the museum had suffered in 1937 as part of the Nazi’s “Degenerate Art” campaign. Today, the Hagemann Collection forms the core of the Städel museum’s Expressionist collection.

Work Data

Basic Information

Title: Eve

Painter

Emil Nolde

Period Produced

20th century

School

expressionism

Object Type

painting (artwork)

Material

canvas

Technique

Label at the Time of Manufacture: Signiert unten links: Nolde

Work Catalogues

Urban 1987, Bd. 1, Nr. 349

Property and Acquisition

Institution

Städel Museum

Departement

Modern Art 1800–1945

Collection

Städelsches Kunstinstitut

Creditline: Städel Museum, Frankfurt am Main

Picture Copyright: © Nolde Stiftung Seebüll

Acquisition: Acquired in 1961 as a gift from Dr. Fritz Hagemann; formerly Carl Hagemann Collection

Work Content

Motifs and References

Genre

Main Motif

Persons Shown

Associated Persons and Institutions

Adam

Illustrated Passage

Bibel, Altes Testament, Genesis 1,25-29
Bibel, Altes Testament, Genesis 2,25

Iconclass

Primary

71A321 Garden of Eden, paradise
31AA231 standing figure - AA - female human figure
25G41 flowers

Secondary

22C4(BLUE) colours, pigments, and paints: blue
22C4(YELLOW) colours, pigments, and paints: yellow
22C4(PINK) colours, pigments, and paints (PINK)

Associative

71A35 Adam and Eve in paradise (before the Fall)

Research and Discussion

Provenance

Object History: ...

Galerie Rudolf Probst, Mannheim

verkauft an Carl Hagemann (1867-1940), Frankfurt, 1936

Nachlass Carl Hagemann, 1940

Depositum im Städel Museum, Frankfurt, 1941

Schenkung Fritz Hagemann an das Städelsche Kunstinstitut, Frankfurt am Main, 1961.

Information

Since 2001, the Städel Museum has systematically been researching the provenance of all objects that were acquired during the National Socialist period, or that changed owners or could have changed owners during those years. The basis for this research is the “Washington Declaration”, also known as the “Washington Conference Principles”, formulated at the 1998 “Conference on Holocaust-Era Assets” and the subsequent “Joint Declaration”.

The provenance information is based on the sources researched at the time they were published digitally. However, this information can change at any time when new sources are discovered. Provenance research is therefore a continuous process and one that is updated at regular intervals.

Ideally, the provenance information documents an object’s origins from the time it was created until the date when it found its way into the collection. It contains the following details, provided they are known: