Sophie von der Goltz
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Lot 52
Deux figures de mendiants en porcelaine blanche de Schwarzburger Werkstätten, après 1906
Two Schwarzburger Werkstätten white figures of beggars, after 1906
Two Schwarzburger Werkstätten white figures of beggars, after 1906
29 October 2025, 14:00 CET
Paris, Avenue Hoche€700 - €1,000
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Deux figures de mendiants en porcelaine blanche de Schwarzburger Werkstätten, après 1906
Two Schwarzburger Werkstätten white figures of beggars, after 1906
Two Schwarzburger Werkstätten white figures of beggars, after 1906
Modelled by Ernst Barlach, one as a female beggar, the other as a male one, figure on the left: 26 cm high, on the right: 25.5cm high, he with fox in underglaze-blue and impressed factory mark and model number and additional 5231/14 in black script and C.119 in pencil to the unglazed part of the base, she with impressed fox and factory mark and integrated U62 (minute flat chip under base of female figure) (2)
Footnotes
In 1906 the artist Ernst Barlach visited his brother Hans in the Ukraine travelling through the provinces of Kharkiv, Kursk and Yekaterinoslav (part of the Russian Empire at the time). The journey left a profound impression on him - the people and landscapes so deeply moved him that they marked a turning point in his artistic development. Between 1906 and 1908 he designed five models inspired by his Russian trip and in 1909 Max Adolf Pfeiffer, then director of the Schwarzburger Werkstätten für Porzellankunst, approved the production of several of these works. Their close collaboration culminated in the manufactory being awarded a Gold Medal at the 1910 Brussels World Exhibition.
In 1912-13 Barlach supplied another three models to the manufactory, including the two in the present lot which were two of his earliest designs dating to 1906. The onset of the First World War and Pfeiffer's subsequent transfer to the Meissen manufactory brought the partnership with the Schwarzburger Werkstätten to a close. In the early 1920s, Barlach briefly returned to ceramics, producing two final models in Böttger stoneware at Meissen, marking the conclusion of his work in the medium.
For a full discussion of Barlach's work in ceramics, see Ekkart Klinge, Ernst Barlach, Porzellan, 1995.
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