What Do You See? The Collection of Sidney Rothberg, Part IV

Provenance:

Paul Maenz, Berlin.

Phillips, de Pury & Luxembourg, New York, sale of May 14, 2002, lot 177.

Acquired directly from the above sale.

Lot Essay:

Walter Dahn and Jiri Georg Dokoupil were key figures in the Neue Wilde (New Wild) movement, a group of German painters in the late 1970s and early 1980s known for their raw, expressive, and rebellious style. Their work was a reaction against conceptual and minimal art, embracing bold colors, aggressive brushwork, and provocative imagery, and capturing the chaotic energy of post-war Germany.

They began collaborating in the early 1980s, creating haunting, distorted, and often grotesque faces in their paintings. These works were heavily influenced by punk aesthetics, primitive art, and German expressionism.

This particular work exemplifies the raw, expressive energy of the Neue Wilde movement, with its bold, almost primal use of color and form. The two large, mask-like faces dominate the composition, evoking a sense of the uncanny, while the linear, almost tribal-like figures at the center introduce a ritualistic or symbolic dimension. The artists' signature rough brushwork and spontaneous, gestural lines create an intense, almost unsettling presence, reinforcing their rebellion against the polished aesthetic of conceptual art in favor of raw emotional expression.