Uphoff, Fritz (1890–1966), Standing Nude, ca. 1930

Fritz Uphoff(1890 Witten – 1966 Worpswede), Standing Nude , ca. 1930, chalk drawing on paper with a colored overcoat, 44.5 cm x 24.8 cm (sheet size), mounted on thin cardboard, signed “Fritz Uphoff” lower left.

- Wavy at the corners and slightly stained due to mounting

The body, defined by precise contour lines, takes on a concrete form above the knees and fades away above the shoulders. In this way, the body—slightly arched at the lower back—emerges with a tension that gives rise to the nude’s erotic effect. The depiction is entirely in the spirit of a new culture of nudity and the Art Nouveau-inspired ode to youth. The all-over color patterns evoke an impression of soft physicality and lend the depiction a sensual vibrato.

The young woman, rendered with precise contour lines, is absorbed in her reading and unconsciously presents her naked beauty to the viewer. This naive naturalness is entirely in keeping with a new culture of nudity and the Art Nouveau-inspired ode to youth. The all-over color patterns evoke a sense of soft physicality and lend the depiction a sensual vibrato.

About the Artist

After training in stained glass and mosaics, Fritz Uphoff began his studies at the School of Applied Arts in Elberfeld, which he continued in Munich, where he also attended Heinrich Knirr’s painting school. Numerous study trips took him to Belgium, France, the Netherlands, and Austria. Around 1913, he settled in the artists’ colony of Worpswede, where he married the painter Lore Schill. Together with her and his brother, the painter Carl Emil Uphoff, he founded the “Werkgemeinschaft Worpswede für Buchkunst” a few years later. During the Nazi era, he was a member of the Reich Chamber of Fine Arts, but participated in only a few exhibitions, including one organized by the Relief Organization for German Fine Arts within the Nazi People’s Welfare Association, which attests to his precarious situation.