Notes

Stern’s exposure to European modernism and her engagement with German Expressionists such as Max Pechstein, encouraged her understanding of the nature of contemporary art as independent of everyday reality. Viewing her oeuvre through the three major paintings on this auction, one can trace her increasing liberation from the constraints of academic painting. The tenets of expressionism are summed up by Neville Dubow, in his monograph on the artist:
'Expressionism is an attitude of mind rather than a codified formal usage. It is the antithesis of rational lucid order. It is an art of urge rather than measured reflection. It impels action rather than contemplation. It is artistic energy brought to the surface. ... an expressionist style is the natural outlet for the emotionally charged artist. It’s formal vehicle is the artist’s gesture which tends to be broad, vigorous and sweeping ...'¹

Figure on a Beach was acquired directly from the artist by Neville Dubow, Professor of Fine Art at the Michaelis School of Fine Art and Director of the UCT Irma Stern Museum, a recognised authority on Stern and the author of several monographs on her work. In her last period, Dubow observes how her style changed in response to an overwhelming sense of urgency to produce as many paintings as possible. With increasing economy of means, Stern captures the experience of a hot day on the beach. She presents us with a naked woman wrestling with a towel on a sandy beach, rather than an idealised, classical nude reclining languidly on the shore. This woman is as conscious of her body as she is of the viewer and returns the viewer’s gaze with an omniscient over-the-shoulder look. As if to remind us that we are looking at art, and not through an imagined window, she places a frame around the composition.

¹Neville Dubow, Irma Stern, C Struik Publishers, 1974, p13
 

Provenance

The Neville and Rhona Dubow Collection.  Acquired directly from the artist by the current owners.

Literature

Neville Dubow, Irma Stern, Struik Publishers, Cape Town, 1974, illustrated, figure 21.