Notes

First unmoved by German modernism, then shaken by the country’s pre-War outlook, Adolph Jentsch arrived in South West Africa in 1938. Although thrilled and inspired by his new environment, and despite his training in Dresden – a hot-bed of avant-gardism – he remained faithful to his unsentimental, orthodox approach to painting. While tending to exhibit in Windhoek, he travelled widely throughout the country, staying on the farms of friends, and painting, more often than not, for his board. The present lot was painted on Farm Schenkswerder on one such trip, and was commissioned by the landowner, Dr Bergmann. The spot from which Jentsch painted was picked by Bergmann and his wife, not only because it was thought at the time to be the very source of the Swakop River, but because it was their favourite farm view.

While from a distance the painted surface is dazzling in its mirage-like shimmer, close up it is alive with detail: the grass carpet in the foreground, for instance, weaving in straw-dry twigs, desert thistles and delicate florets, is flecked and brushed with golds, greys, russets and pinks; furrows and grooves in the sand, moreover, add to the visual complexity, which is doubled again by subtle shadows. These shadows, in fact, always painted in pure, contrasting colours, are as strong a compositional element as the objects they repeat.

Significantly, the work retains its original wooden frame. When possible, Jentsch had his major canvases framed by Tischlerei Ellmer in Windhoek.

Provenance

Commissioned by Dr Bergmann

Purchased by the current owner from Dr Bergmann’s widow