Ludwig Meidner, Self-Portrait, 1912
Ludwig Meidner, Self-Portrait, 1912
In a smock so plastered with paint drippings that it was as stiff as armor, girded with my insatiable pallet and snarling brushes, I stood unfaltering the whole night through, painting myself before a grimacing mirror.
from: Ludwig Meidner, Vision of the Apokalyptic Summer (Vision des apokalyptischen Sommers), in: September Cry (Septemberschrei), Berlin 1920
Numerous accounts and statements by the artist himself relating to his Berlin years, his years of exile in England, and the period following his return to Germany describe Meidner as a dedicated night owl. He often painted and drew through the night until dawn. This self-portrait from 1912 provides a vivid example of the dramatic, harsh illumination produced by what was probably a single light bulb. In contrast to the more diffuse illumination of daylight, the directional light creates theatrical contrasts between bright flashes and diffuse shadows. The dramatic quality of this self-portrait is further amplified by the red, glancing light coming from below. This red, perhaps a reflection of fire burning in a stove, lends the face with its challenging gaze and derisive grin a goblinesque quality.
In the "Degenerate Art" exhibition held by the Nazis in 1937, Meidner's self-portrait was prominently displayed as a "sample of Jewish painting and sculpture."
Further reading:
Gerda Breuer und Ines Wagemann: Ludwig Meidner. Zeichner, Maler, Literat. 1884-1966. 2 Bde. (exhibition catalog Mathildenhöhe Darmstadt), Stuttgart 1991.
Thomas Grochowiak: Ludwig Meidner, Recklinghausen 1966.
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