Koller View 3/20

9 Literary symbol "Blue Flower Solitude" is a prototypical example of the Symbolist works of Melchior Lechter (1865 –1937). His "mood pictures" deal with human emotions, but remain mysterious and encrypted. The symmetric al structure and the static calm of the picture are reminiscent of images of saints. The artist refers here to a symbol of the Romantic movement, the blue flower from Novalis's unfinished novel "Heinrich von Ofterdingen ". Paintings from Lechner's Symbolist phase are extremely rare. "Blue Flower Solitude" remained in the same fa mily for al- most 130 years. It achieved a world auction record for the artist in our 3 July auction. Blue Flower Solitude. 1892–93. Oil on panel. 70 × 38 cm. Sold for CHF 128 000 Green retreat Max Liebermann (1847–1935) was greatly attached to his summer residence in Berlin, located on the Grosse Wannsee. The refuge, designed according to the artist's wishes, was not only a private retreat, but also an important contribution to the garden art of the time. Alfred Lichtwark, an art historian who was a friend of Liebermann's, played a major role in this, stimulating a sort of “garden Secession” at the time. The two gentlemen were influ- enced by Dutch and northern German gardens, and followed rec- ommendations by Liebermann's wife Käthe. A large terrace with a view of the lake and extensive flowerbeds coexisted with a birch grove next to the house, a tea pavilion near the shore and hedge gardens, which Lichtwark regarded as "salons de verdure". In Lieb- ermann’s later years this garden became his most important source of inspiration, recalling Claude Monet's relationship with Giverny. Flowerbed in the Wannsee garden. 1918. Oil on board. 50 × 75 cm. Sold for CHF 488 000