Max Pechstein

(German, 1881–1955)

Max Pechstein was a German Expressionist painter and printmaker known for his boldly colored nudes and landscapes. “Art is not a pastime, it is a duty with respect to the people, a public affair,” the artist once stated. Born Hermann Max Pechstein on December 31, 1881 in Zwickau, Germany, he studied art in Dresden where he met the painter Erich Heckel. In 1906, Heckel invited him to join the collective Die Brücke which had been formed a year earlier by Heckel, Ernst Ludwig Kirchner, and Karl Schmidt-Rottluff. Primarily working in the Impressionist tradition, after joining the group Pechstein began painting in a vibrant Fauvist palette. In a similar vein to Paul Gauguin, Pechstein became interested in primitive art from other cultures as an influence after visiting the Dresden Ethnographical Museum. This interest in the imagery and culture of exotic locales is evinced in his vibrant 1910 painting, Indian and Woman. In 1914, the artist traveled to the Palau Islands in the South Pacific so he could experience the culture first-hand. Pechstein’s art was deemed “degenerate” by the Nazi regime in 1933 and he was forced to resign his teaching position at the Berlin Academy, though it was reinstated after the war. He died on June 29, 1955 at the age of 73. Today, the artist’s works are held in the collections of the Art Institute of Chicago, The Museum of Modern Art in New York, the Albertina in Vienna, and the Von der Heydt Museum in Wuppertal, Germany, among others.

Related Categories

19th-Century European and British Art, Drawings and Works on Paper, Impressionist and Modern Art

Related Artists

Erich Heckel, Ernst Ludwig Kirchner, Otto Mueller, Emil Nolde, Karl Schmidt-Rottluff

Most Expensive Artwork Sold at Auction

Weib mit Inder auf Teppich (+ Früchte II, verso), 1910
Sold price: 4,658,011 USD

Max Pechstein Artworks

Artworks for Sale &
Auction Results

Max Pechstein (5,645 results)
Auf dem Lager, 1947

Max Pechstein

Auf dem Lager, 1947

Sale Date: March 8, 2016

Auction Closed

Der Abend, pl. 3 (from Ein Dorf), 1918–1919

Max Pechstein

Der Abend, pl. 3 (from Ein Dorf), 1918–1919

Sale Date: March 4, 2016

Auction Closed

Deutsche Kunstgemeinschaft Berlin, 1929

Max Pechstein

Deutsche Kunstgemeinschaft Berlin, 1929

Sale Date: February 5, 2016

Auction Closed

Fischerhütten in Ückeritz III, 1949

Max Pechstein

Fischerhütten in Ückeritz III, 1949

Sale Date: February 4, 2016

Auction Closed

STILLLEBEN MIT WEINFLASCHE UND FRUCHTSCHALE..., 1917

Max Pechstein

STILLLEBEN MIT WEINFLASCHE UND FRUCHTSCHALE..., 1917

Sale Date: February 4, 2016

Auction Closed

FEUCHTER TAG (HUMID DAY), 1919

Max Pechstein

FEUCHTER TAG (HUMID DAY), 1919

Sale Date: February 3, 2016

Auction Closed

Mädchenakt mit Handspiegel II, 1910–1911

Max Pechstein

Mädchenakt mit Handspiegel II, 1910–1911

Sale Date: February 3, 2016

Auction Closed

Kutter im Mühlengraben (Leba), 1940

Max Pechstein

Kutter im Mühlengraben (Leba), 1940

Sale Date: February 3, 2016

Auction Closed

Verziehendes Gewitter, 1941

Max Pechstein

Verziehendes Gewitter, 1941

Sale Date: December 5, 2015

Auction Closed

Badende, 1926

Max Pechstein

Badende, 1926

Sale Date: December 5, 2015

Auction Closed

Landschaft mit Gewässer, am Himmel Sonne und , 1922

Max Pechstein

Landschaft mit Gewässer, am Himmel Sonne und , 1922

Sale Date: December 11, 2015

Auction Closed

Fischer am Ufer (Sonntag der Fischer), 1923

Max Pechstein

Fischer am Ufer (Sonntag der Fischer), 1923

Sale Date: December 11, 2015

Auction Closed

Selbstbildnis mit Pfeife, 1921

Max Pechstein

Selbstbildnis mit Pfeife, 1921

Sale Date: December 11, 2015

Auction Closed

Fischerkopf XI, 1911

Max Pechstein

Fischerkopf XI, 1911

Sale Date: December 11, 2015

Auction Closed

Am Wasser (Strand), 1907

Max Pechstein

Am Wasser (Strand), 1907

Sale Date: December 11, 2015

Auction Closed

Junge Frau mit Zigarette (Marta Möller), 1921

Max Pechstein

Junge Frau mit Zigarette (Marta Möller), 1921

Sale Date: December 11, 2015

Auction Closed

Frau mit Blume (Lise Möller), 1921

Max Pechstein

Frau mit Blume (Lise Möller), 1921

Sale Date: December 11, 2015

Auction Closed

Bildnis Dr. Paul Fechter (rauchend), 1919

Max Pechstein

Bildnis Dr. Paul Fechter (rauchend), 1919

Sale Date: December 11, 2015

Auction Closed

Cellospieler (Dr. Freundlich), 1918

Max Pechstein

Cellospieler (Dr. Freundlich), 1918

Sale Date: December 11, 2015

Auction Closed

Frau mit Pelz, 1917

Max Pechstein

Frau mit Pelz, 1917

Sale Date: December 11, 2015

Auction Closed

Männlicher Kopf

Max Pechstein

Männlicher Kopf

Sale Date: December 11, 2015

Auction Closed

Kniender Akt mit Schale' Titelholzschnitt..., 1911

Max Pechstein

Kniender Akt mit Schale' Titelholzschnitt..., 1911

Sale Date: December 9, 2015

Auction Closed

o.T. (4 works), 1918

Max Pechstein

o.T. (4 works), 1918

Sale Date: December 4, 2015

Auction Closed

Fischerleben, Monterosso, 1924

Max Pechstein

Fischerleben, Monterosso, 1924

Sale Date: December 4, 2015

Auction Closed

English (US)

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