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)
Strandfischer am Boot (Nidden), 1909

Max Pechstein

Strandfischer am Boot (Nidden), 1909

Sale Date: April 25, 2009

Auction Closed

Porträt Frau Cuhrt, 1908

Max Pechstein

Porträt Frau Cuhrt, 1908

Sale Date: April 25, 2009

Auction Closed

Kiefer in den Dünen (Pine trees in the dunes), 1921

Max Pechstein

Kiefer in den Dünen (Pine trees in the dunes), 1921

Sale Date: February 4, 2009

Auction Closed

Rote Häuser (Red houses), 1922

Max Pechstein

Rote Häuser (Red houses), 1922

Sale Date: February 4, 2009

Auction Closed

Südsee Reisebilder, 1919

Max Pechstein

Südsee Reisebilder, 1919

Sale Date: January 16, 2009

Auction Closed

Gladiolen (Gladioli), 1918

Max Pechstein

Gladiolen (Gladioli), 1918

Sale Date: February 3, 2009

Auction Closed

Im Haus - Zwei sitzende Akte (from Reisebilder...

Max Pechstein

Im Haus - Zwei sitzende Akte (from Reisebilder...

Sale Date: January 24, 2009

Auction Closed

Akt mit Katze in den Dünen

Max Pechstein

Akt mit Katze in den Dünen

Sale Date: November 29, 2008

Auction Closed

Somme 1916 III - Nahkampf (from Somme..., 1917–1918

Max Pechstein

Somme 1916 III - Nahkampf (from Somme..., 1917–1918

Sale Date: December 6, 2008

Auction Closed

Landschaft am Koser See, Pommern, 1941

Max Pechstein

Landschaft am Koser See, Pommern, 1941

Sale Date: December 5, 2008

Auction Closed

Chrysanthemen, 1937

Max Pechstein

Chrysanthemen, 1937

Sale Date: December 5, 2008

Auction Closed

Alte Frau, 1923

Max Pechstein

Alte Frau, 1923

Sale Date: December 5, 2008

Auction Closed

Kuh mit Frauen, 1923

Max Pechstein

Kuh mit Frauen, 1923

Sale Date: December 5, 2008

Auction Closed

Fischerkopf IX, 1921

Max Pechstein

Fischerkopf IX, 1921

Sale Date: December 5, 2008

Auction Closed

Weib vom Manne begehrt, 1918

Max Pechstein

Weib vom Manne begehrt, 1918

Sale Date: December 5, 2008

Auction Closed

Heilige Familie, 1913

Max Pechstein

Heilige Familie, 1913

Sale Date: December 5, 2008

Auction Closed

Auf dem Lager, 1947

Max Pechstein

Auf dem Lager, 1947

Sale Date: December 5, 2008

Auction Closed

Italienerinnen, 1945

Max Pechstein

Italienerinnen, 1945

Sale Date: December 5, 2008

Auction Closed

Durch die Brandung, pl. 17 (from..., 1919

Max Pechstein

Durch die Brandung, pl. 17 (from..., 1919

Sale Date: December 5, 2008

Auction Closed

Komposition (mit drei Palauakten), 1918

Max Pechstein

Komposition (mit drei Palauakten), 1918

Sale Date: December 5, 2008

Auction Closed

Flieger, pl. 1 (from Bildnisse), 1917

Max Pechstein

Flieger, pl. 1 (from Bildnisse), 1917

Sale Date: December 5, 2008

Auction Closed

Portrait Erich Heckel I, 1908

Max Pechstein

Portrait Erich Heckel I, 1908

Sale Date: December 5, 2008

Auction Closed

Selbstbildnis, pl. 4 (from Boettcher-Mappe), 1948

Max Pechstein

Selbstbildnis, pl. 4 (from Boettcher-Mappe), 1948

Sale Date: December 5, 2008

Auction Closed

Das Findelkind, pl. 1 (from Willy Seidel:..., 1923

Max Pechstein

Das Findelkind, pl. 1 (from Willy Seidel:..., 1923

Sale Date: December 5, 2008

Auction Closed

English (US)

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