MoMA

German Expressionism

Works from the Collection


Styles Themes Techniques | Artists Print Publishers | Illustrated Books Portfolios Periodicals | Maps Chronology

THE COLLECTION

Browse the German Expressionism Collection

Showing 10 of 42

  • 1
  • 2

From the portfolio

View All
  • Walter Helbig. Cover (Bucheinband) from 16 Woodcuts (16 Holzschnitte). (1926)
    Cover (Bucheinband) from 16...
    (1926)
    Walter Helbig. Cover (Bucheinband) from 16 Woodcuts (16 Holzschnitte). (1926)
  • Walter Helbig. Colophon (Kolophon) from 16 Woodcuts (16 Holzschnitte). (1926)
    Colophon (Kolophon) from 16...
    (1926)
    Walter Helbig. Colophon (Kolophon) from 16 Woodcuts (16 Holzschnitte). (1926)
  • Walter Helbig. Title page (Titelblatt) from 16 Woodcuts (16 Holzschnitte). (1926)
    Title page (Titelblatt) from 16...
    (1926)
    Walter Helbig. Title page (Titelblatt) from 16 Woodcuts (16 Holzschnitte). (1926)
  • Walter Helbig. Table of Contents (Oglavlenie) from 16 Woodcuts (16 Holzschnitte). (1926)
    Table of Contents (Oglavlenie)...
    (1926)
    Walter Helbig. Table of Contents (Oglavlenie) from 16 Woodcuts (16 Holzschnitte). (1926)
  • Walter Helbig. Houses (Häuser) from 16 Woodcuts (16 Holzschnitte). 1911, published 1926
    Houses (Häuser) from 16...
    1911, published 1926
    Walter Helbig. Houses (Häuser) from 16 Woodcuts (16 Holzschnitte). 1911, published 1926
  • Walter Helbig. Children Playing (Spielende Kinder) from 16 Woodcuts (16 Holzschnitte). 1912, published 1926
    Children Playing (Spielende Kinder)...
    1912, published 1926
    Walter Helbig. Children Playing (Spielende Kinder) from 16 Woodcuts (16 Holzschnitte). 1912, published 1926
  • Walter Helbig. Landscape (Landschaft) from 16 Woodcuts (16 Holzschnitte). 1912, published 1926
    Landscape (Landschaft) from 16...
    1912, published 1926
    Walter Helbig. Landscape (Landschaft) from 16 Woodcuts (16 Holzschnitte). 1912, published 1926
  • Walter Helbig. Bathers (Badende) from 16 Woodcuts (16 Holzschnitte). 1913, published 1926
    Bathers (Badende) from 16 Woodcuts...
    1913, published 1926
    Walter Helbig. Bathers (Badende) from 16 Woodcuts (16 Holzschnitte). 1913, published 1926
  • Walter Helbig. Nudes (Akte) from 16 Woodcuts (16 Holzschnitte). 1915, published 1926
    Nudes (Akte) from 16 Woodcuts (16...
    1915, published 1926
    Walter Helbig. Nudes (Akte) from 16 Woodcuts (16 Holzschnitte). 1915, published 1926
  • Walter Helbig. Sermon for the Birds (Vogelpredigt) from 16 Woodcuts (16 Holzschnitte). 1916, published 1926
    Sermon for the Birds (Vogelpredigt)...
    1916, published 1926
    Walter Helbig. Sermon for the Birds (Vogelpredigt) from 16 Woodcuts (16 Holzschnitte). 1916, published 1926
  • Walter Helbig. Farewell (III.) (Abschied (Ill.)) from 16 Woodcuts (16 Holzschnitte). 1917, published 1926
    Farewell (III.) (Abschied (Ill.))...
    1917, published 1926
    Walter Helbig. Farewell (III.) (Abschied (Ill.)) from 16 Woodcuts (16 Holzschnitte). 1917, published 1926
  • Walter Helbig. Annunciation (III.) (Verkündigung (Ill.)) from 16 Woodcuts (16 Holzschnitte). 1917, published 1926
    Annunciation (III.) (Verkündigung...
    1917, published 1926
    Walter Helbig. Annunciation (III.) (Verkündigung (Ill.)) from 16 Woodcuts (16 Holzschnitte). 1917, published 1926
  • Walter Helbig. Adoration (Anbetung) from 16 Woodcuts (16 Holzschnitte). 1918, published 1926
    Adoration (Anbetung) from 16...
    1918, published 1926
    Walter Helbig. Adoration (Anbetung) from 16 Woodcuts (16 Holzschnitte). 1918, published 1926
  • Walter Helbig. The Artist (Der Künstler) from 16 Woodcuts (16 Holzschnitte). 1918, published 1926
    The Artist (Der Künstler)...
    1918, published 1926
    Walter Helbig. The Artist (Der Künstler) from 16 Woodcuts (16 Holzschnitte). 1918, published 1926
  • Walter Helbig. Illustration from 16 Woodcuts (16 Holzschnitte). 1920, published 1926
    Illustration from 16 Woodcuts (16...
    1920, published 1926
    Walter Helbig. Illustration from 16 Woodcuts (16 Holzschnitte). 1920, published 1926
  • Walter Helbig. Zaddik from 16 Woodcuts (16 Holzschnitte). 1923, published 1926
    Zaddik from 16 Woodcuts (16...
    1923, published 1926
    Walter Helbig. Zaddik from 16 Woodcuts (16 Holzschnitte). 1923, published 1926
  • Walter Helbig. Female Head (Weibl. Kopf) from 16 Woodcuts (16 Holzschnitte). 1923, published 1926
    Female Head (Weibl. Kopf) from 16...
    1923, published 1926
    Walter Helbig. Female Head (Weibl. Kopf) from 16 Woodcuts (16 Holzschnitte). 1923, published 1926
  • Walter Helbig. Islander (Insulanerin) from 16 Woodcuts (16 Holzschnitte). 1925, published 1926
    Islander (Insulanerin) from 16...
    1925, published 1926
    Walter Helbig. Islander (Insulanerin) from 16 Woodcuts (16 Holzschnitte). 1925, published 1926
  • Walter Helbig. Three Men Strolling (Spaziergänger) from 16 Woodcuts (16 Holzschnitte). 1925, published 1926
    Three Men Strolling (Spaziergänger)...
    1925, published 1926
    Walter Helbig. Three Men Strolling (Spaziergänger) from 16 Woodcuts (16 Holzschnitte). 1925, published 1926
  • Walter Helbig. Drunkards (Die Trinker) from 16 Woodcuts (16 Holzschnitte). 1925, published 1926
    Drunkards (Die Trinker) from 16...
    1925, published 1926
    Walter Helbig. Drunkards (Die Trinker) from 16 Woodcuts (16 Holzschnitte). 1925, published 1926

About the portfolio

Heather Hess, German Expressionist Digital Archive Project, German Expressionism: Works from the Collection. 2011.

Walter Helbig's woodcuts present idyllic views of nature, village life, bathers, and religious scenes far removed from the bustling Berlin metropolis, where many of the prints were made. Around 1910, Helbig had encountered the art of the Brücke artists through his friendship with Otto Mueller, who had begun exhibiting with them. These prints, made between 1911 and 1925, show the decisive impact of the Brücke on Helbig's style, as seen in the stark contrasts of black and white, the simplified compositions, and the angular forms.

PUBLISHING HISTORY

Helbig had developed close ties to modern artists working in Switzerland. In 1924, he moved to the country, settling in Ascona, a picturesque village that was becoming increasingly popular with tourists. He published this portfolio himself in 1926, and it serves as a retrospective of his prints up to that point.

Walter Helbig (German, 1878–1968)

The Portfolio

16 Woodcuts (16 Holzschnitte)

Date:
1926 (prints executed 1911-25)
Medium:
Portfolio with sixteen woodcuts, one woodcut title page, one woodcut table of contents, one woodcut cover and one woodcut colophon
Dimensions:
composition: 5 3/16 x 4 1/4" (13.2 x 10.8 cm); sheet (each, irreg.): 17 15/16 x 12 11/16" (45.5 x 32.2 cm); overall: 18 9/16 x 13 3/16 x 3/8" (47.2 x 33.5 x 1 cm)
Paper:
Cream, smooth, laid (Van Gelder Zonen).
Publisher:
The artist, Ascona
Printer:
Officina Verbano, Ascona
Edition:
220 (including 20 on Japan paper and 200 on "Bütten" paper [this ex.])
Credit Line:
Gift of Mrs. Heinz Schultz
Copyright:
© Museo cantonale d'arte, Lugano, Switzerland
MoMA Number:
428.1961.1-20
Share by E-mail
Share by Text Message