Provenance:

Max Pechstein – ‘Village Houses’ (1921)

Expressionist village landscape in vibrant colours

With ‘Village Houses’ from 1921, Hermann Max Pechstein created an impressive example of Expressionist landscape painting. The painting shows a quiet village street lined with simple farmhouses under a cloudless, intensely coloured sky. The bright red facades contrast with the dark green forests on the horizon, while the sky appears almost unreal in shades of blue and pink. This combination of bold colours and dynamic brushstrokes creates an atmospheric density that is typical of Pechstein’s artistic style.

The shadows cast on the street and the clearly outlined buildings suggest a sunny summer’s day. Pechstein succeeds in using expressive means to create a scene that appears both real and emotionally heightened. The perspectival composition draws the eye deep into the picture, into village life, which, however, is only hinted at – a stage for colour and form.

Encounter in the picture: two figures in the foreground

Two figures animate the scene in the right foreground: a woman and a man, both in simple clothing, in a seemingly familiar encounter. They are openly facing each other – a moment of closeness and movement that adds a human element to the static architecture. These figures lend the picture a narrative level without it losing its landscape composition.

A work dating to the Year of Romance

‘Dorfhäuser’ was created in 1921 – an important year in Max Pechstein’s life. That summer, he met his future wife Marta Möller in Leba, a small town between Lake Leba and Lake Sarbsko in Pomerania. It is not surprising that the painting was created in this beloved, nature-loving place. The painter captures the tranquillity and simplicity of country life, but transforms it into a colourful expression of emotion, memory and departure.

Compositional density and emotional choice of colours

Pechstein’s composition thrives on the balance between surface and depth, between human presence and the vastness of the landscape. His brushstrokes are lively and intuitive, the colours appear bright and powerful without being naturalistic. The work reflects the typical pictorial language of the Expressionists – a subjective view of the world, intense, rhythmic and full of colour.