This relief is based on a work in our collection which is inscribed “Olga.” The painting is in the style of the German artist Heinrich Hoerle.

About Heinrich Hoele:

“Heinrich Hoerle cowered at the sound of wind through trees because it reminded him of bullets that whizzed by him in the trenches.” So was the account of Heinrich’s young wife Angelika, a rising star in the tumultuous art scene that arose in Cologne, Germany, at the end of World War One.

Heinrich, Angelika, and her brother Willy founded the German Dada movement, “Stupid.” Stupid was committed to the idea that art could transform the world. Stupid believed that the establishment, art museums, art dealers, and the upper class had neutered art and were actively trying to control art’s ability to give a voice to the people.

Angelika died of tuberculosis at the age of 23 in 1923. Heinrich died in 1935 at the age of 41. However, he lived long enough to see his artwork condemned as degenerate when the Nazis took power in 1933.

So, how did this painting by a German artist get mixed up with a bunch of Russian art? There may be some clues.

In 1921, Angelika Hoerle became deeply involved in a movement to send aid to millions of starving Russians. A year later, an exhibit called “The First Russian Art Exhibition” opened in Berlin to tremendous success. Funds derived from the exhibit were sent to help starving Russians.

The Russian exhibit had a profound impact on Heinrich Hoerle. He became enamored with the theories that Vladimir Tatlin and El Lissitzky espoused.

In 1924, Russia reciprocated with an exhibit of contemporary German art called - "The First General German Art Exhibition." Among the artists exhibited was Heinrich Hoerle.

During the 1920s, throughout Europe, cross-pollination in avant-garde movements was intense. For a brief period, Russia was a magnet for artists from all over Eastern Europe. Works by artists of many different nationalities are represented in this collection--Ukrainian, Latvian, Hungarian, Finnish, and German.