Samoans (Samoanerinnen)

Erich Heckel

1 of 2

Object Label

In 1910 the paramount chief Tupua Tamasese Lealofi and a handpicked entourage of singers and dancers traveled to Germany from Samoa—then a German colony—for what colonial officials had framed as a diplomatic mission. Although Tamasese did secure meetings with many German dignitaries, he was dismayed to discover the true purpose of the visit: to have his troupe stage cultural shows for European audiences in zoos.

In this depiction of a performance, Erich Heckel’s abstracted style likely takes inspiration from art of the Pacific Islands, a place German artists idealized as untouched by modern forces. Yet his primitivized portrayal of the dancers—which distorts both their bodies and the costuming recorded in photographs—reflects the modern dynamic of colonial exploitation that shaped this encounter.

Caption

Erich Heckel German, 1883–1970. Samoans (Samoanerinnen), 1911. Woodcut on laid paper, Image: 8 1/16 x 13 1/4 in. (20.5 x 33.7 cm) Sheet: 10 x 18 1/4 in. (25.4 x 46.4 cm). Brooklyn Museum, By exchange, 38.796. © artist or artist's estate (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 38.796_PS2.jpg)

Gallery

Not on view

Collection

European Art

Title

Samoans (Samoanerinnen)

Date

1911

Geography

Place made: Germany

Medium

Woodcut on laid paper

Classification

Print

Dimensions

Image: 8 1/16 x 13 1/4 in. (20.5 x 33.7 cm) Sheet: 10 x 18 1/4 in. (25.4 x 46.4 cm)

Signatures

Signed, "Erich Heckel '11" lower right margin, in pencil

Inscriptions

Lower left: illegible; lower right in graphite: "Erich Heckel 11" Verso lower center in graphite: "38.796."

Markings

Verso lower center: "BROOKLYN MUSEUM/BROOKLYN, N.Y." in rectangle (Lugt 307b)

Credit Line

By exchange

Accession Number

38.796

Rights

© artist or artist's estate

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