Female Nude in Buttoned Boots, n. d.

A figure in profile, on much too small feet, in erotic pointed buttoned boots, wearing only stockings, leaning a little forward, mincing along rather than striding, her hands between her thighs, is what Rudolf Schlichter (1890–1955) depicts in his ink drawing Female Nude in Buttoned Boots. A smug little smile on her lips and an oversized cap on her head counteract the erotic charge on the nude body.
Erotic representations make up a fixed part of Schlichter’s oeuvre. Explicit, informed by merciless directness and a keen eye, the artists makes us look into the abyss of human desires. Obsessions, lust and passion play a role in them, as do callous calculation, hopelessness, and miserable living conditions. In 1938, Schlichter was classified as a “degenerate artist” by the Nazis. In particular, his erotic images were perceived as being all-too subversive.

MH, 2021