Why Do You Chase My Flock?, 1920

A figure in a full-length dress looks questioningly at a monstrous creature. The title Why Are You Chasing My Flock seems to be said by the figure itself. In doing so, she lays her hand on the head of a mysterious creature, from whose mouth a ray of light is streaming. The invention of such mystical figures, part animal, part human, can also be seen in other drawings by Herzmanovsky-Orlando, such as in Eurythmy. While such surreal creatures can also be found with his contemporary and close friend Alfred Kubin (1877–1959), there is clear difference to be noted. Humor and irony in Herzmanovsky-Orlando replace Kubin’s demonically eerie atmosphere. The graphic created in Merano, where the artist found his characteristic style and his preferred means of expression, the colored pencil drawing, after the First World War.

MSch, 2025