Ach River Bridge, Bregenz, 1926

Idyllic and like fallen out of time, Rudolf Wacker’s (1893–1939) rendering of the Ach River Bridge, Bregenz presents itself. Created in 1926, his painting is at once considered an early major work of the New Objectivity in Austria and one of his key works. Like drawing us in, Wacker guides our gaze along the wide and curving road, stretching across the bridge and toward the horizon only to disappear into the landscape on the opposite bank of the river. Looking cool in its elegiac coloring, almost freezing, the scenery is populated by few figures. Walking past the old customs house—a pointed-gabled, crumbling ashlar building—a stocky woman pushing a baby carriage and a miniature dog trailing her, and a bare-footed passerby, both hands in the pockets of his trousers, can be observed. After a creative break of almost one year, the artist, back to Bregenz, found in a new style the possibility of letting, behind the seemingly realistic depiction of the outside world, the subjective sense of disharmonies and ominous forebodings make itself felt.

MH, 2021