Girl’s Head, 1920/29

Helene Funke (1869–1957) was the only daughter next to four sons of an industrialist family from Chemnitz, Germany. In 1918, she was, together with Alfred Kubin (1877–1959) and Carry Hauser (1895–1985), one of the co-founders of the radical-Expressionist artist group “Bewegung” [“Motion”] who started calling themselves “Freie Bewegung” [“Free Motion”] from 1919. In 1928, she was the only women next to nine male colleagues to receive the Austrian State Award. Funke regularly exhibited at the Secession, with the Hagenbund and at the Künstlerhaus. Particularly after World War II, she came to be much in demand in a male-dominated art world. In 1946, she received the Austrian citizenship. In Girl’s Head of 1920/29, Funke portrays a young girl with green eyes and a longing stare. Swiftly dabbed in light colors, the watercolor speaks to Funke’s mastery of the technique.

EF, 2021