Group of Women, 1922

The five female figures in the oil painting Group of Women by the Passau painter Georg Philipp Wörlen (1886-1954) appear translucent, delicate, and united by an intimate bond. Composed in 1922 from sculptural basic trigonometric shapes like turned wooden figurines, the figures look like fallen out of time. There is something metaphysical about them. The expression is heightened by the restrained color range and the glazed painting, which aim for a simplified physicality. The female figures, stripped of any individuality, and the shapes in the background, reminiscent of fanned-out architectural elements, are articulated in the same mode. Figures and background construction merge into a compositional unity, creating an effect of universal significance. Wörlen was in friendly contact with fellow artists such as Carry Hauser (1895–1985), but, being a convinced Nazi, fell out with him after Adolf Hitler’s (1889–1945) seizure of power.

MH, 2021