Karl Blossfeldt's Anconitum anthora (Monkshood) framed and g...

Estimate

£30 - £40

Karl Blossfeldt's Anconitum anthora (Monkshood) framed and glazed. Frame measures 88cm by 68cm. Strikingly modern and inherently beautiful, Karl Blossfeldt's photographs of plants, flowers and seed heads are as appealing today, as they were when they were first introduced to the public in his two landmark books Urformen der Kunst, (Archetypal Forms of Art), 1929 and Wundergarten der Natur, (The Wondergarden of Nature), 1932. From 1898-1932, Blossfeldt taught sculpture based on natural plant forms at the Royal School of the Museum of Decorative Arts (now the Hochschule fur Bildende Kunste) in Berlin. In his lifetime Blossfeldt's work gained praise and support from critics such as Walter Benjamin, artists of the Neue Sachlichkeit (New Realism) and the Paris Surrealists. The words of Walter Benjamin repositioned the artist in modern art and photography and prior to publishing his photographic book in 1926, Blossfeldt was sent an invitation to exhibit his work at the Karl Nierendorf's gallery. The use of botanical specimens as photographic subject matter became popular in the early and mid-nineteenth century at the inception of the photographic medium, as is evident in the calotypes of Henry Fox-Talbot and the cyanotype studies of Anna Atkins. The further use of these photographic subjects as models for translation into other art mediums was practiced by Blossfeldt as well as others before him, such as the photographer/draftsman Adolphe Braun, who translated floral arrangements into award-winning textile designs.