Description
The dark, ruined villa in this painting is made especially mysterious by the strange cypress trees tossed by the wind. A nervous green light flickers through the scene. Influenced by German Romantic art of the early 1800s, Böcklin was preoccupied with dreamlike images suggestive of death.
Provenance
C. Wetter-Rüsch, St. Gallen, by 1893. Hermann Nabel, Berlin 1897. Kunsthandel Eduard Schulte, Berlin 1902. E. Junghanns, Schramberg. Paul Landenberger Jr., Schramberg. Zürich sale, Max G. Bollag, 23 March 1933 (lot 107), Ruine am Meer, reproduced. Private collection, Zürich. Fischer Fine Art, London. Purchased by the cma on 17 August 1979.
Dimensions
111 × 82 cm
Movement / Period
Accession No
1979.57
Official Citations
Curatorial Affinity Stream
Continuing the Universe of Arnold Böcklin (Swiss, 1827–1901)
Modern European Painting and Sculpture • Switzerland • Harmonious Works & Contemporaries
Continuous Discovery