Wilhelm Morgner
Könige aus dem Morgenland, 1914

Alfred Flechtheim and Wilhelm Morgner

In his short career Wilhelm Morgner created an impressive œuvre comprising a total of 235 paintings, almost 2000 drawings, 67 prints and two sculptures. Having worked largely as an autodidact, he attended Georg Tappert’s school of painting in Worpswede in 1908. Tappert was to remain Morgner’s artistic adviser and friend up until the artist’s death. Despite all the criticism he received, Morgner stayed largely in his home town, with the exception of a few short study trips. During one of his visits to Berlin he came into contact with Pointillism and saw works by van Gogh and the early Expressionists. He wove the knowledge he gained into his own work, which became increasingly removed from the figurative, and experimented with the effect of pure colour. From 1912 his works became more abstract and his compositions – often described as ‘astral’ or ‘ornamental’ – have a spiritual content. Morgner participated in exhibitions at the New Secession in Berlin, with the Blauer Reiter and at the Sonderbund exhibition in Cologne between 1911 and 1913. He published his work in the magazines ‘Der Sturm’, ‘Die Aktion’ and in the ‘Blauer Reiter Almanach’. 76 of his works were confiscated during the ‘Degenerate Art’ campaign in 1937.

Wilhelm Morgner and Alfred Flechtheim probably never actually met personally. The contact to Flechtheim was most likely made through Tappert who was responsible for dealing with the artist’s assets and estate. The Galerie Flechtheim was charged with the sale of the whole estate in April 1920, subject to certain conditions. Flechtheim for example was to receive 35% of the gross price. The agreement was signed by Maria Morgner, Tappert and Flechtheim. In addition, Flechtheim’s publishing house acquired the wood and lino cuts as well as the etchings and was obliged to sell the original graphic works partly as portfolios and partly as individual sheets. Flechtheim also owned most of the original printing plates and blocks.