Oil on canvas
Argentina, Buenos Aires, 1930
Leo Putz (1869-1940) – Munich painter and illustrator
Stamped on the stretcher, there handwritten numbered ‘352’
Catalogue raisonné: comp. H. Putz 1953
Dimensions: 49.7 x 55.7 cm
Provenance: Private collection, South America
The authenticity of the painting was confirmed by the family of the artist. We are grateful to Wolfgang Schüller, Galerie Schüller, Munich for his help in cataloguing this lot.
The work that Putz created during his stay in South America is characterized by a brighter color range and constitutes a climax in his creativity; the auction record for an oil painting by the artist, which also shows the portrait of a woman (signed Helmut Putz), is currently placed at €460,000

Leo Putz left to South America with his family in January, 1929. During his stay in Buenos Aires he received a series of portrait commissions, e. g. by the German-speaking industrial family Grether. This painting from 1930 shows the wife, Geneviève Grether with their son. Besides the many portrait sittings, the family of the painter was also often a guest of the Grether’s at dinner at their house or at events in the city. Putz’ style clearly changed in South America – his works become brighter and more tropical in color range and constitutes a climax in his creativity.



The work is stamped on the stretcher and there handwritten numbered ‘352’. The canvas is slightly thinned and shows foxing on the verso. The painting covers a regular craquelé. The frame shows evident traces of use. The image measures 49.7 x 55.7 cm and the overall dimensions, including the frame, are 67.5 x 72.5 cm.



Leo Putz (1869-1940)

Leo Putz was born in 1869 in Merano, South Tyrol. At the age of 16, he took his first art training with his step-brother Robert Poetzelberger. In 1989 he began to study at the Munich Academy and continued from 1891 to 1892 at the Académie Julian in Paris. From 1892 he regularly participated in exhibitions of the Munich Secession. In 1899 he founded with fellow students of the painting class by Paul Hoecker the artists' association ‘Die Scholle’. In 1925 he became an honorary member of the Bavarian Academy of Fine Arts. The following are long trips to South America, which gave his painting a new, powerful impetus. At the beginning of the Second World War Putz war banned from painting and returned to his home town Merano. (tmi)

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