Mutzli

The graphic sheet Mutzli created during the period when Otto Dix lived in Düsseldorf is unusual in its sensual, non-conflictive message. Using the soft lines of the drypoint medium, the artist pays homage to female beauty. He does so here no longer with the caustic bite that is typical of his scenes from brothels, symbolic representations of the Muses and portraits of famous female artists. Such a tone is seen only in his portrayals of members of his family. The print is a faithful rendition of Dix’s wife Martha. He made several portraits of her from their marriage in 1923 to the early thirties. This sheet is exceptional in its use of minimal, restrained visual means that sufficed the artist to achieve an erotic, yet informal visual expression. This concept of portrait represents the intimate aspect of Dix’s artwork and demonstrates the artist’s versatile abilities anchored in the style of the German Neue Sachlichkeit (New Objectivity).