Else Bach(1899 Heidelberg - 1951 Pforzheim), Goat Kid
, c. 1935-40. Terracotta, signed "E. Bach" on the plinth, with the signet of the Karlsruher Majolika-Manufaktur on the underside and marked as model 4350, 16 cm (length) x 16 cm (height) x 7.5 cm (width).
- very occasionally slightly rubbed, otherwise excellent condition
- A touching touch -
Compared to Else Bach's elegantly smooth deer figures, the figure of the goat kid appears with a visibly modeled body, as in the animal depictions of her artist colleague Renée Sintenis, who was ten years older. But it is precisely this more abstract appearance that leads to the naturalistic impression of actually recognizing fur. In addition, the surface texture creates an optical vibrato in which the fragile, still awkward liveliness of the recently born animal manifests itself. The side view reveals the child's clumsiness; it seems to be trembling, but the complicated position of its legs keeps it upright. Totally absorbed in grooming its fur, it nevertheless has its ears pricked up attentively. A touching introspection of a life in bloom.
Else Bach does not present the goat kid in a portrait-like pose adapted to the human gaze, as is all too often the case with animal depictions, but rather attempts to visualize the animal through its own internal movements, which results in the child's intense vitality. At the same time, by touching the animal itself, she creates a self-contained figure that, with its own movement of turning, invites us to look at it from all sides. The different views reveal the nature of the goat kid in a new way each time.
About the artist
Else Bach studied at the Pforzheim School of Arts and Crafts, where she was inspired by the sculptor Emil Salm. On her numerous study trips to Germany and abroad, she visited zoological gardens to make animal studies. Beginning in 1935, she created nearly 50 animal figures for the artistically sophisticated Staatliche Majolika-Manufaktur Karlsruhe, founded by Hans Thoma and Wilhelm Süs. This close collaboration resulted in her most famous work today: "Bambi", created in 1936, which became the model for the German Television and Media Prize.
In addition to animal paintings, her later work included nudes, groups of figures, and portrait busts.
At the 1937 World's Fair in Paris, she was awarded the Grand Prix for a group of foals. In 1938, Bach was represented at the Great German Art Exhibition in Munich. A year after her death, the city of Pforzheim honored the artist with a retrospective in 1952.
