Fischkutter (Roter Himmel) (Fishing Boat [Red Sky])

Artist Emil Nolde German, 1867–1956

Date1916

MediumOil on canvas

Dimensionsheight and width: 34 5/8 × 28 3/4 in. (87.9 × 73 cm)
frame: 42 9/16 × 36 9/16 in. (108.1 × 92.9 cm)

ClassificationsPaintings

Credit LineGift of Julian and Josie Robertson

Object number2023.9.4

On View

Not on view

ProvenanceProvenance: Probably created Schleswig region, Germany (present-day Tønder, Denmark), 1916; collection of the artist. Nolde Foundation, Seebüll, Germany [1]. Mrs. John D. Rockefeller, III (Blanchette Ferry Rockefeller) (1909–1992) [2]. [Sotheby’s & Co.,
London, Impressionist & Modern Art, Part I, December 3, 1996, no. 32] [3]; Julian Hart Robertson, Jr. (1932–2022) and Josephine (Josie) Tucker Robertson (1943–2010), New York; bequeathed to NCMA, 2023.

[1] After Emil Nolde’s death and per his will, the Nolde Foundation was established as a home for the large number of works that were still in the artist’s possession. It is possible that Fischkutter (Rotter Himmel) was one of these works. Further, Fischkutter (Rotter Himmel) was included in the 1963 Museum of Modern Art, New York, exhibition Emil Nolde, and per the catalogue, the work lists the Nolde Foundation, Seebüll, as the owner at the time.
[2] Considering MoMA’s Emil Nolde exhibition was in 1963 and lists the Nolde Foundation as the owner, Mrs. John D. Rockefeller, III, possibly purchased the work after 1963 but before 1996.
[3] On the lot page for Fischkutter (Rotter Himmel), Sotheby’s notes the work is sold as part of a “German Private Collection.” There is no other evidence at this time on when and if the work entered a German private collection. Published ReferencesFranz Roh, Geschichte der deutschen Kunst on 1900 bis zur Gegenwart (Munich: unknown, 1958), illus. color (page unknown).

Hanns Theodor Flemming, "Der frühe nolde," Die Kinst und das schone Heim, (Munich: unknown, 1958), vol. 56, 201-205, illus. color.

Martin Urban, Emil Nolde, Catalogue raisonne of the Oil Paintings, 1915–1951 (London: Sotheby's Publications, 1990), vol. II, no. 153, no. 753, illus. color.Exhibition HistoryDresden, Germany, Neue Kunst Fides, "Emil Nolde," 1926.

Mannheim, Germany, Das Kunsthaus, Rudolf Probst, "Emil Nolde," 1937.

Hamburg, Germany, Kunstverein, "Emil Nold, Gedachtnisausstellung," 1957, cat. no. 23.

Copenhagen, Denmark, Slot Charlottenborg, "Emil Nolde," 1958, cat. no. 42.

St. Gallen, Switzerland, Kunstmuseum, "Emil Nolde," 1961, cat. no. 23.

New York, NY, Museum of Modern Art, "Emil Nolde," 1963, San Francisco, Museum of Art; Pasadena, CA, The Pasadena Art Museum, cat. no. 41.

Raleigh, NC, North Carolina Museum of Art, "Modern European Paintings from the Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Julian H. Robertson, Jr.", January 22–March 9, 2008.

Raleigh, NC, North Carolina Museum of Art, "The People's Collection, Reimagined," May 23, 2023–October 28, 2024. Object Rights Statement

The North Carolina Museum of Art (NCMA) makes images of its collection available online to support research and scholarship and to inform and educate the public. Certain works of art, as well as the photographs of those works of art, may be protected by copyright, trademark, or related interests not owned by the NCMA. The responsibility for ascertaining whether any such rights exist and for obtaining all other necessary permissions remains with the applicant. To request images and/or permissions from the NCMA, please complete our online request form.