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Marcel René von Herrfeldt ( * September 1889 in Boulogne-Billancourt sur Seine/Paris; + 1965 in Munich) was a German painter and protagonist of the Munich School. Initially adhering to the movement of Art Nouveau sans phrase, Herrfeldt later integrates elements of New Objectivity. Fusing Art Nouveau and elements of New Objectivity, he develops a style referred to as expressive realism in the respective literature.

Biography
Marcel René von Herrfeldt was born in 1889, in Paris of the Fin de Siècle. His parents, Alice Herrfeldt and Louis Ricardo Falero, are both artists and engaged to the bustling art scene of Paris and Europe. Since a very young age, painting is a preoccupation of Herrfeldt. He mainly studies in Munich, by the time guided by Franz von Stuck, Florence and Paris, with an interruption during the First World War. Herrfeldt`s paintings are strongly influenced by his teacher Franz von Stuck; in an early phase, he was both influenced by motives and genre, later on, he develops a more unique style, integrating realistic, expressionist elements (Ludwig 1989, 213). The motives Herrfeldt does not only share with other protagonists of the Munich School, but with his father as well. The focus on nude paintings and especially women portrayals was relatively widespread by that time. Although Herrfeldt`s biography is not entirely reconstructed, there is an uncontested hallmark in his early career: 1921 he exhibitions his interpretation of the subjection of woman/woman slavery at Glaspalast, an annually exhibition of protagonist of the Munich School that was well renowned by that time. His painting was widely discussed (Zeller 2000, 12). By that time, his work was accessible to a greater audience. This standing was limited to the inter-war period, fostered by the disbandment of the Munich School. Herrfeldt reassesses in 1951, without tying on to his success of the inter-war period. Awarded the Diplôme d`honneur in 1971, Herrfeldts Oeuvre was priced posthum (Zeller 2000, 25).

The classification of Herrfeldt to a specific genre ist difficult, wrote Max Drost in his analysis on Herrfeldt`s work in 1925 (Drost 1925, 358). Experts primarily differentiate between an early MRH phase of pure Art Nouveau and a later phase of an Expressionist Realistic turn (Zeller 2000, 12). By contrast, there is continuity regarding his motives of astrology and mythology.

Inspiration
Regarding motives, several influences can be highlighted. One of he most important: His father Luis Ricardo Falero (Abb. 2) – a Spanish painter and engineer – who is as well focused on nude-painting, astrology and mythology (Zeller 2000, 7). The focus on women portrayals and mythological motives Herrfeldt shared with his contemporaries and relative art movements such as the Vienna Secession, with well renowned representatives such as Gustav Klimt and Egon Schiele.

Principal work and Motives
Exploring the treasury chest of antique mythology, his preoccupation with nude painting and women portrayals are accompanied with Max Drost`s dictum that Herrfeldt is the herald of women`s beauty (Drost 1925, 358).

His affinity to antique Mythology is pivotal and explicit in his masterpiece Poseidon, completed in 1960, a phase Herrfeldt himself refers to as his peak. Herrfeldt only dated this piece of art. Herrfeldt`s masterpiece was created by a time when the Age of Aquarius was of special interest. Moreover, Herrfeldt not only portrayed women, but men as well. His interpretation of Narciss is a typical example. Moreover, his interpretation of Salome, Judith and the slave women, which caught huge attention when exposed in 1921 in the Glaspalast, are further hallmarks. Further topics are his extensive studies of water, music and dancing scenes. The portrayals of women and focus on power relations runs like a golden thread trough his creations. These portrayals are expressive, idealized and provocative, especially in the context of the 1920ies.

Impact
Despite of his absence in current debates, Herrfeldt can be related to modern Pinup culture (Zeller 2000, 25). In addition, the tension of erotic, idealized portrayals and emancipation is not a controversy limited to the his epoch, but steadily reappears and recently gets manifest in the context of the Femen Movement.

Film

 * Kayser, Stephan (1980): Magma – Eine Reise von hier nach dort
 * Kayser, Stephan (1978): Marcel von Herrfeldt – Künder der Frauenschönheit

Images

 * Im. 1 Wine of Torkai, Luis Ricardo Falero