Linocut (true-sided frottage from the linoleum plate) on very fine Japan paper, 23 x 13 cm. C. 1922. Partial print of the left half of the linoleum plate (23.2 x 23.5 cm) for the subject "Das Kind (Das Malheur)". Monogrammed CR lower right. Reference: Utermann 213, Vogt 150 (both for the whole plate).
A fine example of the experimental spirit of Christian Rohlfs (born 1849), who was already over 70 years old at the beginning of the 1920s and who jumped on the bandwagon of the still young Expressionism late in his life (around 1910). In Rohlfs' graphic work, it is almost a matter of course to alter the original plates or printing blocks over the course of time, sometimes beyond recognition. In this case, Rohlfs printed only the left-hand side of the linocut plate, which meant that he also had to change the technique. Instead of inking the plate, the image was created according to the principle of Chinese stone rubbings by placing a thin sheet of Japan paper on the area to be printed and rubbing a coloured pencil on the paper over the raised areas of the plate, making them visible on the surface of the sheet. Unlike a regular print, where the subject in the print is mirrored horizontally compared to the printing plate, the subject here is true-sided.
