Albin Egger-Lienz
(Stribach bei Lienz 1868–1926 St. Justina bei Bozen)
“Mahlzeit” (The Meal), c. 1920/21, signed Egger-Lienz; on the reverse old label of the Galleria Pesaro, Milano and a label with faintly visible inscription “Mittag...”, oil on canvas, 60 x 84 cm, framed
We are grateful to Carl Kraus for confirming the authenticity of the painting. It will be included in the work archive of Albin Egger-Lienz.
Provenance:
Family Collection Segre-Melzi, Tarvisio, Italy
thence by descent to Carlo Melzi (1932–2000), Tarvisio, Italy
thence by descent to Charles Robert Franklin (1942–2024), Tarvisio, Italy
Private Collection, USA (by descent from the above)
Compare:
Wilfried Kirschl, Albin Egger-Lienz. Das Gesamtwerk, Wien-München 1996, vol. I, ill. p. 391 and vol. II, p. 557, cat. rais. no. M 476, ill
Exhibition:
Milano, Albin Egger-Lienz, Galleria Pesaro, January – February 1924
This painting has been requested for the upcoming exhibition “Ich bin fertig. Albin Egger-Lienz 1868–1926” at Schloss Bruck near Lienz from June 12 to October 2026.
Around 1920, Egger-Lienz found a radical new approach to the sujet “Mittagessen” (The Meal), in which he focuses more closely on the individuals gathered around a table in order to center the moment of shared eating. Egger-Lienz chose the title “Mahlzeit” (Meal), with four known variants listed in the catalogue raisonné. This particular painting, however, has always been in private hands since the 1920s, making it an exciting new discovery. Compositionally, it is a slightly smaller variant of the recorded third version (cf. Kirschl M 476), about which Kirschl notes:
“This third version not only introduces significant changes, such as the omission of the dark vest of the second figure on the right, but it also moves beyond the previous versions with its 'painting of light', the merging of light and shadow zones that extend across the boundaries of the objects.”
Similar to a sculptor, Egger-Lienz models the forms with broad brushstrokes, avoiding details and reducing his palette to a few colours – analogous to the monochromy of stone or wood. He was aware that his paintings “appear colourless in comparison to others, and in many cases, I intentionally proceed this way, driven by the feeling of necessity, using such muted colours. For I do not consider colour as a factor in itself, but value it entirely according to the laws of harmony, as a counterbalance to the image idea.” (Egger-Lienz)
Alongside the sculptural shaping and colour reduction, the element of “light” plays a crucial role in his later work, particularly in this painting. Light is not used as an “optical” element to enhance the painterly quality, but rather as a means of “transforming and renewing his way of thinking about the image.” The light that connects the figures in “The Meal” comes from within; it is more of a spiritual illumination, similar to the light in Giorgio Morandi’s still lifes (cf. Kirschl, p. 402).
"I do not paint farmers, but forms."
Egger-Lienz
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(Stribach bei Lienz 1868–1926 St. Justina bei Bozen)
“Mahlzeit” (The Meal), c. 1920/21, signed Egger-Lienz; on the reverse old label of the Galleria Pesaro, Milano and a label with faintly visible inscription “Mittag...”, oil on canvas, 60 x 84 cm, framed
We are grateful to Carl Kraus for confirming the authenticity of the painting. It will be included in the work archive of Albin Egger-Lienz.
Provenance:
Family Collection Segre-Melzi, Tarvisio, Italy
thence by descent to Carlo Melzi (1932–2000), Tarvisio, Italy
thence by descent to Charles Robert Franklin (1942–2024), Tarvisio, Italy
Private Collection, USA (by descent from the above)
Compare:
Wilfried Kirschl, Albin Egger-Lienz. Das Gesamtwerk, Wien-München 1996, vol. I, ill. p. 391 and vol. II, p. 557, cat. rais. no. M 476, ill
Exhibition:
Milano, Albin Egger-Lienz, Galleria Pesaro, January – February 1924
This painting has been requested for the upcoming exhibition “Ich bin fertig. Albin Egger-Lienz 1868–1926” at Schloss Bruck near Lienz from June 12 to October 2026.
Around 1920, Egger-Lienz found a radical new approach to the sujet “Mittagessen” (The Meal), in which he focuses more closely on the individuals gathered around a table in order to center the moment of shared eating. Egger-Lienz chose the title “Mahlzeit” (Meal), with four known variants listed in the catalogue raisonné. This particular painting, however, has always been in private hands since the 1920s, making it an exciting new discovery. Compositionally, it is a slightly smaller variant of the recorded third version (cf. Kirschl M 476), about which Kirschl notes:
“This third version not only introduces significant changes, such as the omission of the dark vest of the second figure on the right, but it also moves beyond the previous versions with its 'painting of light', the merging of light and shadow zones that extend across the boundaries of the objects.”
Similar to a sculptor, Egger-Lienz models the forms with broad brushstrokes, avoiding details and reducing his palette to a few colours – analogous to the monochromy of stone or wood. He was aware that his paintings “appear colourless in comparison to others, and in many cases, I intentionally proceed this way, driven by the feeling of necessity, using such muted colours. For I do not consider colour as a factor in itself, but value it entirely according to the laws of harmony, as a counterbalance to the image idea.” (Egger-Lienz)
Alongside the sculptural shaping and colour reduction, the element of “light” plays a crucial role in his later work, particularly in this painting. Light is not used as an “optical” element to enhance the painterly quality, but rather as a means of “transforming and renewing his way of thinking about the image.” The light that connects the figures in “The Meal” comes from within; it is more of a spiritual illumination, similar to the light in Giorgio Morandi’s still lifes (cf. Kirschl, p. 402).
"I do not paint farmers, but forms."
Egger-Lienz
Sale price
Estimate
Time, Location
Auction House
