Wrestlers in a Circus

Provenance

Where it has been

1. 1938 – 1957
   Artist’s estate, sold to Grosshennig Gallery
   high confidenceCleveland Museum of Art

   “Artist’s estate, sold to Grosshennig Gallery (1938-1957) [notes: After Kirchner’s death in 1938, his estate passed into the hands of his wife, Erna.  The contents of the estate remained in the Kirchner home in Davos until 1946, when they were transferred to the Kunstmuseum Basel. In 1948 the collection was inventoried, and it remained at the Kunstmuseum Basel until 1954 under the supervision of the museum’s director, Georg Schmidt.  From 1954, Kirchner’s works were in the care of the estate administrator, Roman Norbert Ketterer, appointed by Kirchner’s heirs, who sold the CMA picture to Galerie Grosshennig on February 14, 1957. ]”

2. 1957 –
   (Galerie Grosshennig, Düsseldorf, Germany, sold to Otto Gerson Gallery)
   purchase
   high confidenceCleveland Museum of Art

   “(Galerie Grosshennig, Düsseldorf, Germany, sold to Otto Gerson Gallery) (1957)”

3. 1957 – by 1960
   (Otto Gerson Gallery, New York, lent to Grosshennig Gallery on commission)
   purchase
   high confidenceCleveland Museum of Art

   “(Otto Gerson Gallery, New York, lent to Grosshennig Gallery on commission) (1957 - by 1960) [notes: Although the mode of transfer of the Kirchner painting from Galerie Grosshennig to Otto Gerson Gallery is unclear, it occurred quickly, as the painting appears in a 1957 exhibition mounted by Gerson.  The Kirchner is also recorded in the Otto Gerson stock books by June 1958 (stock no. P47), and in the gallery inventory by October 31 of that year.  Neither the stock book nor the inventory clarify the circumstances of the transfer of the painting from Grosshennig to Gerson.  Because Wilhelm Grosshennig and the Gerson Gallery worked very closely together throughout the 1950s and 1960s, it is quite possible the painting was under joint ownership. ]”

4. 1957 – 1960
   Galerie Wilhelm Grosshennig
   high confidenceWikidata · owned by
5. By 1960 – 1963
   (Galerie Grosshennig, Düsseldorf, Germany, returned unsold to Marlborough-Gerson Gallery)
   high confidenceCleveland Museum of Art

   “(Galerie Grosshennig, Düsseldorf, Germany, returned unsold to Marlborough-Gerson Gallery) (By 1960-1963) [notes: The Kirchner was once again with Galerie Grosshennig, having been lent on commission by Gerson.  It appeared in Grosshennig exhibitions in 1960 and 1962.  ]”

6. 1963 – 1964
   (Marlborough-Gerson Gallery, New York, sold to Allan Frumkin)
   purchase
   high confidenceCleveland Museum of Art

   “(Marlborough-Gerson Gallery, New York, sold to Allan Frumkin) (1963-1964) [notes: After failing to sell at Grosshennig, the painting was returned to the Marlborough-Gerson Gallery, which had absorbed Gerson’s stock after his death in 1960.  After Gerson died, his widow, Ilse, Ralph Colin, executor of Gerson’s estate, and Frank Lloyd and Harry Fischer, who had founded Marlborough Fine Art in London, created the Marlborough-Gerson Gallery in New York in 1963. ]”

7. 1964 – 1966
   (Allan Frumkin Gallery, New York, NY, sold to E.V. Thaw)
   purchase
   high confidenceCleveland Museum of Art

   “(Allan Frumkin Gallery, New York, NY, sold to E.V. Thaw) (1964-1966) [notes: Several pieces of correspondence indicate that Frumkin purchased the painting in Germany, which could mean that he saw it at Grosshennig but purchased it through Marlborough-Gerson shortly thereafter, or that Grosshennig was involved in the sale in some capacity, as the two dealers were still closely associated. In any case, the Kirchner was certainly back with Marlborough-Gerson by 1963, and therefore Frumkin could not have purchased it directly from Grosshennig. ]”

8. 1966 –
   (E. V. Thaw, New York, NY, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art)
   purchase
   high confidenceCleveland Museum of Art

   “(E. V. Thaw, New York, NY, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art) (1966)”

9. 1966 –
   The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
   purchase
   high confidenceCleveland Museum of Art

   “The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (1966-)”

10. 1966 – 1966
    Eugene Thaw
    high confidenceWikidata · owned by