Sunlit Hill, 2006
by Wolf Kahn (1927–2020)52 x 38 inches
Signed lower left of center: W Kahn; on stretcher bar: #2006 / 168 Sunlit Hill
Provenance
Babcock Galleries, New York, New York
Private collection, acquired from above, 2011
Sale, Sotheby’s, New York, New York, October 3, 2023, lot 520, from above
Private collection, New York, New York, acquired from above
Related Works
After Glow, 1974, oil on linen, 41½ x 66 inches; Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, New York
Hot Summer, 1990, oil on canvas, 52 x 66 inches; Wolf Kahn Foundation, Brattleboro, Vermont
Note: With its distinct planes of color, this work exemplifies Wolf Kahn’s interest in the exaggerated effects of light on tonality. The artist explained, “I’m always trying to get to a danger point in color, where color either becomes too sweet or it becomes too harsh, it becomes too noisy or too quiet, and at that point I still want the picture to be strong, forceful, and the carrier of everything that a painting has to have: contrast, drama, austerity.”[1]
[1] Justin Spring, Wolf Kahn (New York: Harry N. Abrams, 1996), 79.
Artist Biography
American Abstract Expressionist Famous for Chromatic Landscapes
By Margarita Karasoulas
Painting the American terrain in a vibrant, expressionistic palette, Kahn is celebrated as one of the leading figures of the Hansa Gallery Cooperative and the second generation New York School.
I. Biography
II. Chronology
III. Collections
IV. Exhibitions
V. Memberships
VI. Notes
VII. Suggested Resources
I. Biography
Born in 1927 in Stuttgart, Germany, Wolf Kahn was raised in Frankfurt by his paternal grandparents, avid art collectors who played an influential role in his early penchant
