Collection Rauert, Hamburg (circa 1915)
Bernhard Sprengel, Hannover (acquired from the above in 1938 and until at least 1945)
Private Collection, Hannover (1952)
Galerie Großhennig, Düsseldorf (1958)
Acquired from the above on April 22, 1969

Hamburg, Kunsthalle, Hamburger Privatbesitz, 1917, no. 95
(probably) Hamburg, Kunsthalle, Leih-Ausstellung aus Hamburgischem Privatbesitz, 1925, no. 252 (titled Gelbe See)
Celle, Schloss, Befreite Kunst, 1946, no. 85
Mannheim, Kunsthalle, Emil Nolde, 1952, no. 13
Kiel, Kunsthalle, Emil Nolde, 1952, no. 47
Kassel, Museum Fridericianum, Documenta I, 1955, no. 496
New York, Leonard Hutton Gallery, Der Blaue Reiter und sein kreis, 1977, no. 70, illustrated in color in the catalogue (titled Zwei Segelbote auf Bewegter See)

Artist's Handlist, 1910, no. 524
Artist's Handlist, 1930
Martin Urban, Emil Nolde, Catalogue Raisonné of the Oil Paintings, vol. I, New York, 1987-90, no. 609, illustrated p. 533

The canvas is unlined and there is no evidence of retouching under UV light. Apart from a small area of craquelure (slightly lifting but stable) in the thicker dark green impasto near the centre of the right edge, this work is in very good original condition. Colors: The colors in the catalogue illustration are fairly accurate.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

Bewegte See II, painted in 1914, is part of a series of powerful sea paintings which Nolde executed throughout his career. The waves in t🐷he foreground, moving towards the two sailing boats, are rendered in thick white impasto, brilliantly capturing the powerful moment of the breaking waves. The intense contrasts between the blue and white tones capture the invincible strength of the sea whilst at the same time adding a strong texture to the composition. The artist was preoccupied with the task of representing the sea as an elemental force, often shown with scudding rain clouds or e🥃lse bathed in an eerie half-light suggestive of an approaching storm.

 

Having grown up and spent much of his life in the German province of Schleswig-Holstein, Nolde was rarely out of sight or earshot of the sea, which occupied an important place both in his imagination and his work. His first studio, erected during the summer months spent on the island of Alsen from 1903 onwards, was a wooden hut on the very edge of the beach. There he could observe the sea closely and at any time of the day in all its moods. Nolde would later recall, "Often, I stood at the window looking out at the sea for hours. There was nothing except water and sky. There was complete silence except for the occasional hushed ripple of the waves against the stones on the beach" (translated from German, quoted in W. Haftmann, Emil Nolde, Cologne, 1978, p. 70). He himself evidently viewed his relationship with the sea in something approaching mystical terms. Recalling a stormy crossing of the Kattegat during which, standing on the open deck, he leaned far out over the rail of the boat to experience the power and strength of the sea, he notes: "I stood gripping the rail, gazing and wondering as the waves and the ship tossed me up and down. For years afterwards, that day remained so vividly in my mind that I incorporated it into my sea paintings with their wild, mountainous green waves and only at the topmost edge a sliver of sulphurous sky" (quoted in Emil Nolde (ex. cat.), The Whitechapel Art Gallery, London, 🌠1996, p. 132).