Strauss & co - 12 October 2015, Cape Town

529 Alfred Friedrich Franz KRENZ SOUTH AFRICAN 1 899-1980 Olympia signed and dated 1950; signed, dated, inscribed with the title and ‘Rondebosch, Cape’on the reverse oil on canvas 59 by 77cm R70 000–90 000 LITERATURE Ellen Davis-Mesman. (1998) The Colour Palette of Alfred Krenz , Onrust River: Ellen Davis- Mesman. Page 49, illustrated in colour with the title ‘Reclining Nude’ : She is reclining on the soft drapes which cover the chair, a vase with a bunch of flowers stands on a table behind her. The colour nuances in this painting are varied and sensitive. Her pose reminds one of the Venus paintings by Giorgione and Titian or the Olympia by Manet. Krenz’s nude is not a provocative nude, conscious of her nudity; she has her eyes closed and does not confront the viewer. Her pubis is chastely covered by a piece of linen. The fully opened flowers are in lovely contrast to the closed introverted mood of the girl; they are full of life and colour against the soft translucency of the colour of her flesh. 230