Alfons Walde

When one thinks of Alfons Walde's art, the diverse depictions of landscapes and rural life immediately come to mind. However, Walde, a freethinker and admirer of Egon Schiele, also maintained a lifelong interest in nude painting. He created an erotic oeuvre with numerous nude paintings that convey immediacy and often have the effect of fleeting snapshots. In the present work, Walde plays with accessories such as boots or high-heeled shoes, thereby offering a fanciful view of the naked body. At the same time, he sets colorful accents with the targeted use of accessories. In Walde's love dance, these are blue garters, a blue jacket, or red sandals. The painting depicts four women and one man who have come together for a lovers' dance. It portrays a highly erotic moment, with the focus on movement and the tension between man and woman. Walde also works with contrasts in terms of the different body postures: while the male figure almost throws himself into a pose, the female figures appear gracefully twisted and elegant. The artist's erotic work often makes a reference to nature and is characterized by the arousal of male fantasies, as the love dance also manages to do. On the right edge of the picture, the man presents himself in front of the four women, completely naked except for the striking red sandals, and aroused. While the two women closest to the male figure seem to interact or communicate with each other, the two female figures on the left side of the picture look directly at the man. Their body posture and gestures suggest that they are attracted to him. Walde's protagonists are more distributed on the picture plane than confined to depth; they act in the plane, not in space. The figures have relatively closed contours and therefore stand out sharply from the background. With quick, fleeting brushstrokes, Walde suggests a natural environment. In contrast, the artist attaches great importance to the figures themselves, especially the execution and expression of the faces. In its multi-figure composition and the complexity of the depicted interactions, the present picture is a unique feature in Walde's nude depictions and occupies a special place in his oeuvre.