As you can see from the photographs shown above, Bernd Kroeber set up a scene involving two primary male figures positioned over a restrained female figure. One of the men is either about to have sexual intercourse or has just completed sexual intercourse with the woman while he grasps one of her raised legs. The other man is positioned at the opposite side as he awaits his turn. A third male figure can be seen half in and half out of the image along the right hand side. The woman appears to be restrained with her arms tucked underneath her lower back, a position for the arms if they are bound.
The two central male figures have tight curly hair and long beards and their bodies are obviously lean and muscular. They both portray a version of the ancient male physique, something you would find in black figure painting on Greek pottery. This leads to the possibility that Koebler has presented his interpretation of either an orgy or rape scene from Greek mythology.
The actual image size of this color woodblock or linoleum-block block print is approximately seven and one half inches (7 1/2”) in height by ten and one half inches (10 1/2”) in width. The artwork’s sheet size is obviously larger but what can be viewed is approximately eight inches (8”) in height by eleven inches (11”) in width. Because the full sheet size is hidden by the matte board, the actual dimensions cannot be provided. In addition, the overall measurements of the wooden frame are approximately eleven inches (11”) in height by fifteen inches (15”) in width.
Again, this color woodblock or linoleum-block print is signed in pencil toward the bottom left corner “Kroeber 84” and it is number in pencil in the bottom right corner “6/100” And at the bottom center is the hand-written title “La Grande __?__” (the third French word is indecipherable, but looks like “Bouffe”).
Condition: This original color woodblock or linoleum-block print looks to be in excellent and clean condition -- absolutely beautiful! The original off-white matting has mild age darkening but the color linoleum-cut block print looks to be crisp and vibrant. And the original black-painted wooden frame is generally in excellent and clean condition with some small scuffs and markings. Also, the backside white mount board still retains its original masking tape enclosure that put into place back in the day. Please Note: Because this color woodblock or linoleum-block print still retains all of its original matting and framing, it has not been removed for a thorough condition report.
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BERND KROEBER 1942- (the following information is courtesy the website for Annex Galleries – please visit their website to view more examples of Kroeber’s prints for sale!)
Bernd Kroeber was born in Innsbruck, Austria in 1942. At a very young age Kroeber spent 18 months at the Ecole d'Humanite, Switzerland studying under a famous educator, Paul Geheeb. He flourished under many educational institutions as he attended the French Gymnasium in Berlin from 1954-1956, and in Abitur (Junior College degree) in 1962. He continued his studies at the Art-Academy Berlin in 1963 with Professor Hans Jenisch. Kroeber became acquainted with Julius Bissier, and an art historian Hans Hess. His artistic success as a painter led him to participate in college and university theatre where he wrote scripts for puppet plays, and created stage decorations.
In 1966, as a networker, and a man of ambition, Kroeber debuted his first experiments with collage and blockprinting techniques at his one-man shows in Germany and Switzerland. Around 1967 Bernd Kroeber embarked on a journey to a distant country, United States to further his knowledge and skill in printing. He stayed in New York City briefly, and then traveled across the country to Northern California where he set up a gallery workshop, OTA Gallery in San Francisco. From 1968-1969 he produced his first multi color monoprints after traveling all over the western states, including Nevada and Arizona.
The early 1970s marked a change in Kroeber's career, shifting from a young and excited exhibiting artist to a man with responsibilities after marrying Jean Santilhano in 1972. He closed his gallery in and moved his workshop to storage halls at the port of San Francisco, where it is now called "Editions Ashbury". Though he continued to show his work in special exhibits and participated in art fairs, he was offered teaching contracts with Universities and museums. From 1975-1979 he made two major trips to the USSR and central Asia where he held frequent shows of monoprints and collages. He claimed a name for himself in art and book fairs across America and Europe, and from 1980-1984 he often visited the Northern Sonoma coast. He traveled from Washington state, to Oregon, and western Canada where he met with his interest for plays and stage sets. Not only did he begin to illustrate for books, but he also became an international figure who interpreted and escorted for the German, Swiss, and French delegations. This taste of international engagements preceded his move back to Germany with his whole family and printing press in 1985. He started in Odenwald, south of Frankfurt, and moved to a small town of Huttenfled in 1987.
Even though Kroeber experienced many shifts in his career and life, he never turned away from his passion to teach. From 1987-1992 he began the gradual reconstruction of an old mill-building to house numerous courses, academics, and special projects for schools. In his more recent years (1992-2000) he organized custom art courses for advanced teacher's training in Hessen and Lower Saxony to work with large sized oil paintings and sculptures. His modern work is entailed with "crated collages" that are sunk into framed glass cases. His recent taste for colorful and abstract collages seem to be influenced by mountainous curves and depth an intriguing humor to present a harmonious union.
Source: Bernd Kroeber, "Bernd Kroeber: Monoprints Collagen, 1996-2001", DAI Deutsch-Amerikanisches Institut Heidelberg & Aventis Pasteur MSD, Leimen.
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