Diseuse

Emil Nolde (born Emil Hansen)

1910–11

Watercolor on Japan paper

Minneapolis Institute of Art

Emil Nolde found inspiration in the decadent pleasures of urban nightlife, showing a preference for entertainers who performed in lurid artificial light. He frequented theaters, dance halls, and cabarets, recording his impressions in quick sketches that provided the basis for oil paintings and watercolors produced in his studio. The seemingly primitive treatment of this woman’s features belies the sophistication of Nolde’s watercolor technique. A marvelous balancing act of freedom, control, and chance, his handling of the brush allowed the liquid color to flow across and soak into the Japanese paper. Combining and overlapping, his w