EARLY WORK
Already in his early years, between 1903 and 1910, as a student in secondary school in Innsbruck, Austria, Alfons Walde (1891-1958) was proving his extraordinary talent as a painter (e.g, Still Life, 1906). Several Walde watercolors, first shown in the Czichna Art Gallery, in 1911 and 1912, document the advanced state of the young artist’s craft. At the time, Walde was particularly influenced by the late impressionist work of Max von Esterle, which featured intricate colors. Though Walde’s watercolor technique already showed a characteristic impulsiveness and intensity of color, his fellow artist guided him to a more subtle and sensitive understanding of composition.
Selecting motifs from his immediate surroundings in Kitzbühel, Austria, as well as nearby landscapes, Walde soon moved toward a pointilistic style that was characterized by an atmosphere of vibrant light, as evidenced by his works Der Schwarzsee (The Black Lake) and Die Kirchstiege (Church Steps), the latter depicting the church in Kitzbühel. These watercolors originated in the years 1910-1911. Not only did they confirm Walde’s fundamental understanding of technique and pictorial expression, but also provided the artist with the necessary motivation to pursue a full-time career as a painter.
In 1910, Alfons Walde began his studies at the k.-k. (imperial-royal) Technical University of Vienna. His move to Vienna exposed the artist to the vibrant Viennese art scene, including such groups as the Secession, the Hagenbund and the Neukunstgruppe. Walde’s development toward a more expressive style didn’t take long, as he gained inspiration from his exposure to such notable Viennese artists as Gustav Klimt, Egon Schiele, Oskar Kokoschka, etc.
Walde’s ensuing repertoire is characterized by his expressive use of black, red and blue, as his compositional style developed a new focus on landscape structures and the “summaric” representation of human figures. Also emerging in this period’s work is his characteristic technique of making “engravings” on the surface of his paintings, using the opposite end of the paintbrush.
Walde produced many small, square-format oil paintings on cardboard, with thick, rounded, wooden frames that were designed and painted in off-white by the artist himself. Most frequently, the viewer encounters motifs of landscapes, forest clearings, houses, farms, chapels, religious crosses marking the local paths, and other scenes typical of the area around Kitzbühel; motifs from the micro-universe that surrounded the maturing artist, many of them long since disappeared or dramatically altered in appearance. Regardless of theme, the viewer is continually invited to experience Walde’s innermost moments of perception and emotion when looking at these unique, intimate “visual thoughts.” Secluded from metropolitan life, this genre finds itself reduced to an idyllic view that is, ultimately, indebted to its own mentality. Such interpretation might sound a little sentimental, but rejection of the urban lifestyle and a strong yearning for increased control over the immediate “living space” are quite evident in the artist’s work.
Still-life “Stillleben”, 1906
Watercolor on Paper, 15.75 x 22.83 in (400 x 580 mm)
privately owned
Skier “Schifahrer”, about 1910
Oilcray on on paper, 5 x 7.8 in (128 x 198 mm)
privately owned
Bäckenbichl in Kitzbühel “Bäckenbichl”, 1913
Tempera on cardboard, 22.05 x 18.5 in (56 x 47 cm)
privately owned
Springtime on the Black Lake
“Frühlingsstimmung (Schwarzsee)”, 1911
Watercolor on paper, 12.6 x 20.47 in (320 x 520 mm)
privately owned
The last rut “Die letzte Furche”, 1911
Watercolor on paper, 11.42 x 14.96 in (290 x 380 Mm)
privately owned
Evening Time “Abendstimmung”, 1911
Watercolor on paper, 11.54 x 14.96 in (293 x 380 mm)
privately owned
Church of Kitzbühel “Pfarrkirche Kitzbühel”, 1911
Watercolor on paper, 14.96 x 11.54 in in (380 x 293 mm)
privately owned
Crosses on Graves “Grabkreuz”, about 1912
Oil on Canvas, 27.56 x 27.17 in (70 x 69 cm)
Tiroler Landesmuseum, Ferdinandeum
Churchsteps “Kirchstiege”, 1913
Oil on Cardboard, 10.63 x 11.42 in (27 x 29 cm)
Galerie Oberweger
Easter Sunday “Palmsonntag”, about 1914
Oil on cardboard, 11.02 x 11.81 in (28 x 30 cm)
privately owned
Chapel “Kapelle”, 1914
Oil on cardboard, 10.83 x 11.22 in (27,5 x 28,5 cm)
Museum Kitzbühel
The way to Church “Kirchgang”, about 1914
Oil on cardboard, 10.63 x 11.42 in (27 x 29 cm)
privately owned
Gossip “Tratschen”, about 1914
Oil on cardboard, 10.63 x 11.61 in (27 x 29,5 cm)
Kunsthandel Wienerroither & Kohlbacher
Three Women in Traditional Costumes “
Drei Frauen in Tracht (Drei Frauen im Röcklgwand)”, 1913
Oil on canvas, 19.88 x 11.02 in (50,5 x 28 cm)
Museum Kitzbühel
The Meeting “Begegnung”, 1913
Tempera on cardboard, 10.83 x 11.81 in (27,5 x 30 cm)
privately owned
Annual Fair “Jahrmarkt”, 1913/14
Oil on cardboard, 14.57 x 11.42 in (37 x 29 cm)
privately owned
Sledgerace “Gasslrennen”, 1913
Oil on canvas, 10.83 x 11.42 in (27,5 x 29 cm)
Museum Kitzbühel
Skicourse “Schikurs”, 1914
Oil on cardboard, 11.02 x 10.63 in (28 x 27 cm)
Tiroler Landesmuseum, Ferdinandeum
On the slope “Auf der Schiwiese”, 1914
Oil on cardboard, 11.81 x 10.83 in (30 x 27,5 cm)
privately owned
On the slope “Auf der Schiwiese”, 1912
Oil on cardboard, 11.81 x 11.02 in (30 x 28 cm)
City of Innsbruck, Kulturamt
Female Skier “Schifahrerin”, 1912
Tempera on cardboard, 11.65 x 10.79 in (29,6 x 27,4 cm)
Museum Kitzbühel
Two Skiers “Zwei Schifahrerinnen”, 1914
Oil on cardboard, 10.83 x 11.42 in (27,5 x 29 cm)
Museum Kitzbühel
Cross Country-Skiing “Schilanglauf”, 1914
Tempera on cardboard, 6.3 x 6.69 in (16 x 17 cm)
Museum Kitzbühel
On the Top of the Kitzbühler Horn
“Auf dem Gipfel des Kitzbüheler Horns”, 1913
Oil on cardboard, 10.83 x 11.61 in (27,5 x 29,5 cm)
privately owned
Forrest “Waldung”, 1914
Oil on cardboard, 10.90 x 11.33 in (27,7 x 28,8cm)
privately owned
Winter sun “Wintersonne”, 1914
Oil on cardboard, 12.01 x 11.22 in (30,5 x 28,5 cm)
Museum Kitzbühel
Nazenhäusl (House in Kitzbühel) “Nazenhäusl”, about 1914
Oil on cardboard, 10.83 x 11.42 in (27,5 x 29 cm)
privately owned
Solitary House “Einsames Haus”, 1913
Oil on cardboard, 10.63 x 11.42 in (27 x 29 cm)
privately owned
Evening in Autumn “Herbstabend”, about 1914
Oil on cardboard, 10.83 x 11.42 in (27,5 x 29 cm)
privately owned
Evening in Spring “Frühlingsabend”, 1914
Oil on cardboard, 10.63 x 11.81 in (27 x 30 cm)
privately owned
Alpine Flowers “Alpenblumen”, 1914
Oil on cardboard, 7.48 x 8.27 in (19 x 21 cm)
privately owned
Sunflowers “Sonnenblumen”
Oil on canvas, 15.35 x 12.91 in (39 x 32,8 cm)
privately owned
Knappenhäusl (House in Kitzbühel) “Knappenhäusl”, 1913
Oil on cardboard, 10.986 x 11.73 in (27,6 x 29,8 cm)
Museum Kitzbühel
Sun at Noon “In der Mittagsonne”, 1914
Oil on cardboard, 10.63 x 11.47 in (27 x 29 cm)
privately owned
Cross on a Path ” Kreuz am Weg”, 1912
Oil on cardboard, 11.69 x 10.83 in (29,7 x 27,5 cm)
privately owned