This is among a several drawings I purchased together by Dr. Arthur Tilo Alt (1931-2019)--a scholar and professor of German in Yiddish language and literature in the Judaic studies program at Duke University--which came from his estate in Younsgsville, NC. Born in Java, Indonesia, Alt's family returned to their native Germany in 1933, where Tilo grew up in West Berlin, ultimately moving to the U.S. in 1956 to study at the University of Texas. While I have not done extensive research, all indications are that Alt (Jewish I assume) lived in Berlin during WWII, which is the period during which these drawings would have been made--making these poignant drawings seem all the more so, and also like significant historical documents.
I am not certain if this is a portrait of Alt himself, but certainly it feels quite intimate, with spare but specific details, from alarm clock on the shelf to wall-mounted radio, to single overhead light, to slippers on the rug next to the bed. I am not certain the object under the bed at its foot, but would guess a chamberpot. Very quiet and very beautiful I think, and it also has me thinking about retablos with very similar compositions and feelings.
11 1/8" x 8 1/4". Pencil and watercolor on natural colored construction paper. One black ink stain top edge center. Otherwise very good condition. Signed at lower left. I believe that what appears to be a "3J" at lower right likely refers to his Alt's class in school.
Arthur Tilo Alt. Education: Doctor of Philosophy, University Texas, 1964; diploma Yiddish Language & Literature, Columbia University, 1974.
Career: Instructor, Duke U., Durham, North Carolina, 1961-1965; assistant professor, Duke U., Durham, 1967-1977; associate professor, Duke U., Durham, 1978-1988; professor German and Judaic studies, Duke U., Durham, since 1989; assistant professor, Mount Holyoke College, South Hadley, Massachusetts, 1965-1967. Visiting assistant professor Columbia University, New York City, summers 1967-1968.
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