Gallery - Graphic works
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Posters for Egypt and the Juryfreie Carnival

Grosses Fest Der Juryfreien
Lithograph 122 x 84 cm Mst. Standort
Nr. C6/130 (Munich 1933)



The preliminary draft for a poster advertising tourism to Egypt is a water-colour featuring warm faded colour tones. On the right Hess’ poster for the 1933 Carnival celebrations of the Juryfreie Movement.



 

The work, of which we can see a full-scale reproduction in black and white and  a detail in colour, is included in the book “Die Zwanziger Jahre in Munchen” (Munchener Stadt Museum-LIPP-Graphilsche Betriebe) 1979.

Sketch for Egyptian Tourism Poster
Water-colour 36 x 17

 
 

Campaign for Primavera Siciliana

Hess’ sketches for the “Primavera Siciliana” (Sicilian Spring) to promote tourism in Sicily clearly show the strong affection and attachment which the artist felt for the island and its people, who welcomed him so warmly during his exile there in the 1930’s.

Hess fled Munich to escape Nazi persecution
after first the banning and then the dissolution
of the Juryfreie Movement of radical young
artists of which he was a leading member.  


 


Sketch for Primavera Siciliana
Water-colour 30-5 x 33.5 (Messina 1925) 

Studies for Primavera Siciliana tourism posters
Pencil on yellow paper 27 x 33.5 (Messina 1925)

 

A painting which became a postcard

     


The postcard reproduction of a painting commissioned by a Sicilian citrus fruit company is yet another example of how Hess was a herald of what now would be called multi-media art – not to mention that he was working in Italy’s deep south far from the advanced industrial circles of the north. “View of the Sanderson Bosurgi factory” (Tremestieri-Messina 1936) was originally a 60 x 100 cm oil painting. Subsequently it was reproduced as a postcard which the company used for advertising purposes. The postcard shown here was sent by Hess himself on 15 September 1938 from Liestal in Switzerland to Dr. Ing. Paul Stuckart in Basel asking for an appointment. We must assume that two years after the postcards were printed Hess had kept a few examples for personal use.