Oil and pencil on canvas. With a label on the stretcher and a dedication by the artist; inscribed with Feininger's pseudonym “yclept Papileo” and dated “N. Y. June 11th, 1940”. 35.5 x 73.6 cm.
The complete inscription on the reverse reads: "To my dear Lux, on the auspicious occasion of his 30th Birthday, this preliminary sketch to what may some day become a full-fledged painting, representing 'The Queen of the Hudson': the Side-Wheeler 'Mary Powell', is dedicated with great affection by his Old Laddie, yclept Papileo N.Y. June 11th 1940". [AR].
- A personal dedication by Lyonel Feininger to his son T. Lux on the occasion of his 30th birthday. - A subtly balanced interplay of light and color with a compelling, atmospheric intensity. - A signature motif: the ship under a double rainbow becomes a powerful symbol of memory and resilience. - Feininger masterfully combines clear architectural form with an almost weightless effect. - Directly from the estate of T. Lux Feininger, offered on the international auction market for the first time.
Achim Moeller, Director of the Lyonel Feininger Project, New York-Berlin, has confirmed the authenticity of this work, which is registered in the Lyonel Feininger Project archive under the number 2048-02-26-26. The painting is listed in: Lyonel Feininger: The Catalogue Raisonné of Paintings by Achim Moeller under the number 412. A certificate of authenticity accompanies the work. Additional information was provided by Achim Moeller, The Lyonel Feininger Project, New York - Berlin.
LITERATURE: Achim Moeller, “The Queen of the Hudson (Mary Powell), 1940 (Moeller 412).” Lyonel Feininger: The Catalogue Raisonné of Paintings, http://www.feiningerproject.org/ (accessed February 26, 2025). Hans Hess, Lyonel Feininger. With a catalogue raisonné by Julia Feininger, Stuttgart 1959, CR no. 394 (illustrated on p. 286, here as “Untitled (Sketch)”). - - T. Lux Feininger, Konstruierte Schiffe, in: Mare 20, June/July 2000, pp. 74-79, here p. 77. Sebastian Ehlert, Lyonel Feininger: A vele spiegate / Lyonel Feininger: Auf großer Fahrt, in: Harald Fiebig, Ilse Ruch (eds.), Lyonel Feininger: A vele spiegate / Lyonel Feininger: Auf großer Fahrt, exhibition catalog, Bellinzona 2019, pp. 33-73.

Lyonel Feininger, Marlborough-Gerson Gallery, New York, April 1-June 1, 1969, cat. no. 52, pp. 12 and 69 (illustrated in black and white, listed as “Untitled [a sketch]”). On loan from the Fogg Art Museum, Harvard University, Cambridge (MA) (with a label on the reverse). Lyonel Feininger: Zurück in Amerika. 1937-1956, Moritzburg Foundation, Saxony-Anhalt State Art Museum, Halle (Saale), May 16-August 30, 2009, cat. no. 8 (here as “Queen of the Hudson”), pp. 68ff. (illustrated in color) and p. 221

Theodore Lux (T. Lux) Feininger, Cambridge (MA) (gifted from the artist). Estate of T. Lux Feininger, Cambridge (MA) (inherited)

Condition report on request katalogisierung@kettererkunst.de