Just arrived at Olla Art: the lithograph Doornrosie by Marlene Dumas. This lithograph is part of a series of six lithographs, signed 1989 but published in 1990 by the Hamburg Griffelkunst-Vereinigung. A long silence, from the same series, is also part of the collection of Olla Art.
The lithograph is printed on Zerkall paper and signed and dated in pencil by Dumas. The sheet is in good condition. The lithograph is described in the work catalogue of Griffelkunst as number 257 B4 (Rüggeberg, 2004).
The exact edition size in which the lithograph was printed is unknown. Since Griffelkunst works on the basis of pre-subscription, there are no fixed print runs.
Doornrosie
‘Doornrosie’ (the South African equivalent of the Dutch ‘Doornroosje’) refers to ‘The sleeping beauty’ from the fairy tale of the same name (Perrault’s version). It is a story with very ancient origins; similarities are seen with a story from the Siegfriedsage (fifth century). The most famous versions of the fairy tale are the version by Charles Perrault (1697), included in the Mother Goose fairy tales, and especially the version by Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm (1812).
The sleeping beauty in the Brothers Grimm’s version is about a king’s daughter who is cursed: at the age of fifteen she will prick herself on a spindle, and will therefore sleep for a hundred years. This happens, and during her hundred-year sleep everything and everyone in the royal castle stands still. Until, after a hundred years, a king’s son comes to kiss her awake. With that, the spell is broken and everyone in the castle continues with the things they were doing a hundred years before. The couple gets married and the marriage is celebrated in a grand manner.
Information
A short biography of Marlene Dumas can be found here. Also read our newsletter about the work of Dumas.
In addition to Doornrosie and A long silence, Olla Art has another work by Dumas in its collection: the screenprint Semite. Mail us for more information about these works: info@olla-art.com.
Reference
Rüggeberg, H. (2004). Griffelkunst. Verzeichnis der Editionen (1976-2000), Band II (1988-2000). Hamburg: Griffelkunst-Vereinigung.