Artwork
Lizards
Lizards is an ink print by Franz Marc. It dates from 1912 and is held in the collection of the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum.
About this work
Overview
Created in 1912, the woodcut titled *Lizards* presents two stylized reptilian forms set within a circular border. Rendered in stark black ink on a grey‑green Japanese paper, the composition contrasts a dense black field with sharp, angular lines and a surrounding motif of wavy, vine‑like shapes that suggest water or foliage.
Subject & Meaning
The work isolates two lizard‑like silhouettes facing one another, stripped of naturalistic detail. By reducing the creatures to essential contours, the artist emphasizes their rhythmic interaction and the tension between the opposing figures, inviting contemplation of animal forms as carriers of abstract visual dialogue rather than literal representation.
Technique & Style
Executed as a woodcut, the image relies on carved blocks to produce bold, crisp edges. The exclusive use of black pigment on the muted Japanese paper heightens the graphic impact, while the jagged interior lines and decorative border demonstrate the expressionist tendency toward dynamic, exaggerated forms and a heightened sense of movement.
History & Provenance
The print was produced by Franz Marc, a German painter and printmaker active in the early twentieth century. Marc, a co‑founder of the avant‑garde group Der Blaue Reiter, created *Lizards* shortly before his enlistment in the German army. He was killed in combat at Verdun in 1916, and the work now belongs to the limited corpus of his prints.
Context
*Lizards* emerges from the broader expressionist project of using vivid, non‑naturalistic imagery to convey emotional states. Though the piece employs a monochrome palette, its emphasis on animal motifs aligns with Marc’s recurring focus on fauna as symbols of purity and spiritual resonance, a theme prevalent in his paintings and prints of the period.
Own this work as a print
Artist & collection
Artist
Franz Moritz Wilhelm Marc (8 February 1880 – 4 March 1916) was a German painter and printmaker, one of the key figures of German Expressionism.
