Paul Schroëter (1866-1946) - Self-portrait - 1888

A magnificent self-portrait

A beautiful demonstration of virtuosity, this self-portrait oscillates between precision and freedom of line. We especially admire the sincere and mocking introspection of an artist who knows his talent but does not take himself seriously. The intensely expressive gaze behind the rimmed glasses surprises us. The psychological depth is striking. We detect a mixture of contained pride and diffuse melancholy.
The pencil work is beautifully fine. The lines, sometimes light and barely suggested, contrast with more emphatic areas, testifying to a confident and sensitive hand. The mouth, slightly tightened around a cigar, adds a touch of gentle arrogance; while the hair, half-sketched, seems to dissolve into the weave of the paper, reinforcing the impression of admiring a captured moment, a state of transition between the real world and the world represented.

Paul Schröeter (1866-1946)

Schröeter came from an old Hamburg family. In the 1880s, he studied at the Kunstakademie Düsseldorf with Eduard von Gebhardt and Adolf Schill. There, he became friends with Fritz Overbeck and became a member of the student association known as "Tartarus," whose occasional publications he illustrated. Fellow student Peter Philippi would later describe Tartarus as one of the most important art associations in Düsseldorf, after the professional group Malkasten.

From there, he moved on to the Munich Academy of Fine Arts and joined the General German Art Association. He stayed there for a few years, became a member of the Munich Secession, and participated in its first exhibition in 1893. Schroëter made study trips to Holland, Belgium, and Spain and briefly resided in the Willingshausen artists' colony. In 1895, he received a large gold medal at the Große Berliner Kunstausstellung.

From 1898 to 1901, he lived in Hamburg, where, with Ernst Eitner and Arthur Illies, he co-founded the Hamburgischer Künstlerklub. He also provided commissioned illustrations for the art magazine Jugend. Overbeck was one of several friends who persuaded him to live in the new artists' colony in Worpsweder.

He moved there in 1901 with his wife Grete and children. In 1904, he moved again to Bremen, where he became a member of the Deutscher Künstlerbund. In 1908, he left Bremen and settled near Berlin. He was a member of the Berlin Artists' Association, but very little is known about his later life. Many of his works are in private collections. Most of the others were destroyed during World War II.

Bibliography:

- Peter Philippi: The Little City and Its People, Pictures, Experiences, and Pictures. Walter Hädecke Verlag, Stuttgart 1938, pg. 16.
- "'The Early Years of the Munich Secession'", In: The Art of All, Vol. 15, Bruckmann Verlag, Munich May 1894, pg. 228
- "Schröter, Paul, Painter, Draughtsman, Illustrator, Picture Contributor", In: Jugend. Vol. 33, pg. 553; Vol.40, pg.661; Vol.49, pg.1464 (online).
- Die Kunst, “Von Ausstellungen und Sammlungen - Berlin”, Vol.7, F. Bruckmann