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Auction sale reference

Gloeden, Wilhelm von: Elegie

Sold for €3,200 at Bassenge Auctions on Jun 6, 2026.

Gloeden, Wilhelm von: Elegie auction lot image

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Lot description

Elegie. Circa 1900. Large-format photogravure on strong vellum paper, mounted to board. 26 x 32,7 cm (mount 33,3 x 38,5 cm). Signed by the photographer in pencil and title printed in the lower margin. - - This atmospheric work Elegie by Wilhelm von Gloeden was taken during the same period as Cain, one of von Gloeden’s most iconic and widely reproduced works. Here the photographer also employs a sitter in a contemplative pose with allegorical weight. Blending classical references with fin-de-siècle symbolism, the image exemplifies the photographer’s refined use of natural light, idealized male form, and mythic undertones that helped shape his enduring legacy in art photography. – Board time-stained, a few minimal spots and rubbed areas in upper right of print, otherwise a fine tonal print in very good condition. - - Lit.: Volker Janssen (ed.). Wilhelm von Gloeden, Wilhelm von Plüschow, Vincenzo Galdi: Italienische Jünglings-Photographien um 1900. Berlin: Janssen, 1991, ill. p. 32. - Italo Zannier (ed.), Wilhelm von Gloeden, Fotografie: Nudi. Paesaggi. Scene di Genere, Florence: Alinari, 2008, ill. p. 78. - - - Sollten Sie detailliertere Zustandsberichte wünschen, kontaktieren Sie uns bitte. / Should you need more detailed condition reports, please contact us.

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