Winter Death I, 1982
Watercolor over charcoal on cream-colored Ingres paper, 52,4 x 78,5 cm

Winter Death I, 1982

At the center of this jarring watercolor of a wintery riverscape in shades of blue, purple and flat yellow is the oversized head of a woman. The woman is lying with her head on the bank of a ditch, and her hands are the only other parts of her body that are visible. 

In this surrealist depiction, the human body and nature merge. Very wet watercolor has been used and flow lines that create a tear-like effect can be detected in some places. Ruth Baumgarte always painted her watercolors standing at an easel. 

We can identify the deceased. She is Anna-Marie Schubert, Ruth Baumgarte's aunt, with whom she had a very close, intimate relationship and who had often posed for her. This work was created eight years after Schubert’s death.

In this work, she impressively explores through art and personal connection the fundamental philosophical question of life, of living and dying. Anna-Marie Schubert (1889-1976) was the older sister of Ruth Baumgarte's mother. In the immediate post-war years, she and her foster son Dieter lived with Ruth, Ruth's son Thomas and Ruth's mother in Bielefeld. Ruth Baumgarte for a while earned a living for all five family members with her work as an illustrator.