The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of December 20, 2025

Markwippach

1917

Lyonel Feininger

(American, 1871–1956)
America
oil on canvas
Framed: 94 x 114 x 6.4 cm (37 x 44 7/8 x 2 1/2 in.); Unframed: 80.6 x 101 cm (31 3/4 x 39 3/4 in.); Former: 94 x 114 x 5.5 cm (37 x 44 7/8 x 2 3/16 in.)
Gift of Mrs. Lyonel Feininger 1960.180
© Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York / VG Bild-Kunst, Bonn
Location: 225 German Expressionism & Surrealism

Did You Know?

Lyonel Feininger's son Andreas was a noted photographer whose works are also in the Cleveland Museum of Art.

Description

An American artist who spent much of his early career in Germany, Lyonel Feininger based this composition on sketches he made while hiking near the central German village of Markvippach, as it is properly spelled. Dominated by a church tower, the village’s skyline is rendered through angular, prismlike forms. Two years earlier in this region, the artist encountered his first peacock, describing the experience as “quite mystical—I shall never forget the impression.” Later in life, Feininger referred to Markwippach as his “peacock picture,” and its palette of bold blues, greens, and golds likely references the bird.
  • 1960
    Mrs. Lyonel Feininger [1880-1970], New York, NY, given to the Cleveland Museum of Art
    1960-
    The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
  • The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art XLVII, no. 67 (December 1960): 235. Reproduced: p. 235
    Lurie, Ann Tzeutschler. "Lyonel Feininger: Markwippach" The Bulletin of The Cleveland Museum of Art XLVIII, no. 4 (April 1961): 72-75. Reproduced: p. 72
    Hess, Hans, and Lyonel Feininger. Lyonel Feininger. New York, NY: Abrams, 1961. Mentioned, pp 78, 263; reproduced: p. 83.
    Christensen, Erwin O. A Guide to Art Museums in the United States. New York, NY: Dodd, Mead, 1968. Reproduced: p. 168
    The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1969. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1969. Reproduced: p. 193 archive.org
    Cleveland Museum of Art. Art of the Twentieth Century in the Cleveland Museum of Art. Cleveland, OH: Dept. of Art History & Education, CMA, 1969. Mentioned: p. 3 archive.org
    Hunter, Sam, and John M. Jacobus. American Art of the 20th Century: Painting, Sculpture, Architecture. New York, NY: H.N. Abrams, 1973. Reproduced: no. 222
    The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1978. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1978. Reproduced: p. 244 archive.org
    The Bulletin of The Cleveland Museum of Art LXVIII (February 1981):43. Reproduced: p. 43
    März, Roland. Lyonel Feininger: von Gelmeroda nach Manhattan : Retrospektive der Gemälde. Berlin, Germany: G+H Verlag, 1998. Mentioned and reproduced: p. 100-101
    Egging, Björn, and Steven Lindberg. Becoming a Bauhaus artist: Lyonel Feininger, woodcuts. Bielefeld, Germany: Kerber, 2013. Reproduced: p. 76
  • Monet to Dalí: Modern Masters from the Cleveland Museum of Art. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (October 21, 2007-January 13, 2008).
    Lyonel Feininger - From Gelmeroda to Manhattan. Neue Nationalgalerie (organizer) (July 3-October 14, 1998); Haus der Kunst, Munich (November 1, 1998-January 24, 1999).
    Lyonel Feininger. Curt Valentin Gallery, New York, NY: (date of exhibition unknown).
    Lyonel Feininger, 1871-1956: A Memorial Exhibition. Norton Museum of Art, West Palm Beach, FL (April 26-May 29, 1966); Milwaukee Art Museum, Milwaukee, WI (July 10-August 11, 1966); The Baltimore Museum of Art, Baltimore, MD (September 7-October 23, 1966).
    Year in Review - Nineteen Hundred Sixty. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (November 30, 1960-January 1, 1961).
    Lyonel Feininger Memorial Exhibition, 1959-61, American Tour. San Francisco Museum of Art, San Francisco, CA (November 6-December 13, 1959); Minneapolis Institute of Arts, Minnsapolis, MN (January 6-February 7, 1960); Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (February 18-March 20, 1960); Albright Art Gallery, Buffalo, NY (April 8-May 8, 1960); Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, MA (May 19-June 26, 1960).
    Lyonel Feininger. Buchholz Gallery and Willard Gallery, New York, NY (March 11-29, 1941).
  • {{cite web|title=Markwippach|url=false|author=Lyonel Feininger|year=1917|access-date=20 December 2025|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1960.180