Franz von Stuck (1863 Tettenweis/Lower Bavaria - 1928 Tetschen) "Serpentine Dancers" (originally "The Dancers"). Original title Plaster relief, painted in black and gold, 1895, signed in the background; The relief was created after lengthy studies in connection with Stuck's plans for his own villa as a Gesamtkunstwerk in Munich. There he used it twice: as a plaster relief in the music parlour and as a slightly larger bronze relief on the garden wall. Stuck later had further examples of the plaster relief executed, which he also used to decorate other people's private rooms. The relief depicts two young women facing each other and dancing in light, wide robes; while an ornamentally decorated frame surrounds the relief on the side edges and the upper edge, the lower edge remains unadorned and thus also serves as a base for the dancers. The relief reflects Franz von Stuck's exploration of ancient dance reliefs as well as the modern, free dance of his time. This had been propagated since the end of the 19th century by the legendary performances of the American dancer Loïe Fuller (1862 - 1928), and later also by Isadora Duncan (1877 - 1927). As early as 1892/93, Fuller caused a sensation in Paris with her serpentine dances, impressively enhanced by light effects, in which she was clad in wide, white veil costumes, and inspired numerous artists. Even if Franz Stuck may not have seen Fuller's dances in the original, he was certainly familiar with them from reports, photographs and works by other artists. Fuller's and Duncan's dances corresponded to Stuck's own ideas and interests, as they were an expression of Dionysian joie de vivre in the spirit of antiquity, an intoxication of beauty and sensuality. He realised this in the present flat relief, which depicts the dynamic movement of the two dancers, playing with ornamental lines, symmetries and asymmetries. Approx. 62 cm x 101 cm x 3.5 cm. Further examples can be found in the Museum Villa Stuck in Munich, among others. (inv. no. P 91 1-2) and in the Museum für Kunst- und Kulturgeschichte der Stadt Dortmund (inv. no. C 6103). Painted plaster relief, 1895, Signed.