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The Businessman Max Roesberg, Dresden

Otto Dix German
1922
Not on view
Dix portrayed his subjects with a hard-edged, detached realism, accentuating unconventional features and signs of age. Since this portrait was a commission, his treatment of Max Roesberg was rather kind, and he highlighted the man’s business prowess—ultimately short-lived—in several ways. The room is cluttered with materials central to a productive professional practice, such as a telephone, a calendar, and tools for correspondence, while the palette of greens and blues alludes to the color of money. Moreover, Roesberg’s body is almost completely obscured by his business suit—a mark of his professional identity.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: The Businessman Max Roesberg, Dresden
  • Artist: Otto Dix (German, Untenhaus 1891–1969 Singen)
  • Date: 1922
  • Medium: Oil on canvas
  • Dimensions: 37 1/8 × 25 1/8 in. (94.3 × 63.8 cm)
  • Classification: Paintings
  • Credit Line: Purchase, Lila Acheson Wallace Gift, 1992
  • Object Number: 1992.146
  • Rights and Reproduction: © 2025 Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York
  • Curatorial Department: Modern and Contemporary Art

Audio

Cover Image for 2045. The Businessman Max Roesberg, Dresden

2045. The Businessman Max Roesberg, Dresden

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