Eine Kleine Nachtmusik

Mediums: oil, panel.
Location: The Tate Modern Gallery, London (the UK).

This rather early work was inspired by the “night music” of Mozart. The characters are ambiguous: one of the girls stopped in front of a giant sunflower, her hair flew up, while the other one resembles a doll. We can clearly see the artist’s childhood in this painting. Apart from the flower, the symbol of her mother town, clothes of the characters tell about this – Dorothea’s mother loved to dress her daughters in elaborate silk dresses. The upper part of blouses of both girls is unbuttoned; this gives eroticism to each image, implying sexual intrigue. Tanning wrote, “There are always giant sunflowers, with which you may fight, stairs and corridors, where the bloody finals are played out on the red carpet.”