Róhó Venus 1922

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Side view of a female sandstone figure. The figure has a naked upper body, with a cloth around her hips that reaches down to the ground. The arms of the figure are missing: the right arm is broken off at the biceps, the left arm of the figure is broken off above the elbow.

Ink on paper ca. 25 x 17 cm
Signature: John Quincy Ɑdam's Venus von Róhó 15. IV. 22
Private collection Portugal
Image: Private photograph

This ink drawing is a full-page entry in the guest book of Rohov Castle (Rohó in Hungarian, in present-day Slovakia approx. 120 km north-east of Vienna, see excursus below) of the von Beck family, whose members Adams portrayed in the period 1920-1922. The sculpture depicted is probably a baroque sandstone sculpture from the park of Rohov Castle, which the von Beck family acquired in 1919 and lived in until 1938/39 (initially as a summer residence and after ca. 1927 also all year round). The guest book also contains two further entries by Adams: from September 10-25, 1922 and from September 18-20, 1923 (see cross-references), when the artist enjoyed the hospitality of the von Beck family. It is likely that Adams painted or began the portrait of Margarethe von Beck during his second stay in Rohov (see cross-references).

Excursus: Rohov Castle

The neo-classical Rohov manor house was rebuilt at the beginning of the 19th century by Baron Ferdinand Horecký on the foundations of an older building from 1650. After several changes of ownership, the manor house and the associated land was acquired by Otto von Beck in 1919, who extensively renovated and extended the manor house after a fire in 1924 and set up a model farm. After 1927, Otto von Beck transferred the estate to his sons Rolf and Fritz von Beck. The family lived on the estate until 1938/39. During the war, it was confiscated for the Hitler Youth and used as a girls' home. In 1948, the property was nationalized and has since been used for social institutions and as a children's and women's home.

Cross-references

Adams entries into the guest book of Rohov castle 1922-1923

Margarethe von Beck 1922

Exhibited

Literature

Provenance

1920-1960 Otto and Margarethe von Beck, Vienna, Rohov and Geneva.
1960-1997 their son Fritz von Beck, Salzburg and Lissabon.
Since 1997 family descendants after Fritz von Beck,
private collection Portugal.