Lothar Linde in Red Jacket

Lothar Linde in Red Jacket by Edvard Munch from 1903, originally from the 'degenerate art' collection — indicating it was confiscated by the Nazi regime in 1937 as part of their ideological campaign against modern art — depicts one of the sons of Dr. Max Linde, Munch's principal German patron in Lübeck. Munch painted the Linde family extensively between 1902 and 1904, creating portraits of Max Linde himself and a major decorative frieze for his house. Lothar, wearing a vivid red jacket, is depicted as a child with the directness and psychological openness that Munch brought to his portraits of young people. The Nazi confiscation and subsequent fate of this painting reflects the broader persecution of modernist art in Germany.

The red jacket becomes the dominant chromatic event in the composition, Munch exploiting the child's vivid costume as a vehicle for expressive color against the more subdued tones of the background and the child's face. His rendering of the child's expression maintains the psychological directness of his adult portraiture.