Lady in a Fur Coat (The Gallerist Signe Schultz), 1941

Lotte Laserstein

Narrator: The gallerist Signe Schultz (1894-1960) is portrayed directly from the front, sitting in an armchair with her legs crossed. She is wearing a coat and beret and looks like she is just about to go somewhere. Under the close-fitting, open fur coat, we see an elegant crimson dress. With one hand in her coat pocket and the other hanging over the armrest, Signe Schultz looks slightly tense and watchful. Her gaze does not seek the observer, but remains reservedly introverted. The artworks in the room tell of the environment she is in. With great deftness, Laserstein evokes the soft brown structure of the fur and emphasizes Signe’s jewelry: ring, bracelet, and earrings. The drawings that hang on the wall behind the art dealer form a grid that highlights her figure and frames her head. Here sits a self-confident, ambitious businesswoman about to leave her gallery.

From 1928, Signe Schultz and her sister Alice Lagerbjelke ran Galerie Moderne at Nybrokajen in Stockholm. Because of an invitation to exhibit her work in the Swedish capital, Lotte Laserstein had left Germany in 1937, with many of her most important works in her luggage. It would turn out that the sisters’ exhibition invitation would save Laserstein’s life.