Erich Heckel's woodcut "Fränzi liegend" (Fränzi reclined) undoubtedly is an incunable of the new "Brücke" style: Full concentration on the line, two-dimensional physicality and a strong contrast, as well as an emphasized graphic printing process. From a single block of wood, he coarsely carved out the shapes with the exception of a few concentrated lines, to indicate her body and facial features. He then used a jigsaw to cut out three separate areas around the body, which were taken out to be colored separately. After inking, the colored and black parts were reassembled and printed in one go. This process avoids overlaps in the edges and creates a flat print image. In 1910, Heckel, Kirchner, Schmidt-Rottluff and Pechstein had finally attained the typical two-dimensional "Brücke" style. Lina Franziska Fehrmann (1900–1950), known as Fränzi, is depicted in the present woodcut. She was about eight years old when she met the "Brücke" artists in Dresden. Erich Heckel moved into his studio there at the end of October 1910. Starting that year, Fränzi appeared as a motif in a wide range of poses executed in all techniques. The popularity of the still very young girl was tremendous, she seemed to embody the idea of the life-reform in the sense of a return to nature and the depiction of the natural. "Fränzi" is a leitmotif, she stands for everything the "Brücke" was about: art liberated from traditional academic rules, art that is directly connected to life and creation. Erich Heckel's catalogue raisonné lists a total of 35 prints that show Fränzi reclined, including 3 prints only in black, 27 in black and red and 5 in black and blue. It appears that only a very small number of these were printed immediately after the block had been completed in 1910. The few prints from the time of origin are characterized by a very lively print image and an irregular application of the color. They have a strong "workshop character" and show that Heckel was more interested in the printing process than the finished sheet itself. The four impressions of which we can say with some certainty that they were printed in 1910, were all printed in black and red. They are irregular, almost carelessly colored and clearly show the application of paint by hand or with a brush. The paper shows significant handling marks, such as fingerprints and accidental brush strokes in the edges. All other known prints, including the five blue prints, were probably printed in the 1920s and 1930s - not an unusual method for Heckel. These later prints are characterized by less internal structure and more homogeneous color areas, as in our copy in a particularly rich red. Erich Heckel's depictions of the young girl Fränzi Fehrmann have made the motif an icon, and with "Fränzi liegend" he created one of the most beautiful graphic sheets of Expressionism. [SM]