Horst Janssen (1929 Wandsbeck - 1995 Hamburg) (F) 'Ficksativ grüss!', pencil and coloured pencil drawing on paper, sheet size 36 cm x 21.5 cm, signed, dated 10.4.81, inscribed 'Ficksativ grüss! K is ein holen.', mountedProvenance: Private collection, Ruhrgebiet, acquired directly from the artist"THIS is what you should bring: e.g. fixative, matte varnish, just for example / You swine.\" (a handwritten notice by Horst Janssen on his front door, quoted in: Albrecht, Henning: Horst Janssen. Ein Leben, Reinbek 2016.)Horst Janssen was born in Hamburg on 14th November 1929, and was one of the most prolific draftsmen and graphic artists of the 20th century. He was a draftsman, graphic artist, author, poster artist, illustrator and photographer. His graphic oeuvre includes approximately 4,000 sheets as well as 47 series of etchings. Janssen's talent for drawing was already evident during his school years.From 1946 to 1951 he studied with Alfred Mahlau at the Landeskunstschule in Hamburg. Mahlau accepted Janssen as a master pupil and encouraged him, allowing him to work for the coloured paper manufacturer Guido Dessauer in Aschaffenburg from 1952 to 1956. In 1957 Janssen learned the technique of etching from Paul Wunderlich, which was to become his preferred printing technique. As of 1963 the artist increasingly turned to the medium of drawing. Over the years, he reflected on himself with this medium in numerous self-portraits.Janssen reflected upon his existence as an artist in numerous self-portraits and ironic coded depictions. In this colour drawing he depicts himself in caricature as an allegory of the art of drawing. He stands with an oversized pencil in hand and, in place of his pelvis, a large screw-top can juts out like an erection. It is a can of fixative, a painting medium that can be purchased in any art supply store and sprayed over paintings to stop them smudging as easily. This explains the title of the picture "Ficksativ gruss", which is written with ck to form a German curse word and reinterpreted as a special greeting from the artist. Janssen, a manic draftsman, needed a great deal of fixative. He could not do without, so he gladly accepted it as a gift from visitors. On the inside of his front door he wrote as a kind of warning to those leaving after a visit: "This what you damned oxygen consumers, Nassauer + ignoramuses plus egoists drag out! THIS is what you should bring: e.g. fixative, matte varnish, just for example / You swine."