The present lot was not known to the public until its discovery last year in a private collection in Germany. The painting has been purchased by the late owner directly from the artist in his studio in Utrecht around 1960 and has been abroad since. Koch painted the work probably between 1955-1958 and took a rather cruel subject as theme in comparison to his other works of that period. The painting has all the characteristics of Koch's work, a mysterious combination of idyll (the forest) and threat (the accident). Depicted is a girl lying on a road in a forest after an accident. Visible is the rear of the car against one of the trees, and the wheel and cut-out of a motorcycle in the lower left corner. Besides the girl, no other persons appear in the picture and there is no suggestion of any other actor. Despite the subject, the atmosphere of the scene is very quiet and almost friendly. The shades of the green of the leaves are delicate and even the sun seems to shine. It is not known if Koch used a photograph in a newspaper as an example for this work such as in several other works. It is more likely that the theme for this painting derived from his fantasy.

See colour illustration