by Tom Gurney
Tom Gurney BSc (Hons) is an art history expert with over 20 years experience
Published on June 19, 2020 / Updated on October 17, 2026
Email: tomgurney1@gmail.com / Phone: +44 7429 011000
Looking at White Bull
A white bull rests with its legs tucked beneath a heavy body and its head turned towards us. Red appears near the flank and eye, while broad greens and purples surround the pale animal. Franz Marc painted White Bull (Der Stier) in 1911. The Guggenheim Museum holds the oil canvas as accession 51.1312. The existing short route name “Bull” can easily be confused with Marc's other bull images, including a separate red bull and a woodcut. This page identifies the white, reclining painting. [1]
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The canvas measures 100 × 135.2 cm. Its wide format gives the bull space to curl into a compact shape. Marc uses pale white and cream for the back and face, dark contours for the horns and eyes, and a red accent that pulls attention to the animal's left side. The ground is not a detailed pasture: strong colour patches and curving foliage frame the body. Stillness comes from the folded legs and lowered head, not from a lack of movement in the paint. [1]
Compare the pose with Red Bull, a smaller 1912 work on paper in the Pushkin State Museum. Both animals rest, but colour plays a different role. The white body here reflects surrounding hues and stands out against a dark landscape; the red animal in the later work becomes the strongest warm shape in its field. Those differences are easier to see when each work is kept under its correct title, medium and collection. [1] [2]
Marc's colour choices have often been explained through letters, but this painting also rewards direct observation. Follow the long rounded back into the horns and the shadow under the head. The bull is both a particular resting creature and a broad, almost landscape-like white form. The Guggenheim's dimensions and accession anchor that reading to the actual canvas, not to a generic image of “a Marc bull.” [1]
Artwork Directory
This source-checked selection contains 192 identified works and print designs from the current Franz Marc research set. It is a curated selection, not a complete catalogue raisonné. Some works link to their article here; others link to a collection record. Unresolved identifications are omitted.
Discussion
The white bull rests among greens and purples, with small red accents.
Reader Insights
Observation
Which shape makes the bull’s weight and folded posture clear?
Comparison
How does this white bull differ from the red bull study?
Interpretation
How does the surrounding colour affect the animal’s stillness?
Join the Conversation
Which detail changed the way you saw this work? Share a close observation or a comparison with another Marc picture.
References
- Guggenheim, White Bull. View source.
- Pushkin State Museum, Red Bull. View source.
- Related artwork image, Yellow Cow: Photograph by Dr. Alexey Yakovlev; resized without crop or colour change, CC BY-SA 2.0.
- Splash image: Franz Marc, White Bull, 1911, oil on canvas, Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York, 51.1312. Public-domain reproduction via Wikimedia Commons; resized from the 2703 × 1977 source without crop or colour adjustment. Museum object record.
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