Dimensions 64 x 52.5 cm
Hans Thoma painted this portrait of Prince Frederick Charles of Hesse using oil on canvas. The artist has carefully applied layers of paint, building up subtle tonal variations to capture the prince’s likeness. While Thoma was a trained academic painter, his earthy palette and unidealized rendering of the prince give the portrait a distinctly modern feel. It’s interesting to consider the social context of this work; here we see a member of the aristocracy represented not in formal attire but in a simple red shirt. This choice of clothing, along with the loose brushwork, humanizes the prince, bringing him down to earth. Oil paint, with its versatility and capacity for subtle effects, was the perfect medium for this project. By embracing a more casual style, Thoma challenges traditional notions of portraiture. It makes you wonder about the relationship between the artist and his sitter, and the changing social dynamics of the time.
Comments
Hans Thoma, “the German people’s favourite painter”, lived in Frankfurt for over 20 years. Only recently was the Adolf and Luisa Haeuser Foundation for Art and Cultural Heritage able to acquire the portrait of the Hessian prince. Due to the restrained composition and the contrast of monochrome fields of colour, the painting has a strikingly modern feeling. At the same time, its colouration and fine painterly execution recall German old master portraits. With more than 80 paintings, the Städel boasts an extraordinarily extensive collection of works by Thoma, of which only a small portion can be exhibited at any given time.
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