Wotan as the God of War – Costume Design (1895 - 1897)

Hans Thoma prints bring the quiet landscapes of southern Germany into your home: the Black Forest where he grew up, the winding Upper Rhine and the gentle hills of the Taunus. In 1909 a German encyclopedia called him one of the most beloved painters of the German people. Our collection gathers art prints of his landscapes, portraits and storytelling pictures, ready to hang in calm, lived-in rooms.

About Hans Thoma

Hans Thoma was born on 2 October 1839 in Bernau im Schwarzwald, a village in the Black Forest, the son of a miller. He learned the basics of painting from a clock-face painter and tried apprenticeships as a lithographer and house painter without finishing them. In 1859 he entered the Karlsruhe Academy, where he studied under Johann Wilhelm Schirmer and Ludwig des Coudres until 1866.

After time in Düsseldorf, he travelled to Paris in 1868 with his friend Otto Scholderer. There he was deeply impressed by Gustave Courbet and the Barbizon School painters. From 1870 to 1876 he lived in Munich, then Germany's art capital, where he was closely linked with the circle around Wilhelm Leibl and became a friend of Arnold Böcklin. He made trips to Italy in 1874 and 1880.

In 1877 he married Cella Berteneder, a painter of flowers and still lifes, and the couple settled in Frankfurt the following year. A show of about thirty of his paintings in Munich in 1890 firmly established his reputation. Cella died in 1901, and Thoma went through years of depression afterwards.

In 1899 he became professor at the Karlsruhe Academy and director of the Karlsruhe Art Gallery, a post he held until 1920. He decorated a chapel inside the gallery, and a wing devoted to his work opened there in 1919. He died in Karlsruhe on 7 November 1924, aged 85.

Style and Subjects

Thoma is best known today for his landscapes and portraits. His early paintings have a lyrical feeling for nature: wide river valleys, meadows, Black Forest hillsides and the Taunus hills near Frankfurt, painted with the directness he admired in Courbet. Ordinary country life appears too, in pictures of haymaking, goatherds and children at play.

From his Frankfurt years onward he also painted allegories, story pictures and religious scenes. Here you can see his love of older German art, especially Albrecht Altdorfer and Lucas Cranach the Elder, and the later influence of his friend Böcklin. If you like landscapes that feel peaceful and close to home rather than dramatic, his river and hill views are the place to start.

Famous Works

• The Rhine at Säckingen (1873), Alte Nationalgalerie, Berlin. One of his best-known views of the Upper Rhine, painted during his Munich years.
• The Rhine at Laufenburg (1870), Alte Nationalgalerie, Berlin. An early river landscape from the stretch of the Rhine close to his Black Forest home.
• Portrait of the Artist's Mother and Sister (1868), Museum Folkwang, Essen. A family portrait from the year he went to Paris, showing the portrait side of his work.
• Children's Round Dance (Kinderreigen) (1872), Kunsthalle Karlsruhe. A cheerful scene of children dancing in a ring, set in the landscape.
• The Bee Friend (Der Bienenfreund) (1863), Kunsthalle Karlsruhe. An early painting made while he was still a student in Karlsruhe.
• Haymaking (Heuernte) (1883), Kurpfälzisches Museum, Heidelberg. A scene of country work from his Frankfurt period.
• The Guardian of the Valley (Der Hüter des Tales) (1893), Galerie Neue Meister, Dresden. A later work from the period when he turned to allegorical subjects.

Decorating with Thoma Prints

His river and hill landscapes, like The Rhine at Säckingen, suit living rooms, hallways and home offices where you want a calm, open view. They sit well with natural wood, linen and plants, and work nicely in country-style or cottage interiors.

The scenes of country life and children, such as Children's Round Dance, bring warmth to kitchens, dining rooms and family spaces. His portraits are quieter and more personal, a good choice for a reading corner, study or bedroom. For a gallery wall, pair one landscape with a portrait to show both sides of his work.

FAQ

What art movement was Hans Thoma part of?

Thoma was a 19th-century German painter linked with realism. He was inspired by Gustave Courbet and the Barbizon School in Paris and was closely associated with the Leibl Circle in Munich. Later he also painted allegorical and religious pictures.

What is Hans Thoma's most famous painting?

The Rhine at Säckingen (1873), in the Alte Nationalgalerie in Berlin, is one of his best-known works. His Black Forest, Upper Rhine and Taunus landscapes are generally considered his finest paintings.

Where can I see Hans Thoma's original paintings?

The largest collections are at the Staatliche Kunsthalle Karlsruhe, which he directed from 1899 to 1920, and the Städel Museum in Frankfurt. The Alte Nationalgalerie in Berlin, the Neue Pinakothek in Munich and the Galerie Neue Meister in Dresden also hold important works.

How can I recognize a Hans Thoma painting?

Look for peaceful landscapes of southern Germany, especially rivers, meadows and rolling hills, often with country people or children. His later work adds allegorical and religious figures influenced by older German painters such as Cranach and Altdorfer.

Where did Hans Thoma come from?

He was born in 1839 in Bernau in the Black Forest, the son of a miller. The landscape of the Black Forest and the nearby Upper Rhine stayed one of his main subjects throughout his life.

Related Artists

• Wilhelm Leibl — leading realist in Munich; Thoma was closely associated with his circle
• Arnold Böcklin — Swiss painter and friend whose influence shows in Thoma's later work
• Gustave Courbet — French realist who deeply impressed Thoma in Paris in 1868
• Lucas Cranach the Elder — German Renaissance master who influenced Thoma's figure paintings