작품 상세

WILHELM KUHNERT, LION IN A THORNY BUSH LION IN A THORNY BUSH Signed lower left: Wilh Kuhnert Wilhelm Kuhnert has long been recognised as the most important painter of animals of his time. He was able to paint the animals of Africa and Asia in their natural habitat, and combined this authenticity with his vast knowledge of the characteristics of their species. Angelika Grettmann-Werner writes: "Kuhnert does not simply process theoretical knowledge, as had previously been the case of a genre in which knowledge of animals in their natural landscapes was severely lacking, but also made observations of the animals of Africa and Asia and their environment in his own expeditions. (...) In his depictions, Kuhnert uses a combination of realism and impressionism to show the anatomy and individuality of the animal, but includes just enough details as are necessary to enable characterisation and individualisation. He uses an impressionist blurring of the landscape in order to create a uniform atmosphere by which the animal is surrounded. (...) He was the first German artist to paint en plein air in the tropics." (from the German, op. cit., pg. 113).