(Stronach near Dölsach 1835–1921 Munich)
End of the Work Day, signed Defregger, oil on panel, 45 x 54 cm, framed

Provenance:
Galerie Schlüter, Hamburg, 1984;
Private Collection, Germany.

Exhibited:
Franz von Defregger II, Städtische Galerie Rosenheim, 1 March - 14 April 1991.

Catalogued and Illustrated in:
Hans Peter Defregger, Defregger 1835-1921. supplement, Rosenheim 1991,
p. 109 (“Feierabend”).

A certificate issued by Hans Peter Defregger, Munich, 22 August 1984 is available upon request.

Franz von Defregger can be regarded as the main representative of Alpine genre painting in the Munich School. Born in Tyrol, he came to painting via a circuitous route. In 1860 he attended the preparatory class of the Royal School of Arts and Crafts in Munich and in the following year passed the entrance examination to the Royal Academy of Arts, which he did not enter until 1864. He moved to Munich permanently after a stay in Paris, where he had continued his artistic training at the École des Beaux-Arts. He subsequently specialised in portraits, depictions of scenes from the Tyrolean freedom struggles and everyday Tyrolean life, especially scenes of children.
The connection with the life and nature of his Tyrolean homeland is always palpable in his paintings. This is also evident in the present lot, which shows a family pursuing their respective evening occupations. Sitting at the narrow kitchen table, the man leans against the window sill and enjoys his pipe while thoughtfully watching his child, who is performing writing exercises on his mother’s lap. The woman is shown from the side, illuminated by the light streaming in through the window, and is deeply absorbed in her knitting. The room is only sparsely lit and in the background the kitchen utensils can be seen in the simply furnished kitchen. Defregger gives the viewer an intimate insight into this family circle and allows him to participate in the evening routine of everyday rural life. This is an essential pictorial motif with which the artist brings the house onto the canvas as a place of security. Defregger reinforces this effect with a carefully chosen warm palette and soft brushwork, so that this painting radiates comfort and cosiness to this day.