About the Work
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.