Oil on cardboard. Monogrammed and dated in the lower left corner. With the stamp of the art dealer J.P. Schneider, Frankfurt am Main, and a label from the Georg Schäfer Collection, Schweinfurt, on the reverse. 66.5 x 52 cm.
- The enchanting mythological figures of Thomas captivate viewers with their magical nature. - Sea nymphs and mermaids are also a central motif of fantastic eroticism in the works of Thomas' contemporaries Böcklin and Stuck. - Works by the artist can be found in the collections of the Alte Nationalgalerie, Berlin; the Neue Pinakothek, Munich, and the Albertinum, Dresden; the Städel Museum, Frankfurt am Main; and the Kunsthalle Karlsruhe own the most important and largest Thoma collections.
We are grateful to Claus Vester, attorney-at-law, executor of Helga Ravenstein's will, and chairman of the board of the Helga Ravenstein Foundation, for his kind support in cataloging this lot.
LITERATURE: Henry Thode, Thoma. Des Meisters Gemälde in 874 Abbildungen (Klassiker der Kunst Bd. 15), Stuttgart and Leipzig 1909, illustrated on p. 280. Auktionshaus Neumeister, Munich, auction on Sep. 19, 2007, lot 747 (illustrated).