Max Liebermann

Allee im Tiergarten mit Reitern und Spaziergängern belongs to Liebermann’s celebrated series of works depicting the bourgeoisie of Berlin in their leisurely activities. In contrast to his early paintings of the 1870s and 1880s, when motives were predominantly taken from rural life, Liebermann’s more mature works were characterised by themes drawn from urban leisure. The Tiergarten was a popular park in the heart of Berlin which provided the ideal setting for Liebermann’s most mature Impressionist paintings. The artist delighted in painting the citizens of Berlin visiting the Tiergarten throughout the year. From 1917 onwards he painted many views of the park, capturing the light effects of different seasons or times of day, the style that made him known as one of the leading German Impressionists. Liebermann’s scenes of the Tiergarten, including the present work, have become the quintessence of the relationship between nature and urban life.

The present work was painted in 1917, a year when the Akademie der Künste organised a large retrospective of Liebermann’s work, and was the pinnacle of his career. Here he has presented the park on a sunny day, with strollers and riders in fashionable clothes between the tree alleys. The composition is made up of the vertical lines of trees, and the diagonals of the path receding into the middle ground, drawing the viewer into the picture. The two rows of trees with their arching crowns create the illusion of an interior, as if looking down a church aisle. The dramatic effect is accentuated by the play of light and shadow. The sun rays coming through the trees illuminate the path on the right and the figures on the light, creating a vibrant contrast with the darker central path.

Fig. 1, Max Liebermann, Kinderspielplatz im Tiergarten, 1925-27, oil on canvas, Private Collection, Germany
Fig. 2, Max Liebermann, Allee im Tiergarten mit Spaziergängern, 1930-32, oil on canvas, Städtisches Museum, Gelsenkirchen