Thoma, Hans (1839-1924), Christ with Crown of Thorns, 1902
Hans Thoma(1839 Bernau - 1924 Karlsruhe), Christ with Crown of Thorns , 1902. Brass relief plate in niello technique with raised sections, 38 cm x 40 cm. Monogrammed and dated “hTh 1902” at the bottom right.
- Partially discolored, otherwise in excellent condition
- Seeing gaze -
Christ looks at us intently and at the same time through us. The crown of thorns and the drops of blood stand out in relief, making the pain seem tangible and immediately present. With the pain, Christ's gaze has transcended itself, so that the incarnate God—like his Father—now seems to see everything. At the same time, the captivating power of his enigmatic gaze testifies to its effectiveness. Depicted frontally, Christ's face forms the center of the painting, emphasized by its almost square format, from which rays of divine light emanate in all directions, transforming the brass into a golden background. Christ gains an iconic timelessness that transforms his face into an archetype of himself, yet one that seems very real thanks to the flowing drops of blood and the filigree, seemingly tangible hair and beard reminiscent of Albrecht Dürer's self-portrait as Christ.
Hans Thoma, for whom the revitalization of sacred art was a very important aspect of his work, takes on what is probably the greatest artistic challenge here: depicting the face of Christ, which is both divine and human, and he succeeds in making both aspects vividly present.
The picture plate was created in connection with Hans Thomas' co-initiation of the State Majolica Manufactory in Karlsruhe. It is a unique work of art in its own right and at the same time the archetype of its artisanal reproduction. The relief panel also testifies to Hans Thomas' desire to constantly explore new artistic media and exploit their creative potential. Against this background, the relief panel is a synthesis of sculpture and printmaking.
About the Artist
After failing to complete his apprenticeship as a lithographer, painter and clockmaker, Hans Thoma trained as an autodidact painter. In 1859 he won a scholarship to the Karlsruhe Art School, where he became a student of Wilhelm Schirmer and Ludwig Des Coudres. After graduating in 1866, Thoma spent time in Basel and Düsseldorf. He met Otto Scholderer, with whom he traveled to Paris in 1868. There he was impressed by the art of Gustave Courbet and the Barbizon School. After his works were rejected by the Karlsruhe Kunstverein, Thoma moved to Munich in 1870, where he was close to the Leibl circle. Wilhelm Trüber worked for a time in Thoma's studio in Munich. In 1874 he made the first of a series of trips to Italy with the painter Albert Lang, where he met Hans von Marées and Adolph von Hildebrand and became friends with Arnold Böcklin, whose art made a lasting impression on Thoma. On his return to Munich, Thoma became a student of Cella Berteneder, whom he married in 1877.
Thoma traveled to England in 1879 at the invitation of art collector Charles Minoprio. Over the years, Minoprio acquired more than 60 oil paintings by Thoma and organized the first exhibition of his art abroad in Liverpool in 1884. Thoma had lived in Frankfurt since 1878. The following year, the Frankfurter Kunstverein organized the first solo exhibition of his work. After a trip to the Netherlands, Thoma moved to Kronberg im Taunus in 1899, where the Kronberg painters' colony was based. That same year he was appointed professor at the Karlsruhe Art School and director of the Karlsruhe Kunsthalle. In 1901, together with Wilhelm Süs, Hans Thoma founded the Grand Ducal Majolica Manufactory in Karlsruhe, for which he supplied designs from then on.
Thoma was now at the height of his artistic fame. The 1909 edition of Meyer's Großes Konversations-Lexikon noted that Thoma had become one of the German people's favorite painters. On the occasion of his 80th birthday in 1919, Ernst Oppler and Lovis Corinth organized a large celebration. After Thoma's death, the Berlin National Gallery dedicated a major exhibition to him in 1922, and the Basel Kunsthalle in 1924.