Vanitas-Stillleben
Vanitas Still Life
Kunstpalast - Horst Kolberg - ARTOTHEK

Vanitas Still Life, 1869

ArtistWilhelm Trübner, Heidelberg 1851–1917 Karlsruhe
Oil on canvas
Dimensions without frame35 × 40 cm
Dimensions with frame53,5 × 58,7 × 6,8 cm
Status
on display, room 013
About the workThe South German artist Wilhelm Trübner painted this picture while he was still a student. He began studying in Munich in 1868 and then moved to Stuttgart for a year in 1869. This motif is a humorous reference to the art historical tradition of the vanitas, still lifes that remind the viewer of the finiteness of life by means of certain objects. These include skulls, but also books, which were considered luxury items. By placing a halo on the skull, Trübner played with the highly symbolic nature of the individual elements in this pictorial tradition.
AccessionGift 1966
ProvenanceBis Juni 1918 Nachlass Wilhelm Trübner; 4./ 5.6.1918 Georg Oeder, Düsseldorf, angekauft von Rudolph Lepke's Kunst-Auctions-Haus, Berlin, "Nachlass Wilhelm Trübner"; o.D. - 1966 Ernst Georg Matthes, Düsseldorf, im Erbgang von Oeder; 1966 erworben durch Schenkung von Ernst Georg Matthes
Inventory numberM 5555
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