A major exhibition exploring German Impressionism and the pivotal role of Max Liebermann is currently on display at the Museum Frieder Burda in Baden-Baden through February 8, 2026. The exhibition, curated by Daniel Zamani, challenges the traditional French-centric view of Impressionism by examining how the movement evolved and adapted within German artistic culture between the 1880s and 1930s.
The question of whether Impressionism is inherently French is both aesthetic and political in nature. Beyond being simply a painting technique, this inquiry touches on whether the movement belongs to a specific national culture or represents part of modern civilization as a whole. Art history has sometimes overlooked how Impressionism spread across borders and took root in different countries, absorbing local cultural references and sensibilities unique to each nation.
Max Liebermann emerged as the primary champion of German Impressionism, playing a crucial role in its development and dissemination. His influence extended far beyond his work as a painter - he also served as an important collector who showcased French Impressionist works in his villa in Wannsee, near Berlin. Additionally, Liebermann became a leading figure in the Berlin Secession, an artistic movement that provided a platform for avant-garde artists and helped establish new artistic directions in Germany.
German Impressionism developed approximately twenty years after the French movement pioneered by Claude Monet, flourishing from the 1880s through the 1930s. However, German artists did not simply copy their French predecessors. Instead, they infused the movement with their own distinct sensibility and cultural perspective, creating works that reflected German artistic traditions and social concerns.
The exhibition's opening galleries present a striking contrast to typical French Impressionist subjects, potentially leaving French visitors perplexed by the unexpected imagery. Rather than featuring colorful landscapes or scenes of modern urban life, the German works display young girls in orphanages, wearing modest white bonnets and quietly bent over their sewing work. These genre scenes by artists including Max Liebermann, Fritz von Uhde, and Gotthardt Kuehl demonstrate a naturalistic touch that evokes the influence of Dutch painting more than French Impressionism.
One notable example is Gotthardt Kuehl's 1884 painting "Orphelines à Lübeck" (Orphans in Lübeck), an oil on canvas measuring 98 x 125 cm, now in the collection of the Staatliche Kunstsammlungen in Dresden. This work exemplifies the German artists' assumed preference for anecdotal and narrative elements in their paintings, showing figures that are both modest and well-groomed, representing a distinctly German approach to Impressionist themes.
Following previous studies of Impressionism's variations in Russia and Holland, Zamani's current research demonstrates how the movement adapted to German cultural contexts. The exhibition reveals that German Impressionism maintained its own character while participating in the broader international artistic dialogue of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, contributing to our understanding of how artistic movements transcend national boundaries while maintaining local characteristics.
