Geschwister (Spielende Kinder)

summer 1874

Summer in Barbizon: Millet, Corot, Daubigny

In the forest of Fontainebleau Liebermann studied the methods of the Barbizon painters — Troyon, Daubigny, Corot and above all Millet — and turned away from Munkácsy's heavy manner. There he began “Potato Harvest in Barbizon”, which he completed only years later.

1874

“The Goose Pluckers” at the Paris Salon

The painting was accepted for the Salon, but the press, mainly for nationalist reasons, gave it negative reviews.

c. 1874 – 1878

Depression and setbacks in Paris

Pressure from his parents and his own creative torments plunged Liebermann into deep depressions; few pictures were produced, and his appearances at the Paris Salons brought none of the success he hoped for. The art scene there rejected him on chauvinistic grounds, and he resolved to leave Paris for good.

1875

Zandvoort and Haarlem: copying Frans Hals

Three months in Zandvoort and copying paintings by Frans Hals in Haarlem helped Liebermann search for his own style: Hals's vigorous brushwork influenced his later work as much as the French Impressionists did. In the autumn, back in Paris and in a larger studio, he painted his first picture of bathing fishermen's children, a subject he would return to more than once.

summer 1876

Amsterdam: Unger, Israëls and the Hague School

In Amsterdam Liebermann met the etcher William Unger, who introduced him to Jozef Israëls and the Hague School. Professor August Allebé took him to the Portuguese Synagogue, which led the artist to reflect on his Jewish roots.

1878

First trip to Italy: Venice and Lenbach

In Venice Liebermann wanted to see works by Carpaccio and Gentile Bellini; there he met a group of Munich painters, Franz von Lenbach among them, and spent three months in their company. He then followed them to Munich, the centre of naturalistic painting in Germany.